The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1898-01-11
THE REICH TRAGEDY
Evidence at the Coroner's
Inquest Very Unfavor-
able to the Firemen.
VERDICT ~NoN-coMMITTAI.
Brutal Response Of a Uniformed
Man TO a Sons Appeal for Aid
Citizens Bravery.
R D ~NON-COMMITTAl.

An inquest touching the death of Mrs.
Mary Reich, one of the six victims of the
Germania avenue fire January 2, was
held last night in the Grand Jury room at
the Court House
Nh jury rendered a verdict to the effect
that Mrs. Reich came to her death
through burning and s~uffocation, the re-
suit of an accident.
Coroner Delaney conducted the inquest.
The jury were Gustav Neumann,- Anthony
j. Dwyer, Charles Schlinger, William Bell
ferche, Henry S. Cox and Michael j.
1O'Brien.
Adolph Reich better known as Harry,
one of the two survivors of the tragedy,
was one of the witnesses. He said he was
awakened by cries of children. He
found the room full of smoke. Rushing
down the stairway he found his father ly-
ing at the foot of thaA stairs. His father
had fallen, but got up. Witness ran out
of the house on the porch; went back;
could do nothing in the flame and smoke;
he thought his father got as far as the
door, but couldn't tell on account OF the
smoke; he told a few OF the tremeh ina.
he thought his parents were In. the mouse;
one of them told him II he wanted 10 pc
certain to go and get them himself.
GustavAoth of No: 1872 Zabriskie street.
JUN " lO Wdo lAtS
alarm by Harry Reich. He testified that
the fire engines arrived in about six or
seven minutes. He had read IN papers
about drunken conduct of fremen, but
knew nothing about it. Had heard some
excited talk among the ghbors but
couldn't say he saw any fremen drunk.
George Prigge, No. ISL Zabriskie street,
insisted that the firemen acted like a
lot of "schoolboys." The fire engines did
not reach there until some time after
he reached the fire. 1t must have been
- nnc tan ~. Eftnnn rninI1fC after the
alarm was rung.
A steamer and truck then stood five
or six minutes useless near the Boute-
ward. Harry told him that he had told
a firemen that some one was in the
house. He saw about ten or twelve fire
men. Closely questioned, he refused to
say any of the firemen were drunk, but
said of some he saw:-They are not a
credit to the department.
81 told one of them" he said, ito put
a ladder. up to the second story. The
fireman asked me, 'How?' I thought
that was a foolish remark. He stood
there with the ladder in his hand. He
didn't know what to do with it,
Alfred Lange, an engineer, of No. 313
Boulevard. said he saw Harry Reich at
the gate in front of the burning build
ing. Harry said his father and mother
were still in the house. He climbed up
a fireman's ladder, smashed several Win
dows, crawled through one and felt all
the beds, but found no one. He then
went to the first floor. Near the foot of
the stairs he slipped on something soft.
He met Battalion Chief Kern on the stair
way. A fireman was following. He
thought Kern came from the bottom.
The testimony of Fireman Thomas
Toner, of the chemical engine, went to
show that the engine responded in 0
minutes. The Chief was already there,
and ordered the chemical hose to be
turned on from the rear, where an en-
trance had been effected by Fireman Ba-
ker. Engines Nos. Z, and IA and No. 3
truck all arrived within five miDutes af-
ter the alarm was rung. He testified that
the hydrants were all frozen.
Chief Conway's statement was to the
effect that all the companies responded
on time, u that the MIGRANTS were all
frozen. He entered the building by the
front door, and met Baker, who had en-
tered a window from the rear. All the
fire seemed to be in the cellar. When he
entered he could see nothing from the
smoke. On account of frozen hydrants it
was fully ten minutes after an alarm be-
fore water could be secured. AS to the
statement that No. 3 truck stood idle near
the Boulevard at the brow of the hill for
some time. the Chief stated that an order
was issued some time ago that the truck
was not to go down the steep hill unless a
fire could be seen from the top. 1t was
dangerous. No driver could properly hold
his horses in the descent, but the Chief
said it might have gone down on the &C.
caSion mentioned.