The evening world. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1887-1931, 1894-07-30
ROASTED ON A ROOF.
Nicholas Ennis's Clothes Set on
Fire by an Electric Wire.
Mortified Crowd Looked HeIplessly
On from the Street.
Finally Rescued by DIR. Hugh Kid
der, Of the Ophthalmic Hospital.

Michael Ennis, tin roofer, OF 800 East
Fifty-hfth street, narrowly escaped being
shocked and burned to death by con
tact with live electric light wire this
morning.
| Ennis was repairing the roof over the
| private entrance TO the New York Oph-
thalrnic Hospital at Twenty-third street
[ and Third avenue. when suddenly the
| crowd Of curious on-lookers saw his
| body stffcn out after a convulsive shud-
der Smoke issued from his clothing at
almost the game instant.
The widest excitement was caused,
and a crowd of at least one thousand
| quickly gathered and ran aimlessly
| about, shouting. gcsticulating. but max
| Ing no effort 10 rescue the man whose
| life was being rapidly Slapped by the
| deadly current.
Or. Hugh ki1der. who Is connected
with the hospital. threw up the window
directly over the cornice roof to ascer-
tain the cause for all the excitement.
He had scarcely got his head out before
his eyes. Following the curling lines of
smoke ascending from below, saw the
body of Ennis, whose shirt WAS fairly
ablaze, and the flesh on his chest and
left arms was beginning to sizzle.
The doctor drew back from the win
dow as If to call for some one to assist
him in dragging the Unconscious man
from the network of wires.
Hugh Kelly. one of the men In the
crowd below, divining the doctors pur-
pose, rushed up the steps, three at Il
time. He Is strapping young fellow.
and In his excitement seemed to be pos
sessed Of giant strength;
Kelly leaned out or the window and
touched the rigid PROSTATE body OF En-
mis-. He jerked his hand away with the
rapidity OF one who had unconsciously
touched with his finger tips a red-hot
iron.
Then Or. Kidder reached down and
took II firm holu of Ennis's collar.
Kelly also took hold, and together they
dragged the nearly dead man through
the window.
While this scene was being enacted
some one had turned in fire alarm.
but before the apparatus arrived all was
the story to new arrivals by those who
had witnessed II.
One of the spectators told an Even
Ing World" reporter that Ennis was
cremated. and that DR.. Kidder and Kelly
were SO badly shocked by touching
Ennis's flesh that hey were nearly rem
dered unconscious.
Both Kelly and DR. Kidder felt slight
shocks, but they suffered no III effects.
me ambulance surgeon from Bellevue
who attended Ennis stated before taking
him to the hospital that he thought he
might recover.
At one end Of the little roof there Is a
switch and network of wires. The
current was turned ON and one OF them
had been stripped OF its insulation. En-
MS, In leaning over, touched his throat
to this wire and was instantly rendered
helpless. 1t is believed that he must
haSe received a shock OF 800 or 6U volts,
AS he stiffened out instantly, and would
have fallen to the sidewalk. but for IL
projecting sign which saved him from
| slipping off. He IL fifty-tive years old.
His left arm, throat and breast were
badly burned and his shirt was nearly
! destroyed.
The lncman who was sent to In.
spect the wires after the accident, re.
fused to make any statement