The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1896-02-18
BY A CARELESS BOY
Human Lives Sacrificed and Much
Property Burned.
IN A TROY SHIRT FACTORY
Hundreds of Frenzied Girls and
Women Jumping From the
High Building to Death-Half a
Dozen or More In the Ruins.


pile of oily waste. a mass of flames.
800 girls and women frenzied with
fright. fighting for life as the hot
flames chased them with hungry
tongues, was the beginning of a fire
tonight that consumed thousands of
dollars worth of property and caused
the destruction of many lives. From
the outside of the high building the
first notice of impending disaster was
the sight of a body of girls as they
rushed out upon the fire escapes from
the windows, those who were more for
tunate crowding out the entrance. Fol-
lowing them was a mass of smoke
with flashes of hot flame in lurid
streaks. Then the mass of frenzied hui
manity, finding the egresses too small
for instant escape, began climbing over
the sides of the escapes, and bundles
of clothing filled with writhing hu-
manity dropped at the feet of mortified
passersby.
Within 20 minutes after the fire start
ed there were three dead women laid
upon the floor of an adjoining store and
at least a dozen burned and manned
girls and women taken TO the hospital
or to their homes. OF the $50 girls and
women in the building 1t is presumed
that at least a half dozen are in the
ruins, for 1t is impossible to locate all
and there may possibly be a score of
dead.
1t was just 80 minutes before closing
hour in Stettheimer & Co.'S shirt waist
factory on River street, and the $50
girls and women were working rapidly
TO finish up. In the cutting room, on
the fifth floor, $50 girls were closing up
their days assignments and preparing
to leave when the whistle blew. Lille
Kreiger, who was working near a ma
chine, called to a small boy to light the
gas over her work. The boy struck a
match and threw the burning stub to
the floor. IT struck a pile of oily rags
and in an instant the girl was envelop-
ed in flames. With her clothes and hair
burning, she rushed to the window and
at once the room became a struggling,
shrieking mass of humanity, filling the
windows, the fire escapes and the only
stairway. Jamming and pushing. tear
ing each others clothes from their
backs, turning in narrow corridors to
find sister or mother or friend, the
number in the exits augmented every
minute by those from the other floors,
these girls and women fought for their
lives to get away from the flames that
seemed to be growing to a monstrous
size. With rare presence of mind Po-
liceman Farrell, who was on the street.
seeing that in the panic a number
were liable to jump, let down the avn
ing over the entrance. Barely was il
down when two or three forms came
flying down from the fifth and sixth
stories and bouncing from the awning
fell to the sidewalk. Lille Krieger,
over whose machine the fire started,
was one of these She struck the avn
ing, fell on her back and bounced to
her hands and knees on the walk. She
got up and staggered about until peo-
pie helped her ito her feet again.
By this time nearly every window
had a female form dangling from ii,
and when the fireman arrived there
was hustle to get the ladders up. At
the center window. on the sixth floor,
a woman hanging by her hands was
forced out by the flames licking her
face. With a last shrek she let go
and came tumbling over and over until
she struck the pavement. When picked
up it was found that she was Mrs
Margaret Carroll. Her spinal column
was forced through into her brain.
Just below her, in another window,
hung a woman turning appealing
glances to the crowd. The black
smoke was pouring from the window,
but as yet no flames were visible, and
the crowd yelled encouragingly TO her
TO hold on, but a high red flame reach
ed out just then and licked her face
and in an instant her body was re-
bounding from the pavement. She was
Mrs. Foley. widow. and when picked
up was dead. on the same floor hang
ing from another window, was another
woman and salvation in the shape of
n ladder was almost within her grasp
when her strength failed and she went
twirling down to death. She was Mrs.
Kane.
The firemen and police worked like
heroes. and to their energy was due a
great saving of life. At least a dozen
women and girls were carried down the
ladders or dragged out of the corridors. 3
the officers and firemen going into the
midst Of the smoke. The fire burned so
herceiy by this time that no detailed
search Of the building could be made.
and from what can be learned there
were many girls and women on the
three upper stories. either lying in
fits or overcome by smoke.
The flames ate down through three
floors SO quickly that the Western Uni
on Telegraph company. the Jcssup &
CrockeTy company. and the
Van Zandt a Jacobs collar manufac-
tory had no time TO sa-e anything. .
After the fire had started an adjoining
house caught from the falling Of por- .
tiOn OF the roof. and from IL small
buildings on the south caught About
S O'Clock the fremen heard shrieks
coming from the two-st0ry building on
the south. They discoverd an Italian
peddler named Frank Rossi pinioned by
the legs under a heavy beam. Three
policemen started TO assist him. and d