The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1894-03-22
A SCHOOL FIRE PANIC.
Chicago Children Jumped to Es-
cape Death by Flames.
FOUR PERHAPS FATALLY INJURED.

or tho injured Three Jumped from tho
Third Story to the Ground-SeveraI
Others Taken from Window Lodges by
Firemen.
CHICAGO. March 2o-Fire in the South
Evanston Public school caused n panic
among the pupils Three children jumped
forty feet from the third floor and were per-
haps fatally injured. They are: Newell
Simmons, head and shoulder injured and
knocked senselcss; Ella Saggert, leg broken;
Esther Burden, internally injured. Teach
ers and pupils were panic stricken, and
many were knocked down and frampled
upon In the rush for the exits The fire
men rescued several children who were
perched on window lodges ready TO drop.
The building, valued at $4,000, was to-
tally destroyed.
During the fire the burning building
was surrounded by a crowd of men and
women whose children were in danger aud
who added to the intcnsc excitement by
striving TO break through the police lines
and rescue the imprisoned little ones.
Miss Foster, a teacher in II lower grade.
discovered the fire just as the children
were preparing to go out for recess. She
had gone to closet for her hat, and had
no sooner opened the door than flames
burst into the room with roar. The chill.
dren were paralyzed with fear for an in
slant, and made no effort to escape. Then
they fell to screaming, aud all rushed to
the doors.
Miss Foster ran hastily upstairs to the
Office of f. w. Nichola, the principal, and
the panic stricken pupils followed her,
blind with fright. Principal Nichols
warned the teachers In OF her rooms as soon
as he could, and telcphoned to the fire de-
partment. Before the engines arrived,
however, the flames had made such head
way that the building was past saving.
In the meantime the greatest excitement
and confusion reigned in the school house
Five hundred children and dozen teach
ers were trying TO escape through the
front door. The flames soon cut off the
hall leading to the rear entrance, and a
rush was made for the other exit.
There Were 200 pupils on the first floor,
most of whom ran out TO the yard. Some
of the last to reach the door became ter
rorized at the sight of the flames raging
at their backs, and rushed up stairs. Those
on the second and third floors were com
ing down in charge of the teachers, who
tried 10 preserve order Some of the pupils
ran to the windows in the hallway on the
third floor and raised them. People below
shouted to them to remain quiet, but sew
eral clambered out on the lodges, prepared
To jump.
The scene about the burning building
was appalling. The ircmen were endeav-
oring to lift ladders to the windows, while
the parents in the yard and streets about
the school house were shouting to the chill
dren clinging to the windows to hang on
or go back and descend the stairs Finally
boy stood up in third story window
and jumped to the ground, forty feet be-
low. 1t was Newell Simmons. He fell
on his shoulder and was picked up sense
less. Almost Immediately afterward Es-
ther Burden leaped from an adjacent win
dow on the same floor Another Hirl
named Saggert jumped, striking squarely
on her feet, and sank to the ground with a
Shrek of pain. Physicians say that her
right leg is broken and that she may have
sustained serious internal injuries
After the building was thought to be
deserted n fireman found l0-year-old Lucy
Hosiible, unconscious, on the third floor.
She was badly burned, and he recovery is
doubtful Other pupils seriously injured
are: Percy Bradley, internal injuries; Car
rie johnson, dangerous burns. Fireman
Frank johnson was cut by broken glass,
and Samuel Mack, an eXpressman, crushed
by falling wreCkage