The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-07-08
KILLED BY AN EXPLOSION.
THE WIFE or CAPT. DICkINS. U. S. NJ,
MEETS DEA tn IN HER HOME.

She Was Cleaning n Room with Naphtha
When n Timer Set His Charcoal stove
Near II, Causing an Explosion - House
Set on Fire and Her Body Badly Burned.
WAsHrNGToN. July Mrs. Marguerite Bates
Dickins. the wife OF Capt Francis W. Dickins,
U. s. n. and n sister of Charles f. Bates. tho
well-known New York horseman. met her
death this morning from an explosion Of naph-
tina at her home 1894 Nineteenth street. Mrs.
Dickins had found that room on tho third
floor Of her residence. occupied by servants OF
the family. needed cleaning. and in order that
the work might be done thoroughly she deter
mined to do it herself She was engaged in
sprinkling naphtha around the room shortly be-
fore IL o'clock this morning. when the eXpo-
sion occurred. Joseph Vaughn and Hollins |.
! Cook. timers. had been at work on the roof
and descended to the hallway Just outside the
room in which Mrs. Dickins was engaged. A
little stream of naphtha had trckled out into
the hallway. and the timers. who presumably
did not sec it. set their charcoal stove on the
floor close to the stream. The flames OF the
stove spread to the naphtha and there was an
immediate explosion Vaughn and Cook were
| thrown against the wall with great force and
! part Of the wall Of the room was blown out
Although suffering from shock aud burns.
Vaughn. who had seen Mrs. Dickins in the
rOOtD, InHNc an eI1Ort To rescue neT. pn az
count Of the fumes of the naphtha and the in
| tense heat caused by tho fire which followed
the explosion he was unable to reach her
without great difficulty. BY that time her
| clothing was on fire and her body badly burned.
| Vaughn picked up Mrs. Dckins in his arms and
| carried her to the hallway. He suffered burns
| on his hands and body in performing his
| heroic action and was in very weak condi
] ton when assistance arrived. An alarm
! OF fire was turned in and when the
| frcmen reached the Dickins house the
| upper story was burning nerccy, Tho fire
| men were able to reach the third floor soon
after they arrived and found the body of Mrs.
| Dickins in the hallway. lifc was extinct and
| the remains had been badly charred by the
| fire The body was taken to the house OF Sur
| geon Dickson OF the navy. who resides next
| door The fire was quickly extinguished, but
| the upper floor. where the explosion occurred.
was badly damaged. Smoke and water ruined
| the furniture and draperes on the lower floors
| Capt Dickins. who is the Assistant Chief Of
the Bureau of Navigation. was at his desk in
| the Navy Department when a brother officer
| teIephoned him that his house was on fire
| Capt. Dickins went home immediately and as
| he arrived on the scene of the tragedy he met
| the lrcmcn bearing tho body of his wife to
| Surgeon Dickson's residence. Physicians were
| summoned. and. after an examination Of the
body. they gave the opinion that Mrs Dickin5
unconscious 10y the explosion. and that she
nness dr9th Th% nSRhtna pISp
ctesivcd the full force Of The, shock Shortly
ed that Mrs, Ramsay the wife, of Rear Ad;:
mTal ErsPes NJ EamsaE @nd sister Of
| in the DcEins house at the time and had
been killed GHEt and Mrs. Mr. DiG tk1 re-.
| n people. and soon after
the news OF the tragedy became known in the
sa the Ps %fSIs DeE
son to tender their sympathy, Among the
callers was Secretary Long, who heard the
once to surgeon Dick sons house
-, An intimate. friend of Cart Dickins made
this statement Of the accident to the CORE
Yesterday afternoon Mrs. Dickins discov-
| third story-needed cleaning, She told Capt.
| Dckins that she would send for some naphtha
should be properly and thoroughly done. The
| groceryman failed to send the naphtha yestcr-
would not have happened, Because the tinman,
who was at work on the roof Just oyer the
| room, had stopped his work owing TO the rain.
| This morning tho naphtha came. and the tim
man came also TO resume the work he had
been obliged to stop yesterday afternoon. Mrs.
Some Of it trickled out through the doorway
into the hail. and the ttnman in passing
fire such as is commonly used for heating
irons. Just over this stream Of naphtha not
knowing that it was narhtha or perhaps not
seeing it at all. II was tut moment when
the explosion followed. knocking down tn" tin
aHf hruiSng him hatIy an rs sting IRE to
to Mrs Dickins through the smoke and flame
and finally succeeded. but found her lying on
Mrs. Dickins was very prominent in the navy
social set. She devoted much Of her time 70
Spain was active in providing assistance for
the families OF soldiers and sailors who had en-
prominent in the society Of the Daughters of
the American Revolution. and devoted much much
Of her csTre to the study Of SILonni pnd kGyoo
m nsi in 1878, B"Fo Si the days Wien naval
officers We're forbidden t. 2, tnke their wives
age on the Taliapoosa, Of which Can't. Dickins
was the commander. Her experiences on
Along Shore on a Man Of War" She wrote
also several articles for magazines and news
Capt Dckns is well known in Newport,
| where he spent three years as superintendent
When the Duke Of Verugua and his family Wis
| tied the United states during the period OF the
Worlds. Fair. on the invilpt2Gn Of the United
Spanish huently. was detailed e. ACCOMPANY
him. sS py S G Sa R%G Of hSs aGen
readers AZ the time Of tho Name cXpl9 Isl
the Navigation Bureau hen. and as such trans
mitted ali the dispatches from the Navy De-
TTfiT'c h"dy of Mrs 6ickins was much disNG-
ured. amd on account of that the funeral SER
vices Will be strictly private; They viii he held
on sunday a, the Ar.i M, Nm,i9ma' cemetery
NEWPORT. h. l.. July Mrs. Dickins, wife OF
Capt. +. W. Dlckins. who was fatally burned in
| Washington this morning. was VOL known in
Newport She was a daughter of Mr., and Mrs
G. +. Bates. and spnnt much Of her chiIdhood
here at their residence. at CodhinGton Point
She was married III Trinity Church. and the
reception which took place at her fathers resi-
| dcncc was u very prominent social Junction. ut
| which there were many guests. Later. when
her husband was in command Of the Nhva
| Training Station, she was exceedingly popular
not only among the officers, men and apprcn-
tees attached to the statoni but, also in the
| city. Mrs. DickinS'S sister is the divorced wife
| of DR. u. b. st John RooSa OF New York, and
her brother Is Mr. c. +. Bates of New York.
4 ROUGH RIDER TO THE RESCUE