The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-05-01
THREE MORE WILL DIE
A False Alarm of Fire In a Cigar
Factory.
A HORRIBLE JAM IN THE PASSAGEWAY
Several HurI Themselves From the Windows
Into the Street. Firemen With Great
Difficulty Cam the Panic
Stricken Employees.
(By the Associated Press.l

pnllaQelpnld, April oU.-An unfortunate
accident to a deaf and dumb boy. Isador
Baccus, was today directly responsible
for the death of eight girls and young
women, and the fatal injury of three
others and the serious injury of more
than two score of girls employed in the
cigar factory of Hamburger Roman &
Company, branch of the American To-
bacco Company located at Tenth and
Washington streets.
The dead are:
MARY GENEVA, aged Is years.
HELEN TOLINI, aged IL years
ELIZABETH TARTINE, aged ~ years.
ANNIE ROsSCHNIDER, aged IS.
LOUISA DE SEPT, aged IS years.
IDA GREEN, aged IS years.
ANNIE FORD, aged Is years.
Unidentified woman about % years of
age, whose body is at the morgue
Fatally injured:
Mary Mesnio, injured internally, skull
fractured
Josephine o. ORines, injured intern
ally
Unidentified woman, fractured skull,
unconscious
The injuries of the others consist main
ly of bruises about the body and frac-
tured limbs.
The building in which the disaster oc-
CURED is. five story brick structure.
and covers an entire block. Twelve hun
dred persons were at work at the time,
80 Fer cent of whom were girls. whose
ages range from twelve years upward.
The trouble began on the fourth floor
of the structure. Baccus, who was iani
tor of the building, started for the fifth
floor for a ball of twine. The elevator
was at the top of the shaft and Baccus
pulled the rope to bring it down. He
opened the door leading to the shafe
ana leaned forward to see where the
carriage was. AS he did so, the elevator,
which was descending slowly, struck him
across the back of the neck, pinioning
his head between the elevator and the
floor. stock boy released Baccus and
cried for help. The foreman rushed from
the building to call an ambulance. and
Immediately there was a panic among
the employees. Some of the younger
girls tainted, while others, not being able
TO control their feelings, cried fire.
Instantly there was a mad rush for the
stairway leading into Tenth street. The
girls rushed down the narrow stairca Sc
until they reached bend in the exit
between the second and third floor. In
thelr eagerness to escape, the frighten-
cd leaders fell. Others immediately fol-
lowing tripped over the struggling mass
o humanity and in less than a minute
there We're hundreds of children and
your women struggling in the passage
way. The shrieks and screams of the
terror-stricken girls could be heard for
block or more.
uring the excitement an alarm of fro
was turned in, but before the engines
could reach the scene several of the oc-
cupantE of the building had rushed IN
the Windows and jumped to the street a
Instance Oh over fifty feet. Helen Tolini,
one Oh the hrst to jump, was almost
killed
When the fireman and policeman arri-
yea every effort was made to quiet the
terrorlzed girls. The firemen rushed up
the stairway and begged the girls to be
CAIN, telling them that there was abso-
luteIy no danger, but the sight of the
Fremen seemed only to add fuel to the
name. While the policemen and firemen
we're endeaVoring to quiet the girls on
the stairway ladders were being run up
on the outside of the building and the
employees who had climbed out onto the
fire escape and window ledges were
quickly taken to the street.
After few minutes the men were en-
abled to check the awful crush on the
stairway and then began the work of
rescuing those who had been trampled
and crushed between the second and third
floors. call for an ambulance had
been turned in and as quickly as the
dead and injured were carried from the
building they were hurried to hospitals
The number of ambulances was entire
ly inadequate and patrol wagons were
brought into use to carry the victims
away for treatment. While this was
going on the scene about the structure
was heart rending. The building is loca-
ted in section largely inhabited by He
brews, many of whom were caught in the
terrible crush. Parents and relatives of
the unfortunate girls were sceaming and
rushing about the streets like mad and
it was almost impossible for the police
officials to restrain the mothers and rel
atives of supposed victims from entering
the building.
The work of rescuing the girls from the