The record-union., 1895-11-04
A Fire at New York Which Re-
suited in Several Fatalities,
BESIDES DOING MUCH DAMAGE
TO PROPERTY.
The Buildings Take Fire From Floor
to Floor as Though Saturated With
Kerosene, and ALI Avenues of Es-
cape for the Unfortunate Victims
Cut Off In an Incredibly Short Time.


four persons were lost in a fire that to-
| tally wrecked several sweatshops in
Pelham street at an early hour this
morning. When it was learned that g
number of lives had been lost the fire.
men instituted search in the smolder-
ing ruins that continued throughout the
day. The names of those who were
Shapiro, 11S West Nineteenth street,
watchman at Pelham street, burned to
death on the third floor, body recovered
at noon to-day; Isaac Pensen, 49,
Cherry street, tailor, body recovered in
the doorway of Pelham street at j
=. m. to-day; unknown person, burned
beyond recognition, body recovered in
the basement of I Pelham street at 9
a. M; Morris Deutschi tailor, jumped
from the third story of Pelham street
during the fire and fractured his skull;
died in the Gouvenir Hospital at 80
a. n.
The position of the bodies and the
horrible condition in which they were
found showed how terrible had been
the struggle for life and how hopeless
was their flight before the flames.
The three buildings took fire from
floor to floor as though they had been
saturated with kerosene, and all ave
nues of escape were cut off in an in
credibly short time.
No one knew how many persons
were in the darkened sWeatshopS when
the fire started, and even beneath the
mass Of debris there may be lying the
bodies of homeless tailors who had
found shelter within the walls of the
Oh, ~.a..n
still playing hose on the smoking build
iDgs. AS they did SO the men of Hook
and Ladder Company No. l oVerhaured
the ruins.
The first body found was that of the
unknown person whose identity had
been entirely obliterated by the flames.
This body lay among the debris, a
charred black mass, in which the fire.
men saw no Semblance of humanity. 1t
was thrown out of the building into the
gutter, and the men pursued their
search Three hours later the body OF
Jacob Shapiro was found on the third
floor, within few feet of the window
which he had evidently been strug-
Cling to reach when the flames overlook
and struck him down.
A surgeons attention was directed to
charred mass in the gutter. After ex-
amining it carefully he declared it a
human body burned to a cinder. 1t was
laid on the sidewalk, and later sent to
the Morgue, no one claiming it. The
probability is, the police say, that it is
all that remains of some homeless wan
derer who had crept into the house
after the workers had gone.
An hour after noon a third body was
recovered from No {. 1t was that of
Isaac Pensen, a tailor who often slept in
the sweat-shop. His son, Jacob, who
lives at 432 Cherry street, had missed
HIM, and was waiting in the crowd to
claim all that remained of his father.
PenSen'S body was found just within
the doorway of the building. He had
evidently been within a few feet of
safety when he was overcome and sank
down. His body was the last recovered.
1t is the universal opinion that the
! fire was the worst the East Side has
seen in several years. The locality has
already a bad reputation, which this
catastrophe will serve to enhance. The
fire swept through the building with a
force the fremen were powerless To
check. Two large double buildings
We're totally destroyed They We're
valued at $4,000 each.
In addition, the tenement houses No.
6 and Pelham street, directly opposite
the Sweat-shOps, were badly scorched,
and the siX-story tenement at the corner
of Monroe and Pelham streets was
total loss is as yet impossible to esti-
mate, but it will very probably exceed
$1,000 about only one-half of which
sum is covered by insurance.
Beside the lives lost, ten persons were
injured. The most serious Of these was
Foreman Henry Waiter, who was badly
burned about the head and face.
The topic most discussed in connec-
ticn with the fire was its origin. Not
the faintest clew to it could be discov-
cred. If it was incendiary, all traces of
incendiarism disappeared in the flames.
and there is no prospect Of the fiend who
caused the fire being discovered. Even
the exact spot in which it started could
no. be ascertained, SO quickly did the
flames spread.
Nos. I and Pelham street are owned
by We'll and Meyer. The other wrecked
building is the property of Morris
Levy Levy has been burned out twice
before within two or three years, but
nothing suspicious has ever been dis
covered with regard to the fires of
which he and the insurance COM
panies have been the victims