The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1901-06-20
OUR EVERYDAY HEROES
n MEN IN CITIES. WHOSE LIVES
ARE ALWAYS IN DANGER.
rbey Join the Skill Of GIadiaters with
the valor of Crusaders--some Incl
dents of Fatal Fire In New York
City, on st. Patrick's Day, 1899.


ing Cleveland Moffett takes up "The
Firemen." ''In all Its history" lie
says, IL suppose the world has seen
no heroes like these. who join the skill
of gladiators with the valor OF crusad-
ers. Does that sound like exaggera-
tion? 1 should call it rather under
statement"
As illustrating the things firemen
do every day, and do gladly, he gives
some Incidents of one particular fire
that happened In New York on st.
Patrick's Day, 1899. 1t was a pleasant
afternoon, and Fifth avenue was
crowded with people gathered to watch
the parade. A gayer, pleasanter scene
1t would have been hard to find at 3
o'clock, or sadder one at 4.
The Ancient Order of Hibernians,
coming along with bands and banners,
were nearing Forty-sixth street, when
suddenly there sounded hoarse shouts
and the angry clang of fire-gongs, and
down Forty-second street came Hook
and Ladder on a dead run, and
swung into Fifth avenue straight at
the pompous paraders, who immedi-
ately became badly scared Irishmen
and took to their heels. But the big
ladders went no further Here they
were needed, oh, so badly needed, for
the Windsor Hotel was on fire--the ia
nous Windsor Hotel, at Fifth avenue
and Forty-seventh street. 1t was on
for. 1,n
seems incredible) before ever the en-
gines were called, and the reason was
that everybody supposed that of course
somebody had sent the alarm. And so
they all watched the fire, and waited
for the engines, ten minutes, fifteen
minutes. and by that time great col
umn of flame was roaring up the ele-
vator-shaft, and people on the roof, in
their madness, were jumping down to
the street. Then some sane citizen
went to fire-box and rang the call.
and within ninety seconds Engine 65
was on the ground. And after her
came Engines "a and 81 and then the
hook and ladder companies But there
was no making up that lost fifteen
minutes. The fire had things in its
teeth now, and three, four, five alarms
went out in quick succession, Twenty
three engines had their streams on
that fire in almost as many minutes.
And the big fire-tower came from
Thirty-sixth street and Ninth avenue.
and six hook and ladder companies ar
rived.
Let US see how Hook and Ladder 81
came. She was the mate of the fire.
tower, and the rush of her galloping
horses was ecboing up the avenue just
as Battalion Chief John Binns made
out a woman in a seventh-story win
dow on the Forty sixth side, where the
fire was raging iiercely. The woman
was holding little dog in her arms,
and it looked as If she was going to
jump. The chief waved to her to stay
where she was, and, running toward
the truck, motioned it into Forty-sixth
street. Whereupon the tiller-man at
his back wheel did a pretty piece of
steering, and even as they plunged
along, the crew began hosting the big
ladder. Such a thing is never done,
for the truck might upset with the
swaying, but every second counted
here, and they took the chance.
y AS they drew along the curb, Fire
man McDermott sprang up the slowly
rising ladder, and two men came be-
hind with scaling ladders, for they
saw that the main ladder would never
reach the woman. Five stories Is what
it did reach, and then McDermott,
standing on the top round, smashed
one of the scaling ladder through a
sixth-story window and climbed on,
smashed the second scaling ladder
through a seventh-story window and
five seconds later had the woman in
his arms.
!. To carry a woman down the front of
q burning building on scaling ladders
is a matter of regular routine for q
fireman. like jumping from fourth
story down to net or making bridge
of his body. 1t As part OF the business.
But to have one foot in the air reach
ing for a lower step on swaying.
fiimsy thing, and to feel the other step
break under you, and to fall two feet
and catch safely. that is thing not
every fireman could do, but McDer-
mott did it, and he brought the woman
safely to the ground-and the dog too.
Almost at the same moment the
crowd on Forty seventh street were
gasping in admiration of rescue feat
even more thrilling. On the roof,
screaming in terror, was Kate Flannl-
gan, servant girl, swaying over the
cornlce, on the point of throwing her
self down. Then out of a top floor
window crept little fireman, and
stood on the fire escape gasplng for
air. Then he reached in and dragged
out an unconscious woman and low
cred her TO others. and was just start
ing down himself when yells from the
street made him lock up, and he saw
Kate Flanagan. She was ten feet
above him, and he had no means Of
reaching her.
The crowd watched anxiously, and
saw the little fireman lean back over
the fire escape and motion and shout
something to the woman. And then
she crept over the cornice edge. hung
by her hands for a second and dropped
into the fireman's arms. 1t isn't every
big. strong man who could catch
sizable woman in fall like that and
hold her, but this STRIPPING did IL. be-