New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1902-05-01
GIRLS KILLED IN PANIC.
TWELVE HUNDRED FRIGHT
ENEID BY FIRE CRY.
SOME TANNED ON STAIRWAY. OTHERS
JUMPED FROM WINDOWS OF
AMERICAN TOBACCO COM
PANY BUILDING


PhiIadelr ia April 3O.-An accident to deaf
and dumb boy. Isador Baccus, to-day di-
rectly responsible for the death Of eight girls
and young women, the fatal injury of three
Others and the serious injury Of more than two
score girls employed in the cigar factory Of
Hamburger Homan & Co, branch of the
American Tobacco Company, at feminist. and
Washington-ave. The dead are:
DE SEPT. Louisa sixteen years old.
FORD Annie. thirteen years old.
GENEVA, Mary, fifteen years old
GREEN, Ida, eighteen years old
ROSSCHNEIDER, Annie, eighteen years old.
TOLINT. Helen twelve years old
TARTINE. Elizabeth, twelve years old.
Undermined woman. about twenty-five years old. whos>
body is al the morgue-
The fatally injured are: Mary Mesino injured
internally, skull fractured; Josephine ORonco,
injured internally; unidentified woman. frac-
tured skull, unconscious.
The injuries of the others consist mainly Of
bruises about the body and fractured limbs.
The building in which the disaster occurred
IS five story brick structure, and covers
entire block. Twelve hundred persons were at
work at the time of the accident. 80 per cent of
whom were girls, whose ages range from twelve
years upward.
The trouble began the fourth floor. Baccus,
the janitOr of the building, started for the fifth
floor for a bah of Irvine. The elevator was at
the top of the shaft. and Baccus pulled the rope
10 bring it down. He opened the door leading
10 the shaft and leaned forward TO where
the carriage was. As he did the elevator.
which was descending slowly. struck him across.
the back of the neck, pinioning his head between
the elevator and the floor. A stock boy released
Baccus and cried for help. The foreman rushed
from the building to call ambulance. and
Immediately there a panic among the en-
ployes. Some of the younger girls tainted and
others not being able TO control their feelings
cried fire. Instantly there was a mad rush for
the stairway leading into feminist The girls
rushed down the narrow staircase until they
reached bend between the second and third
floors. There the frightened leaders fell Others
Immediately following tripped over the strug-
Cling mass of humanity, and in less than min
ute there were hundreds of children and young
women struggling in the passageway. The
shrieks and screams of the terror stricken girls
could be heard for A block or more An alarm
of fire turned in. but before the engines
could reach the scene several Of the occupants
Of the building had rushed to the windows and
jumped TO the street, a distance of more than
fifty feet. Helen Tolini, one of those who
jumped, was almost instantly killed. When the
fremen and policemen arrived every effort was
made 10 quiet the terroTized girls. The firemen
rushed up the stairway and begged the girls to
be calm. telling them that there was absolutely
no danger, but the sight Of the fremen seemed
only TO make chem worse. While the policemen
and fremen were endeayoring TO quiet the girls
on the stairway ladders We're run up on the
outside of the building, and the employees who
had climbed out on TO the fire escapes and win
dow lodges were taken to the street.
After a few minutes the men checked the
awful crush on the stairway, and then began
the work Of rescuing those who had been tram
pied and crushed. a call for ambuances had
been turned in. and the dead and injured
Were carried from the building they were hur-
ried to hospitals. The number of ambulances
were entirely inadequate and patrol wagons
were brought into use to carry the victims
away.
While this going on the scene about the
structure was heartrending. The building is in
a section largely inhabited by Hebrews many
OF whom were caught in the terrible crush
Parents and relatives Of the unfortunate girls
were screaming and rushing about the streets
like mad people, and il almost impossible
for the police to restrain the mothers and rela-
uves OF supposed victims from entering the
building.
The work Of rescuing the girls from the win
oOws was necessarily tedious. They were so
excited that they did not seem TO understand
the peadings of the firemen. At nearly every
window of the huge structure were girls scream
ing and crying for help. Many were so excited
that IL with the greatest difficulty tina;
they were prevented from jumping from the
windows. notwithstanding that there was not
sign of fire and their rescue seemed the work of
only a few moments.
The panic over in less than half an hour
hut in this brief space thousands of persons
had been attracted to the scene by the wild
screams of the relatives of the victims and the
shrieks Of the girls at the windows. Because of
The great excitement, IL was almost impossible
10 get intelligent idea Of the disaster and
it was three hours after the accident occurred
before a single victim was identified.