Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1890-07-19

witted man and he has hnd expeIiencc.
He cried out. There is fret" and then
jumped for the wall where the hand-gre-
nades we're kept.
JAvrLrSs OF rLAMr.
Itdidn't take minute for thirty men to
get to their feet. aud when they looked
they saw besides the smoke. which by this
time had increased TO solid black column,
pregnant with a. sickening, ,unocating
straight up and came higher and higher
eacn second. They oil began to pull down
hand-grenades and threw them down the
hole where the flames were. The con-
tents spIashed out when the glass vessels
broke and the,liquid sputtered little as u
met the fire. That was all the visible
effect.
HAyD-GRESADHs DO 40 GOOD.
Hand.crenades could not fight fire like
this. Topin called the boy who was near
I him. He was Marty Doyle. messenger.
Go down stairs as fast as your. legs VIII
let YOU" he said. land send out an
alarm; and the little fellow ran. Win
white face. TO the stairway IN the n9rth,
west corner of the room. and stuinpieo
down the iron stairs at a pace ne nau
graph messenger, but his speed down
stairs was remarkable. Fire IN the 9pe-
rating-room! yelled Marty, as he ilew
along and left the open-mouthed Janitor
darkies staring mt his retreating hglrc a.
il they did not quite comprehend what II
all meant. As soon as he reached the street
he ran for the automatic tire-box on the
corner.
TURNING IN AN ALARM.
Ho knew the big brass handle had TO be
tnrned. SO he reached up and turning II
pulled the door open. Then he gave the
hook inside Jerk and the bells inside all
the engine-houses rang out. As soon ~
the boy had started down stairs the opera
tors unrolled big hose-wheei which i
kept at the south side OF the moor away
ready for an emergency OF this KIND. ihsy
unrolled the hose and Tobin turned the
water ON. N was a pretty good stream. out
the only effect it seemed 10 have WAS t'
make the fire shoot up higher, aud It wa
noticed that smoke came rolling OUT OF the
big hole in greater volumes than beioie.
BRAVE MEN AND WOMEN.
These were certainly brave men, ant
Miss Emma Anderson, Miss Foley, an'
| Mrs. Adams. who were among the early
arrivals, stood right there, half CHOKING
with the suffocating smoke. and encouraged
them az wei! as they could. These ope
rators worked the hose until the smok'
| became so thick that they could not se'
where the fire was Ii began TO ASSUME
the proportions OF big black blanket
which almost filed the room. Inc womel
never lost their heads. They Kept rs coo
as veteran tiremen. and the men worke'
like beavers. It was evident that they dl'
not know what was going on down III IN
battery-room below them.
THE FURNACE BELOW.
If they could have obtained one glimps
of the furnace that was burning uhde
their very feet they would have fed IN
state of panic. The elevatOr-men ha'
brought the elevators up to the top hoor
and the three women-Niss Anderson. Aiis
Foley. and Mrs. Adams-went in the ear
| with some of the men. The hose had bee
! dropped by this time with the nozZlepoin'
iuq in the direction of the distrlnutin.
box.
cRowpIyG INTO THE ELEvAToR-cARs.
As fast as tho elevator-cars could tai
them the men crowded in. They began
realize by this time that the ire was goin
TO be much more serious affair than WI
nj first thought Smoke was comm
throuch the cracks of the floor. and IT WI
becoming pretty hot 20 stand on. Wh.
the last few men crowded into the last c'
they were lust little frightened. AS tn'
PASSED the floor below hot wave role
over them. and a. the car proceeded dow
ward fire-brands fellupon them and burn'
their clothing.
A MARROW ESCAPE.
When the car reached the bottom tn
were all glad enough TO get out, for WI
the heat and the water which the hren'
had begun to pour into the building th'
thought they were pretty near the 40
which leads to eternity that they were
a bad way. Not until then did those m'
realize that escape had almost oeen cut o