The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1900-03-16

story Tenement, with = b. 10 Rooms
and NarrJw Passages The sixty In
mates Panic->tricken and Unable to
Escape Rescued by the Firemen-An
Inmate Arrested a. the Incendiary.
Newark, N. J., March Fifteen
percons, a majority of whom were
children, were burned to death at
q tenement house al Morris and
Fourteenth venue about 5 o'clock
this morning Thirteen bodies were
recovered from the ruins within three
hours after the flames had been exiting
uished. The fire was Of incendiary
origin.
The building was a three-story frame
structure. formerly used as a church,
but transformed into a tenement house
with small rooms, scarcely S by 10 feet
in dimensions, opening into a narrow
hallway on both the second and third
floors, forming a veritable fire trap.
This is right in the heart of the Ital-
ian district and the greatest excite
ment prevailed. This feeling has
been greatly intensified since Z o'clock
when it first became known that the
fire was of incendiary origin, and
within fifteen minutes of the time when
this report was first circulated men
and women, we'll nigh craZed with grief
ran tearing around the streets looking
for the incendiary and threatening
dire vengeance.
1t was a few minutes after 5 o'clock
this morning when smoke was seen
pouring out of a second story front
room and the alarm was given; but
long before the fire apparatus reached
the scene the interior of the burning
tenement was peopled with many
wild Italians running hither and
thither, unable to find, means
of escape. Every room emp
tied it's occupants into those narrow
little halls and there was no scape
for the frightened tenants because Of
the jam, and they could not get out.
They were at least twelve families in
the place, sixty persons in all, Of whom
perhaps fifty were children unable 10
care for themselves, especially in time
Of such great excitement.
Four men ran to a front window
and Jumped to the street. Several
were hurt and later sent to the hos
pitfalls.
The flames spread with frightful ra-
pidity and the keen March wind blow
ing sent the sparks to the southeast
and threatened all the frame tenements
in hat direction. The place was like
a roaring caldron when the f1remen
reached the place. The ladders were
quickly put in position and then began
the work of rescue.
One after another the women and
hen men were taken down, while other
firemen devoted their attention to
drowning out the flames. This they
succeeded in doing in less than
an hour, but during that hour a
! fiOhffI11 sacrifice had haQn pffaPa6
Nearly every room in the house con-
tanned it's victim. Few were really
burned to death. Most of them were
smothered to death. The bodies were
carried out by the firemen.
Human bodies were observed pinned
down by heavy timbers. The rescuers
worked for hours clearing away the
debris in the hope that some might
yet be rescued alive.
Eugene Castillo, husband of one of
the dead women jumped from a third
story window n was seriously in
jured. An unknown man who jumped
out of an upper story window died in
a hospital. SALVATORE Bald, husband
of one of the dead women, managed to
escape with a child in his arms. He
lost trace of his wife in the smoke and
flame.
Vito Credavo is locked up on suspi-
cion Of having set fire to he building.
He, with his wife and two children,
occupied the rear portion of one of the
upper stories. He was arrested on a
statement made by Virginia di Prula.
who was a boarder in the house. Di
Prula told Captain Edwards that when
he was awakened by the smoke he
found Credavo and his family fully
burning building. When vitro
Credavo was taken to the station
house he became much excited, and
when he was asked questions he pre-
tended hat he could not speak Eng
lish. Through an interpreter he denied
that he had set fire to the building or
had any knowledge as to the origin
of the fire.
The police are confident that the fire
was of incendiary origin and they have
arrested Vitro Credavo on suspicion.
There was a disorderly card game in
one of the rooms that lasted we'll into
the morning. Credavo was a partici-
pant and is said to have made violent
threats against his fellow players. A
few minutes before 5 o'clock every one
in the building was awakened by the
flames. They found them burning al
the foot of the stairs leading from the
first to the second stories. The hall
way and the stair were burning fierce
ly, cutting off the only egress from
the upper floor on which six families
lived. It also cut off the escape by the
door for those who lived in the real
part of the first floor. Those who
could made for the windows. From
these they leaped or dropped. The
whole neighborhood was awakened il
an instant and from burning building
came agonizing screams and calls fol
help. The basement and ground foo
inmates of the building poured fortf
naked, or almost so.
There was fearful excitement abou'
the burning building. Men. womer
and children who escaped from thu
burning building rushed about almos
naked, looking for their relatives. Fo'
a time it was thought there were mor'
lost than the events later proved, be
cause several naked ones were picked
up by n%eighbors and carried in doors
Thus fathers and mothers missed thei
children and rushed screaming about.
The fire lasted only a few minute
The search for the dead being within
twenty minutes after the alarm sound