Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-02-03

ObueTS SeIlOuSlY III uFeu IN lH6 uTe III bnt
Italian tenement house at Boston. The
stairways burned at once, and there was no
avenue o! escape. A business block valued
al $500, 600 was destroyed by another blaze.
BOSTON, February 2.-In July, A years
ago, nine persons were burned to death in a
fire on North street. Boston had not re-
corded q counterpart in fatality to that dis
aster until this morning shortly after mid
night, when fire broke out in the dwelling
house at No. 259 and 261 of that same street,
occupied mostly by Italians, and the shock
ing summing OF the disaster is that ten per-
sons were burned to death, three others
fatally injured and six more were seriously,
If not mortally, hurt.
There is a diversity of accounts as to the
circumstances OF the origin of the fire, the
alarm and the rescues. 1t is believed that
the fire started in the clothing store of Maui
rice Ruhey on the first floor and some min
utes before it was discovered it had eaten
through the partition of the hallway which
contained the stairs leading to the tenements
above.
Y.
The wooden stairway was like tallow
candle and the flames swept up it like
fash. In doing so it lighted up the hall
way and shot little forks out through the
cracks of the door and soon attracted atten-
tion. In a moment more the flames had
taken hold ou the rear stairways ascending
from the same hallway, and thus cut off all
escape for the occupants.
ba ol
mates when they were awakened were of the
most exciting description. There was no
way for them to get down, and as thev as
cended to the attic the flames followed
swiftly upon them. Shrieks of terror, groans
of agony and cries for help filled the air.
Men, women and children filled the windows
and piteously pleaded for help, some of the
more venturesome even hung from the win
oows by only slight hold on the sills
In ten minutes the fear of personal safety
had subsided. Those whom it was possible
70 save had been taken from their positions
of peril, and the wounded had been taken
to places where their injuries could be cared
for. 1t was not until after the fire had been
practically extinguished that the interior of
what was then but a shell could be ex-
amined.
A HORRIBLE SIGHT.
Chief Webber, followed by several fire
men, went into the building at a little after
O'Clock, and with difficulty assembled to the
upper floors. The stairways from the street
TO the second floor were completely burned
awsv. When the Chief and his companions
reached the upper floor sight that Mortified
them met their eyes. Under one of the win
oows crouched human form, burned to a
crisp almost, the two palms clasped together
and kneeling as though at PRAYER
Further search showed in other parts of
the top floor seven other human forms. COW
cred with cinders and ashes. Seeing their
escape from the floors below to the street i'm
possible, because the stairs were roaring |
masses of fire, the terrified victims had evil J
IDENTIFY rushed to the upper floor in their at |
temDts to escape and had there been roasted |
as though held in a furnace.
Two bodies of infants were removed from
other parts of the building and the CON-
pleted list of ten human lives was made up.
The injured were removed to hospitals and
the dead bodies were taken to the morgue |
for Identification.
ANOTHER DESTRUCTIVE FIRE.
Following close upon the terrible calamity |
on North street early this morning came a |
FIRE this forenoon which, in an hours time /
almost totally destroyed the Sears building |
a hve-stOry marble structure, corner of |
Court and Washington streets, owned bv J.
Montgomery Sears, and which at the time
of Its erection was the finest business build
ing in Boston. At 9:25 O'Clock smoke was
seen issuing from the roof and an alarm
was rung in, which was speedily followed
by second, and then a third. When the
department arrived the flames, as in the
case of the Thanksgiving Day and recent
Summer street eonfagrations, seemed TO
have enveloped the whole building.
Il was thought that the fire started in the
engine room on the Court street side of the
building and shot across the passagewav in
the basement and up the elevator well. The
solid hard wood finish of the interior fell an
easy prey for the flames, and but a few
minutes elapsed ere the five stories were on
FIRE from end to end and from side to side of
the building
The walls of the building is about all that
IS left of it. The loss is upward of 5000. 600.
There is an insurance on the same amount
ing to S175, 900, which will undoubtedIv
cover the loss. There is, however. a con-
tingent loss in the way of rents, every Office
in the building being occupied from which
an income of S75, 900 year was derived.