The Portland daily press., 1893-07-12

--eS>e ~ "a A1O'N u bilClC UllttG W0 COuIu
get at it would have taken us all down.
for hose does not burn easily. We had
one line of hose up there, but after
Michael Murphy and one or two Sothers
had gone down that way the wind veered
and blew the flames to that side so that
it was impossible to take that path to
the ground. We thought the ropes
would carry us down, but the fire was
ahead of us. When we were ordered into
the tower took up the ropes with which
we were to draw up the hose. AS soon
as the cries of the crowd warned us that
the tower was on fire below we threw
out the ropes to the roof below and
started to descend that way.
There were two galleries around the
tower, one at the very top, where we
were, and the other twenty or twenty
five feet below. The flames burst out
below this lower gallery, and quickly
burned off the ropes. We did not know
that. We could not see it. We supposed
that the ropes reached the roof below.
All of us tried to go down that way, but
had to drop from the lower gallery,
where the ropes were burned off. did
not know until came down myself. I
| suppose it was the same with the other
boys. was one of the last men down
from the tower. | saw most of the boys
who went before me strike the roof, but
never for moment supposedly was be
cause the rope had been burned.
when the men struck the roof they
would rebound into the air six or eight
feet, some of them broke through the
roof, or broke in and stuck in the hole,
others went clear through to the inside
of the building.
when I came down three others had
fallen across one another from the same
rope. AS 1 dropped from the burned
rope / struck them. That was what
saved me, striking these other men. 1t
broke my fall, and I rolled over with
only. one injury, sprained ankle, from
my foot striking the bodies under me.
II picked myself up and helped to
| carry the other fellows who had dropped
from the tower to the edge of the roof
and sent them down tho ladder. We had
most of the boys picked up and carried
away when the tower fell, but not all of
them. | don't know how many were left
there when the tower fell-probably four
OF five. [ think none of them were
saved. Their bodies will never be found,
for they must have been burned to ashes.
| believe / was the only one of those who
came down the rope who escaped with
out serious injury"
Fire Marshal Murphy's Story.
Standing in the shadow of the smoking
ruins, his face and hands blistered and
his boots charred by the flames so badly
that they seemed about to drop from his
feet, Fire Marshal Murphy told the
story of yesterdays fire with the modes
ty of hero.
"There was but a slight blaze coming
from the top of the tower when reached
the fire." he said, "but I knew from ex-
perience the difficulties in the way OF
| firemen. The quickest and easiest way
to reach the fire was to go up the wind
ing stairway, and by that route the boys
reached the cupola of the tower. I
don't know positively. how many men
were up there. / ordered companies
Nos. l and 2 and the men of chemical
engine No. IA to go up on the roof, and
there were more who followed The
boys had succeeded in getting up the
hose, and sent a man to the edge Of the
roof of the building to order the water
turned on with pressure of 125 pounds.
THE order had not reached the engin-
eer when it seemed as though a great
sheet of flame came suddenly upon us
from the inside of the tower until it
burst nnon ,,s IT. cano without wow,
mo and tbe @ mon began % +o .r' crowd +oward "",I
tbe adre and +l,a +,st ra,, o.umo sI;d;
down one Of of the @ rones wban VOC y sbaat e
fame hlew ont the south side Of et tha toru W.
ar The rones were hnrned Cd off N ~ an uom ~,
stant Ono rana was On tbe eas+ % s;da .5.s nf
the tower and hefore # con1d be ,,sed
the FIRE Ont II in two Ths NOV heo.or 800
to jump off, and as they struck the roof
11l1
+oyrap l%N' ''De' iionn 'ilo
ssWhen Capt. Fitzpatrick jumped his
fall forced him partly through the roof.
| ran TO MN and was dragging him tow
and ard ti,o tho oose e , mnon an sApioSlon came
tower then fell down, tnrned and ran
with the others to the north edge of the
roof. Ihere were too many
enoaa 20 ~ r sI;J uowd do sne .auusl Is wi'n lnuc4
had ladder raised on the east side of
the building and with Capt. Kennedy of
engine and Hans Rehfeldt of truck 8 1
climbed up to see if we could find Capt.
Fitzpatrick. There were two other fire.