The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-03-14

~ AnlI5Sn Cali, hnutho tWo huI'iou
Everything there was in confusion. Men
f TSrs t sSs SIipsra sne S soors' AZ si"i tbo ssm ISs timo
other men were scrambllng ont OF the windows
to the FIRE escapes on tho front and rear. In
burst out OF the front and rear Windows Of the
third floor. In order to reach the street the men
would have to pass through those flames. They
realised their peril and began to cry for some
Above the shouts Of the mon in tho burning
had gathered in tho street rose the clang Of the
alarm Hook and Ladder Trucks 8 and 8 and En-
gines 9, SO, and II responded. Soon after the
WAS rung, and Eneines 20, -. and 81 responded;
This call brought. out Deputy Chiefs Ahearn and
premises tho deputy Chiefs decided to ring a
third alarm, This alarm brought Engines 10,
dis,teiy took He had 10 assist him
Battalion Chiefs Castles. Croker, and Lally.
At the second alarm Capt. Stephenson of the
serves and took personal omman of the police.
The crowd In the street seemed to, increase by
alarm was rung Capt. Stephenson notified In:
spector Gross. who Immediately ordered out all
teenth street. or 200 men in ali. Then he wont
TO the sceno Of the fire and took IN of
Tho hremen responded quickly and worked
with wonderful %rapidity. once they were on the
ground: Streams OF water were playing on all
n 70 VI u uhiiuiuk III u q W iniiutCo u
first alarm was rung. but for som reason or
another the flames continued to pour out of the
the fremcn were working hardest to get the
inmates out OF the building some ono in tho
Somebody catch himl He's going to jumpi'
saw a man climbing to the rail Of the fire escape
electrified, the throng in the street Alexander
Sweet. driver Of truck. had seen the man, To
experience as q fireman, what to do. with tho
assistance OF two or three others Sweet raised q
l,ddsIn to ,I the ,a fire E issG Inn v whe gs, ssS T ian % %ss
as he was getting upon the rail. and bore
him down, as Il seemed to those watch;
story. There Sweet passed his burden to Fireman
Quinn of the same company, who bore the man
it was known that the man. who proved to DO
George Is. Wilson. was safe. Sweet sustained
shielded Wilson that he was uninjured.
A short time after the rescue of Wilson
another cry. as II every one in the street had
shouted at the same time. directed renewed at
tention to the burning building again. This
time u man had jumped, from the third floor. A
fire not, which caught him. When he was stood
upon his feet it WIS seen that he was burned on
Gouverneur Hospital. He was discharged after
his wounds W ere dressed and he had been pro-
vided with some clothing.
weren naked, or near;y naked. They were cared
for in nearby saloons and restaurants. and in
kAltNHluCT b luIulluIc btoIC, "blIE hI DCCu
p p|sai after Ss 'n Mrp: ' '9Riesandcr had Been SUM uSs
%Hnsa from Many niS Of f0m those in w Harlem Escaped es
were burned more or less seriously. but
s sI9snd iS ,h ssse sbo n wsrs on mod ihs s siS. Tho to
management of the mission provided as many
as possible with clothing. superintendent
| who lost cloth ng by the fire would receive now
outfits at the missions expense.
Three hours later a search Of the building for
bodies was begun, Nine bodies were, found on
the sns fourth nna floor. The r% miS %ece o Pe sbs me fod 5ro nnd w two
others at the head Of the, stairs leading to the
floor below. Another body was found on Tho
window looking toward the south.
On the third floor the eleventh body was
the there rear Are escape. The man evidently got as
near safety as he could, and the... with II almost
within reach. died. Seven OF tho bodies were
After the bodies had been removed from the
building the tre patrol made an examination in
The greatest damage was on the third floor.
where all the hunks had been reduced TO char.
burned most determinedly In the wash room OF
this floor. Little less damage was done on the
fourth and nth floors, but the ao9Fing ana igor fSr
flames had evidently traversed the stairways.
This exanination did not, however; disclose
by inmates OF the house. One OF these was
Robert Twiss,, a machintst. employed at l5s
| SOutn RITGtt- IL OCCuplCtA u puuN VII luS luilu
floor. To n Sun reporter he said that he WAS
awakened by, tho smell q smoke and the shouts
1 fum nlS es''G out i0 81 bis BUNK Miin0" and any k G'SsfilIt' the he
building well. made his way to the top floor.
T dhsr b wsS no q plenty ss. f Fl sm 6e de en Sse hft To
the fourth floor. warning the dodgers as he went.
There was no fire on the fourth floor. An ex:
a Mhere the OF h ie0 w snl.o H T%iss says thai SnoI the
Mushroom was all ablaze when he opened the
door. Seeing this, he shut the door quickly
and felt along the wall of the DaSsngeway
for the hand Rrenades. To his surprise. he says.
there were none there, Then he searched for
in their places. Twiss says he is confident that
If he could have found Q grenade or a bucket OF
water he co Id have put out the fire. Finding
neither. he got out OF the building as quickly as
p9Ssihie; , that bs had occasion N on
to the washrooni. where he found the fire. about
Midnight. Everything was all right then. He
sotice ID 9 pile sdm of o peP Sad e sha f innebeon on 9be sSs
Twiss's notion is that some of tho dodgers, while
in the washroom later. lighted a pipe or cigarette
from the gas Jet thcrc, and threw the fuse on
the floor. This ignited the rubbish on the floor
and caused the fire.
street, who had lodged at the house for two
years, agreed with Twiss's notion OF the origin
Of the e, fire. Ire tb IhG@ fasr! s. says Doh he also T fonu a1 rub a
bish in the washroom about two hours before
the fire was discovered.
lived in the house n long time; was remembered
by fellow dodgers when they were trying
search for him. Martin Stevenson and John l..
Sullivan found Blind Bill on the fourth floor, and
below, where they lost him.. After a time they
found him again and carried him to the street.
When he landed on the pavement safely BIZ O.
marked:
well. ] see I'm here. even if I am a little shy
The building belonged to tho estate of J. NJ
Chesbrough and was built for the Bowery Mis-
sion and Young Mems Home three years ago.
5000. and to the contents So, 600. The in
| corporators Of tho mission number, sixteen
DR.. John Hall, the Rev. r. $. Macarthur. and
Louis Klopsch. Tho latter Is really tho head
in Cuba, dispensing supplies to tho recon.
centrados. His representative here. George
ma m soon as The Coroner gives the permission. the
bodies OF the victims be transferred TO the un.
dertaking rooms of stephen Merritt, in West
TXcnty.fhird street and that they BIO buried