Morris tribune. [volume] (Morris, Minn.) 1880-2000, 1898-08-31
A FIRE CAPTAINS HERoIsM.
Ahearn's Health Completely Wrecked by
His Heroic Efforts In Saving Life.

His Heroic Efforts In Saving Life.
Jacob A. Riis contributes to The
Century an article on Heroes Who
Fight Fire. in the series on " Heroes
of Peace. Mr.. Riis says:
In the chiefs quarters of the
Fourteenth battalion up in Wake
field there sits today a man, still
young in years, who in his manned
body but unbroken spirit bears such
testimony to the quality of New
York fire fighters as the brave Bres-
nan and his comrade did in their
death. Thomas j. Ahearn led his
company as captain to fire in the
Consolidated Gas works on the east
side. He found one of the buildings
ablaze. Far toward the rear, at the
end of a narrow lane, around which
the fire swirled and arched itself,
white and wicked, lay the body of a
man, dead, said the panic stricken
crowd. His sufferings had been
brief. A worse fate threatened all
unless the fire was quickly put out
There were underground reservoirs
of naphtha-the ground was honey
combed with them-that might ex-
plode at any moment with the fire
raging overhead. The peril was in
slant and great. Captain Ahearn
looked at the body and saw it stir.
The watch chain upon the mans
vest rose and fell as if he we're
breathing.
"He is not Dead" he said. st am
going to get that man out. !" And
he crept down the lane of fire, un
mindful of the hidden dangers, see-
ing only the man who was perish
ing The flames scorched him. They
blocked his way, but he came
through alive and brought out his
man, so badly hurt, however, that
he died in the hospital that day.
The board of fire commissioners
gave Ahearn the medal for bravery
and made him chief. Within year
he all but lost his life in a gallant
attempt to save the life of a child
that was supposed to be penned in a
burning Rivington street tenement.
Chief Ahearn' 8 quarters were near
by, and he was first on the ground.
A desperate man confronted him in
the hallway. my child! My child"
he cried and wrung his hands. Save
him! He is in thereP' He pointed
to the back room. It was black
with smoke. In the front room the
fire was raging. Crawling on hands
and feet, the chief made his way in
to the room the man had pointed
out. He CROPPED under the bed and
in it, but found no child there Sat
isfied that it had escaped, he started
to return. The smoke had grown
so thick that breathing was no lon
ger possible even at the floor. The
chief drew his coat over his head
and made dash for the hall door.
He reached it, only to find that the
spring lock had snapped shut. The
doorknob burned his hand The fire
burst through from the front room
and scared his face. With a last
effort he kicked the lower panel out
of the door and put his head through,
and then he knew no more.
His men found him lying SO when
they came looking for him. The
coat was burned off his back, and of
his hat only the wire rim remained.
He lay ten months in the hospital
and came out deaf and wrecked
physically. At the age of As the
board retired him to the quiet of the
country district, with this formal
resolution, that did the board more
credit than it could do him.; it is
the only one of its kind upon the
department books: 80
Resolved, That in assigning Bat
talon Chief Thomas j. Ahearn to
command the Fourteenth battalion,
in the newly annexed district, the
board deems it proper to express the
sense of obligation felt by the board
and all good citizens for the bril-
liant and meritorious services of
Chief Ahearn in the discharge OF
duty which win always serve. as an
example and an..inspiration to our
uniformed force and to express the
hope that his future years Of service
at less arduous post may be as
comfortable and pleasant as his
former years have been brilliant and
honorable #.