The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-01-30

JolHiAS the ChIoh square Hotel starting
probably in pantry and sweeping up
dumb walters and airshafts, the blaze
spread out on the upper floors like a mush-
room. In the rush for safety which fol-
| lowed and which was very nearly panic,
all but four of the occupants Of the hotel,
| 80 of whom were guests, escaped with
their lives. OF these four two we're found
dead within three hours after the fire
started and two are yet missing. The
| casualties were:
Dead
KATIE FAY, servant burned to death in the
ELEANOR DOWNING. trained nurse. OF 252
West Fifty-fourth Street; fell from sixta floor
while being rescued
injured
John P. Walsh, fifty years old. contractor. right
knee fractured and body bruised
John h2liagher, porter, right arm badly burned
J. Ensign Fuller, feet and arms badly burned.
W. H. 1OltZ, New Haven. student on wav TO
Princeton, hands torn by sliding down rope Ere
escape.
Col William Gildersleeve. lawyer. cut by
Mrs E Waldo Mason. burned about the face
and arms and taken to Bellevue Hospital Mrs
Mason vas IN bed when the fire broke out.
The missing are:
Edward Frenchuan. who was emploved in
the boiler-room.
alfs. Fitzmorris housekeeper in the hotel
None of the injured. with the exception
of Mrs. Mason, were obliged to go to a
hospital. They were attended by ambu-
lance surgeons on the spot and found shell
ter in the neighborhood.
0ne OF those who lost her life was
A'Hearn and Policeman schfck had flung
her rope from an adjoining window of
the Union Square Hotel With the search
lights of engine 20 playing on them ike
Iime-light on the stage the woman tied
the rope about her and the old deputy
chief with the policeman holding him ty
the legs, leaned out OF his window to
swing her safely. and then she Ieapad
from the window ledge As the rope ief k
ed taGt 1t broke and the womans body
hurled down TO TIE pavement and Instant
death
Night Clerk Robinson discovered smoke
eddying through his Office about O'Clock
this morning. He promptly sent IN the
special fire signal Of the hotel aad set the
FIRE bells in the rooms Of the guests ring
ing. TDen ne awakened the proprietor,
John ChstfeId who raIs OUT and turned IN
regular fire alarm from the nearest
street box To these two calls were add
ed a second alarm as soon as Deputy
Chief A'Eearn arrived with the first IoC
Of engines. On the second alarm, cane
Chief Croker.
Like all fires which start downstairs
I
out in a mushroom shape on the upper
floors as soon as It's upward rush was cut
of by the roof It was in the heat Of the
rush and roar that the most spectacular
feature of the ire. indeed, one Of the most
spectacular features OF many years Of
fires. occurred-the attempted rescue and
the fall 70 death OF the unlucky nurse.
This nurse had been in attendance on
Mrs. Mason, who was confined 10 her bed.
She came from the Sloan Maternity Hos
pital. and the child, at whose birth she
assisted. died two days ago. When Deputy
Chief Ahearn and Policeman Schick got to
the sixth floor window OF the Union Square
Hotel in the room occupied by Frank y.
Colby, a commercial traveller. Miss Low
Ing was screaming for help from the ad
joining window OF the Hotel Jefferson
LliEh- k{AEth- sac u ECtt "a Z NJ .
Nascn. She's sick in bedi"
The fireman. the policeman. and the
commercial traveller, working together,
managed 10 get a rope, and this they
swung over TO the frightened woman at
the window. By the time the rope was
tossed TO her smoke was enyelOpiHg the
place, and the nurse had forgotten about
everything except saving herself from
what seemed certain death Hurriedly
she wound the rope about her night dress,
the big searchlight from engine 20 throw
ing her white figure into glaring relief
against the dark wall behind her and then
she swung out. Her body swayed heavily
down and the rope came taUt with jerk,
while old Deputy Chief Ahearn. held by
the policeman gripped il hard and tried
to lift il in. The woman's body had hard
~ jeFked the rope tauJ however when the
fbres snapped and the body plunged to
the street II struck a scaling ladder in
It's fall, breaking il, and dropped TO the
stone sidewalk The woman struck fairly
on her head and died instantly
The panic at this time was at its worst
and there was no time 10 waste over those
vho we're outside the building even though
they were dead and the nurses body lay
on the sidewalk where il had fallen. while
ladders were run up the face OF the burn
ing hotel. Meanwhile Nj. Mason had
come TO the window from which the nurse
had swung and Deputy Chief Ahearn and
Frank Colby had got on the roof Of the
Union Square Hotel with a new rope. This
they swung 10 Mr. Mason who tied il firm
" about his sick size and lifted her gently
out Of the window. Six times her body
swung like a pendulum while AheaTn
held on tight and Colby gTLPDed hi1 feet.
The policeman who were in the window
from which the rope had first been swung
caught Mrs. Mason and pulled her safely
in Mr.. Mason was rescued in the same
way and husband and wife We're put into
2 room in the Union Square Hotel
The others got cut in all sorts Of ways
Steward RucIner led seven Of the paric-
stricken chambCrmaids up 10 the top floor
and thence they were lowered down some
twelve feet TO the roof OF the Union
Square Hotel These employees at Stein
yav Hall were awakened by the report TO
find the rear windows of the hotel filed
with shrfekiug persons. They put a plank
across the airshaft between the buildings
and over the narrow chasm thus bridged a
number of guests were led 10 safety
Col William Gildersleeve and Mr.
Walsh a broom manufacturer. had 20
break through a heavy glass window to
get at the fire escape. and were severely
cut in doing il.
Fifteen ear-oId T B. Rogers, OF Del
aware was lifted from 2 window on the
third floor TO an adjoining window il the
Union Square Hotel by Policeman Burns
After the fire had been got under con
troll Fireman Boyd, of hook and ladder 3
found the dead body Of a woman ol the
top floor. Il could not be Identified at
once but it was believed 10 be the body
of either Mrs FirTmnrriS the H0uSeteaO-