Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1898-02-11
THE NEWS IN BRIEF.
Six Boston Firemen Killed.
Four Others Were InJured---the Men
Were Crushed Under a Failing Roof
FIoors and n Mass of Cotton.

Four Others Were InJured---the Men
Were Crushed Under Failing Roof
Floors and a Mass of Cotton.
Six fremen, including a district chief,
captaiu and lieutenant, were killed Sat
urday morning at a fire which burned out
the interior of a fivestory building in
Merrimac street. Boston, occupied by Il.
w. Bent q Co., manufacturers of beds and
bedding The dead are Patrick H. Dis
ken. hoseman; John F, Egan, district
chief. George J Gotwald, lieutenant, en-
CINE 80: John j Mulhern, fireman; james
Victory, captain engines 81 and ~; W. D.
Walsh, hoseman Four other tiremen were
buried in the ruins, but they escaped with
more or less serious iniuries-Thomas K.
Conway, hoseman; r. j. Doherty, hose
man: Joseph NJ. Clarity, captain, engine
Z: Edward Shea, hoseman.
The fire is supposed to have started in
the rear of the building and was nearly
under control when the water supply gave
ont The men of engine No. : were on the
fourth floor, having entered by window,
while those of No IS and No. 80, which is
a double company, were on the second
floor Suddenly rear section of the roof
collapsed carrying down the floors to the
basement and burying the fremen in the
wreckage.
A hasty canvass of the firemen showed
that ten were missing The crash of fall
ing floors sent up a shower of sparks ano
the flames broke forth with renewed force
The entire efforts of the firemen were di
rected toward the wreckage under which
the men had been caught. The progress
of the flames was checked there, but it wa!
more than an hour and half after the &C
cident occurred before the work of remov
ing the debris could be begun.
The first men reached we're four belong
ing to engine No. Captain Clarity anC
Conway, Doherty and Shea, hoseman
Conway had been in sight of the rescuinl
party for some time. He was pinned un
der some tmbers, which held his legs il
such a way that the timbers had to b
sawed before he could be released. Dohert.
was apparently the worst injured of tn
lot His left leg was utterly useless
1t was Just after 1905 o'clock, NOR
than six hours after the fire started, whe
the cry came from inside the building
eve have got them" Slowly the bodie
were brought out AS Captain Victor
and Chief Egan were lifted there wer
some signs of life A shout went up whe
it was reported that both we're breathing
Egan was found beneath a mass of beddin
and feathers. Egan died on the way
the hospital, and Victory about ten mil
utes after reaching there. The four me
remaining under the debris were found
few minutes later, all dead.
The fire broke out Just before 4 o'clocl
For an hour and a quarter the tireme
kept up their battle with it, and Just {
they seemed about to succeed in controllin
the flames there came a deafening crasl
followed by a sheet of flame and smok
from the lower stories of the building
part of the roof had fallen in on the tft
floor, which, loaded down with cotton, e;
celsor and such material that had absorbt
the water poured into it, gave way, ca
rying everything with it except the froI
of the building. This was the time whe
the firemen who were killed and injurt
went down.
The contents of the building, valued
10000, are total loss. The damage
the building itself will bring the loss up
$75, 1000 The Evangelical Baptist Benev
lent and Missionary society and the Tr
mont Temple association own the stru
ture
Captain Victory leaves a widow al
three children Disken, widow and fly
children, and Lieutenant Gotwald, a wi
ow and five children Chief Egan leav
son and daughter Walsh was % yea
old, and lived with his mother. Mulhei
was a single man % years old.