The evening world. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1887-1931, 1894-08-14
LIVES SAVED BYACAT.
I. Mewing Aroused Mrs. Shelter
to Danger from Fire.
Found Her Brooklyn Store Ablazs
and Sent In an Alarm.
Five Tenants Badly Burned Before
Firemen Could Rescue Them.

five persons were seriously burned
q, a tenement-house fire which broke
ont at $50 o'clock this morning at 2
Mi, street. South Brooklyn.
Had 1t not been for the pitiful me
owl, Of a half-smothered cat, which
awakened one of the tenants. who
.roused the rest 1t is likely that sexeral
lives would have been lost.
The persons burned are:
pridr,t Ryan, twenty -four years old. burned
.ho,t Tbs arms, face aud legs.
u.rs.ret Ryan, her mother. sixty years old.
s.dly buraed about the arms and hands.
John Coaglin. thirty years old. burned about
tb. mack, hands. arms and legs.
John coaslin, jr.. eight years old, burned about
the hands and face.
Mrs. Kate Coaslin. twenty eight years old,
burned about the arms, chsst and body.
All the injured persons were removed
10 the homes of neighbors. sd.
The house is a three-story double ten
ement, and about forty persons made
their homes In 1t. The building is on the
water front OF Red Hook.
At $50 o'clock Mrs. Minnie Smeltzer. a
widow who keeps q grocery on the
ground floor OF the tenement. was
awakened from a sound sleep by the
rme-ow!' OF her pet cat in the hall.
She arose and opened the door to let
the cat in when she noticed smoke In
the hall and heard the cracking Of
burning wood.
Mrs. Smeitzer ran into her store to
see where the dre was and was nearly
overcome by smoke.
She staggered out, and then ran up
stairs crying loudly to the e. other ten
Then the woman ran down tnrough
smoke and flame into the street and
caused an alarm to be sent in TO Fire
In the mean time, the fire was spread
ing fast and most OF the tenants on
the upper floors found escape by the
stairway shut Off.
Some of them climbed across from
the windows into the next house.
The Ryans and the Coaglins, VINO oc-
cipled the third door. tried to escape
by the roof, but found that It was inpos-
tible to push back the rusty belt which
held down the cover to the skyliSht.
They were pinned in with apparently
no other chance of escaping than by
jumping from the windows.
Some OF them got up on me s,,is 10 10
heavy clouds of smoke rolling up the
front of the house from the floors be-
low. The crowd in the street cried to
the imprisoned families to wait for the
1remen.
The changing of the fire bells from
every direction gave them courage, but
each minute seemed an hour.
They then tried to force their ,eto way ,Ss
street, led by the elder Coaglin:
When they reached the landing below
tee second-story floor gave way and the
ieaped S up to the third floor, and the I'm
prisoned tenants were forced back again.
When the fremen reached up their
il dders they were all more or less burned
and hardly able to stand nar,,od aowr tho
Margaret, and Mrs. Kate
o;slin. They we're UNCONSCIOUS ana
A general signal for all the ambulances
In the western part of the city was
then sent out by the fremen.
Ambulance Surgeons Poole and Butler
attended to the injured at the homes
of neighbors, where they had been car
ried by the firemen. Several physicians
in the nighborhood were also In attend
After the imprisoned people had been
rescued, District Engineer James Doyle
went to the third floor to the apart
ment of Mrs. Coaglin, to get $500 which
she had in a bureau drawer.
under the clouds of smoke to the bureau.
He found the money in an old stocking
and was making his way safely back to
the window when the floor beneath him
began to sway with his weight.
He reached the ladder just in time.
AS he laid his hands upon the top of 1t
the floor gave way and everything was
Doyle got down the ladder safely and
presented Mrs. Coaglin, who had re-
gained consciousness. with her savings;
At 10 o'clock this morning 1t was said
that: all the injured persons were doing
nicely.
The building was completely Quilted,
but the firemen kept the flames from
spreading. 1t was an hour before the
FIRE was under control.
The FIRE completely destroyed Mrs.
Smeltzer's stock and fixtures, valued at
5000. The Ryans' loss Is estimated at
$500. and the Coaglins' $3.50. James Hunt,
who occupied apartments on the second
floor. lost 500 in furniture and clothing.
The building was owned by Mrs. Smelt-
Eer
The origin Of the fire is a mystery.
Fire Marshal Lewis, of Brooklyn. will
make an Investigation.