News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1903-03-11


hall, and Barton, in spite of his ire
mendous will power, nearly tainted at
the sights and sounds there. Miss An
drews was helping one of the surgeons.
A great crowd thrOnged the entrance
to Hope House, and Gordon had great
difficulty in getting Barton out to the
carriage.
He put him into it and was stepping
in himself when Barton pulled the
door aud told the driver to go on.
Gordon hesitated.
you're needed here. Go on. driver.
I'll promise to live till tomorrow, John.
Go in and help her She needs some
one"
The carriage started slowly on ac-
count of the crowd. Gordon waved a
silent goodby. When the carriage was
out OF Bowen street, Barton tainted.
the carriage, and when the driver
reached his rooms and got down to
open the door he was frightened at the
sight of what looked like corpse in
the carriage. He and Williams carried
Barton in. and before noon Barton lay
in a tremendous fever, which the doc
tor said was a clear case of pneumonia.
Cant save him." the doctor said to
Williams curtiy. "Ill send up the best
nurse we've got. But Barton might as
we'll shoot himself as do what he did
last night"
of oil dEN " oh
Gordon Grace Andrews, the assistants
and q score of surgeons worked to save
life, with heart breaking doubt in their
souls as they labOred as to the future
fate of the mangled, crushed, burned
manned humanity that did not merci-
fully die. In the feverish horror of it
all, as the work of searching the ruins
went on and dense throngs of curiosity
seekers chOked all the district, John
Gordon was aware of one prominent
figure that was apparently Omnipres
ent-Tommy Randall. He was on hand.
cheerfully encouraging those who had
lost everything, securing temporary
quarters for those who We're wander
ing bewildered through the streets or
sitting dumb and stolid on their dam
aged piles of household goods, distrib-
uting wagon loads of bread and coffee
and in several cases hunting up lost
children and bringing together families
that had become separated during the
confusion.
Once as he stepped out of the hall for
q moment to get a breath of fresh air
Gordon almost ran into Randall, who
in his arms, both of them devOuring
sandwiches. Randall nodded to Cor
don, but did not speak, and Gordon
stepped back without saying anything.
But all the rest of the day he had
vision of Tommy Randall and those
children.
Both morning and evening papers
contained full accounts of the ''Tene-
ment Fire Horror on Bowen Street"
The News printed list of names Of
property owners, and Philo II. Marsh's
name was prominent among them as
owner of the double decker fire trap"
as it was labeled. Every paper in the
city had an editorial on the subject,
but only one Of them, the Index, called
attention to the fact that for years the
nature of the construction had been
fully known and nothing done because
city politics did not wish to interfere
with property owners who paid GER
tain amount of blackmail for the privi-
lege of ignoring city ordinances. A
special meeting of the city council,
people in the ruined district, took ac-
ton to provide temporary quarters for
the homeless. Meanwhile public indig-
nation cooled almost as fast as the
ruins in Bowen street, when it was ru-
mored that several prominent men and
women had subscribed several thou
sand dollars to the survivors and that
as one result of the fire a set of model
tenement buildings would be built in
the burned district. John Gordon, read
ing all this in moments when he rested
from the great strain that continued
for many days, could not repress a
strong feeling Chat nothing but Chris
tian grace kept from being bitter ha-
tired of class that the real cause of
all the horror had not been touched by
all the editors and all the public ex-
element. The landlords We're not ar
rested for anarchy in breaking ordi-
nances which if obeyed would have
made the massacre of children impossi-
bic. The professional politicians and
spoilsmen continued to hold their
places and plan for future plumber of
the people Tommy Randall, boss of
Ward 10, was winning golden opinions
from the sufferers by his lavish distri-
button of food and clothing and shell
ter. The disaster was a godsend to
Tommy. How should the poor, igno-
rant stolid people of Bowen street
know that the bread and coffee and
beer and clothing and collins that Tom
my Randall distributed with such
cheerfulness and good will were bought
with money which men like Mr.. Marsh
and Mr.. Rufus Gordon had paid as
part price for being let alone in their
business methods?
How should the people know that
Tommy Randall touched" the pocket
of every saloon keeper and every keep
err of a disreputable house and every
prominent criminal in Waterside dis
trict to get the sinews of political war?
And what difference if he did, as Miss