The Memphis appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1886-1890, 1888-08-04
BURNED TO DEATH.
A Crowded Tenement Takes Fire.
Fifteen Persons Lose Their Live.
Outright. Others will Die.
One Hundred and Fifty Persons IN
the Building at the Time.
Tho Flames Spread 80 Rapidly that
all Escape is Shut or
A Man Leaps from the Firth Story and
Falls Mass of Quivering and
Charred Flesh-Awful Details
Brave Firemen.


NEw IouK, Aug, 3.-Thirtecn people
were burned to death in six story brick
building in the rear Of No. 10 Bowcry this
afternoon. Six more, burned so badly
they will probably die, were removed to
various hospitals. The house was ram.
shacke affair, hidden in the middle
Of the block. In the rear OF the
burned building were two houses hem.
ming II ON the Christie street side. In
this cagcd.in building lived about $50 pco.
| pie. Each OF the six floors was occupied
! 10y single family, the head Of which was
u tailor who made clothing for the cheap
wholesale clothing houses, and employed
from fifteen to twenty men, women and
children in addition To his own family Ia
making up the clothing They were all
Polish Jews, aud employer aud employed
worked,
ATS ASH siErr ~ Tlm CROWDED ROOMS
OF the dngy tenement The tenants who
rented the apartments were ). Coon, ).
Graft, Klein, Marks, ;. Harris and IL.
| Levine.
About Il2 o'clock this afternoon, while
! all the occupants ut the building were
husily at work In the closing hours pre-.
ccding their sabbath eve, flames broke out
on the lower floor Tho lirc had, when dis
covered already gained such hcadway that
Il WIS in iull possession ui the stairway,
and escape hy Il seemed impossible. A
stout German woman rushed irantically
into the street wringing her hands and
screaming out "Alcn cot, dose bceblcs
| are burning up
This was a startling reminder that lives
were IN peril, aud great excitement EN-
sued. The police reserve was called out,
aud in very short order luO blue coats, in
charge oi Inspector Williams, were ON
hand. ready 10 assist the iirrmcn.
| Alarm after alarm was sent out for am
! balances aud la very little while sur
gruns rolled IN IRON n. Vincent, Chambers
street, bellevue aud New York hospitals,
| while thr department ul charity aud cor
| rcction sent two Of their amhulances,
Thor services were not badly needed.
i MANY or ruE rHUutrSEp iNNArEs
rushed down through thc flames and ca
4 caped 90 the narrow courtyard with
clothes ablalc aud hands aud bodies
burned Six Of them were 80 severely
burned that they were taken tu tho hos
piial aud may die There we're hrc er-
cnpcs on the front aud rear of the build
ing. but before ANY oi the inmates had
tried to escape hy them the flames hnd
assembled through the house and were
reaching from thc windows, so that dc.
sscut los the fire escapes WIS impossible.
one man. already half burned a. death,
lcaprd from q iinl story window aud fell q
manplcd mass Of flesh IN the little court.
yard Othou jumped from the second
story windows aud escaped With bruises.
The enormous crowds that had gathered
shmnk with irauomr dread aud sympathy
~ some oi the wounded shfirkCd aud
others pruancd with the pain, then others
iccbly moanrd ont In anguish. one poor
woman lay upon her back in u little store
In the lowcry With not only her clothing
but
TuE UNiH 90 uEU MAN ntHNrp urF.
II seemed as II she must be- dead, but
slight uphca,al of thc bosom told that q
little life still remained She was un-
conscious aud the surgeon said She would
not live to reach the hospital. Another
| Young girl was dclirious with pain. She
| Nns not ~ badly burned us the others,
! bat in q mad Jump from one Of the win.
| duNs she had received internal injuries
| aud nlso cut terrible pash in the side II
! her head. from which the blood gushcd
! forth, giving her a gha-ily appearance.
| She nycd aud screamed aud had tp bo
held by two attendants while her wounds
were being dressed.
A. n. shcllen. manager of the Peoples
thcatcr on discovering the fire, sent out
| an alarm aud the iifumpu responded, but
when they arrived the flames already had
complete possession oi the house, aud
nothing could be- done to save II, aud lit.
! ilr to save ~ inmates. Charles W. Nor.
man, property man ul the Peoples thcatcr,
With several oi his comrades ran to tho
fo1i oi the thcalcf carrying q small ladder
| which they stretched over to a window ot
the burning building A woman with her
hair and clothing already ablakc appeared
at the window and Norman called 30 her
to cross over on the ladder She cncd
back that she could not leave her two
children. Norman tried 10 cruss over On
the ladder. but thc flames drove Him
back aud
uE CouiD NOT SAVE HrM
Ahrrwafl the charfcd bodies Of tho
mother aud two children we're found ia
the building. Three men, however, aNailcd
themselves oi the ladder aud escaped 70
the rooi Of the thcaicr. When thc fire.
mrn had at last drowned the ilamcs ~
that they could enter the house. they
searched floor by ilO0f rs they assembled
and ON the third floor they found the
burned bodies ui a man, q woman and
boy. On the fourth floor they found i've
bodies ~ badly burned that it vas impos,,
sible to tll whether they wcfr these VI
men or women. On the hllh door no
bodies we're found. bat on The .Itih hve
more bodies Wcfc found aud they we're
: also burned No bad that Il could not Oe
, told whether they were men nf women.
This made thirteen bodies. The woman
who lcapcd from the fourth slnN NlhuV"
increased In the death lst 10 hiiren,
While the hfcmCn wcfc sclTh'ng INC
ruiu. the CT, came that the roof WIS iAllins
b In and the cracking Of limhcr Nas heard.
Thc Grrmcn did not desert the building
but ran TO the Windows, whrr they
7 waited orders. They shouted TO ohiei
McGill. who was ON the roof OF q lowei
house. "wait tll ! see he shouted
, Lack. lie climbed ladder aud saw ts
roof ngghg ia, but he shouted bach
, orlcs 10 prop Il up, and this N.s success
fully done. Al thc bodies had not oces
taken down, aud until this was done is
Gromen would not leave the rulns