The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1899-06-06
TALES O7 PLUCK
AND ADVENTURE.
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4 Zero cs the Windsor Hotel Ere.

elICSCO lAS W AAA|ASOA AAOsS-' 80
York City, on March II, there were
performed q number o. heroic Geeds
a. splendid as any ever done il va.
AL these can not even De mentioned;
but what was perhaps the very bra7es5
deed of all should be recorded.
Edward Ford, q fireman Of Exten-
sion Truck 10. 20, has the honor OF
having been the last fireman to leave
the hotel, bringing down the last per-
son rescued alive. The brave man
would not talk for publication hinselE,
but eomrade who witnessed the res
cue told the story partly as he saw it,
and partly in Ford's own words.
It appears that Ford was going
home on the elevated railroad, when
he saw the smoke Of the fire. At the
Fiftieth street station, he broke from
the train and rushed to the scene Of
the conhagration. When be arrived
the smoke was pouring out Of every wiz.
dow, and the building apparently about
to fall. "I pushed ny way through the
crowd" he said, "and had begun
work with the hose company, when
some one shouted that there was an
old woman in a room Oh the sixth
story on the Fifth avenue side. I
could not see any one at the window.
I saw one fireman up there, but he
was in theroom to the north OF where
the woman was said to be, and he
could not see her, or know that she
was there. T determined to so up ny
self. There was scaling ladder
from the second floor up to the room
where the fireman was, and took o
thirty.fve-fcot ladder and placed it
inside the hotel railing, and started
up"
In a Jew minutes be had reached
the top, and found a comrade there
named Bill Clarke. The room was
full Of smoke, and the men could hear
the fire roaring and cracking outside.
: Thinking to get into the next room bT
means of tha hall, Ford threw himself
against the hall Gocr and forced 1t
open, but a storm of flames and smoke
; busrt into tie room, almost suffocatins
him. He tried to force the door
closed again, but the hinges we're
broken, and it fell outward into the
flames. Then he tried the windows.
! st stood on the stone Intel Of the
window below" he said, sand gresped
the woodwork with ny left hand.
Then T reached for the next windoE-.
but it was too far of. 7 stood na$- -1sss s
firmly on ths lintalaleatsarcn was
standing andznade jump ior the
other one. Fortunately T caught the
ssill firmly, drew my body up, and
looked in. There was woman on the
floor on her knees. As I sprang in she
turned and grasped me- convulsiVely.
Save me, for Gods sake!' she cried. "
The brave fellow took her up and
dragged her to the window, calling to
Clarke for help. He grasped her
ilniy around the waist and climbed
out on to the Intel Of the window be-
! low, holding himself close to the build.
ing. Clarke was already outside CT
the window, and tried to reach, but
the distance was too great. The
woman was AFRAID that she was going
to fall, and kept praying and shrek
ing to besaved, at the same time grasp
ing at everything within reach, and
greatly hampering the movements of
the msn. cat last" said Ford, Il
shook her free from her hold On the
wiudow-sill. She then became un-
conscious, and was q dead weight on
my arm" All this time the fire was
eating on the woodwork Of tle room
toward the window, and the part to
which Ford was holding began to
scorch. ':I shifted my hold" he said,
'sfor another OF the top OF the sill,
and bent my head and shoulders be-
low to get out Of the range OF the
flames, which were already sweeping
out of the window. I called TO Clarke
to reach over to ne, as could Lot
hold any more. He leaned as far rs
he could hold on with his LETT hand,
and reached out with his right. I
lifted the woman toward him with al
the strength I hal left, and he seized
her around the waist. Clarke IS big,
powerful man, and succeeded in set.
ting her to the top Of tho ladder.
Clarke then took the woman down to
the sidewalk and brought her to a
drug store. Size was found to be Mrs.
Cho;sholl, q sy-haired lady OF fifty
or sixty years. This was the last rs:-
son taken from the building, and three
Or four minutes Later the walls fel! IN.
Helped Out by a Eear.
IN odd although rather brutal story
o: q mans adventure with bear, is
told il the "aistory OF Williams