New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-06-18
The HER0ISM OF WOMEN.
RESCUE SLOCUM VICTIMS
North Brother Island the Scene of
Splendid Courage.


Splendid acts OF hero'srn were performed by n.
women OF North Brother Island in re-cutns 90.
,-rr and c1~lnF for che dead in the terrfbIs ra,..
--ophc % Wednesday. Officials and mazda worn-r
~ education and position. humble scrubwox,en u,a
servants they gave themselves royalty Thoss -r4o
cou.6 m riszed their lives not more generously
.bar ,hrse who could not swim Delicate r,rIs
swan out IN the wreck stood Up TO their am,
r.ts IN tne long as there was a sor,i tnav
could save. and their devotion was edualled hv
those who on the shore worked bring back che
spark of lie as long as there was a ray OF hope
one ~ the most brilliant acts Of heroisrn VA.
tha. 1f Pauline Puetz slender girl OF seventeen
wears who swan out 10 the stern. pulled a chtld
from tee revolving paddlewheel brought IL safety
70 shore. and then. finding that fits law was
fractured. set the jaw Pauline is a waItress
si-;-rg GA the back stoop Of the doctors house,
IN her plain black gown and waitress's aprou she
told briefly the story of what she had done
ny father taught me to swim when I was seven
or eight I used 10 teach swimming az Twenty
foC-ta-sc. AS as I saw there was a vessel
On IRE I pulled of my oxford ties and ripped of
ny apron.
Don't 20, cried one Of the girls, you.u der
" 4 must go. replied I can't see those peopIe
drown without giving a hand
They tried 10 hold NE back by my skirt but
let them pun my skirt off me and rushed into
the water in my petGcoat.
IN Gods name. jump 7 called To the pAonia
Throw YOUR babies overboard-weu catch them
'Thsre was woman who stood on the upper deck
the bow with her baby in her arms crying for
help I swan out 10 her. She ran back near TO the
paddle wheel and threw the baby by mistake right
into The wheel. The wheel was going. 7 swan up
and supporting myself with one hand. with the
other pulled the baby out from the churning waters
and UP with it 70 one Of the boatmen's rooms.
Then 7 saw The little things Jaw was broken So
laid the bed and set the bone in place. I'm
not q nurse. I never set a bone before IN my
life I couldn't do II again.
Then I went back into the water and with a
rope brought out group OF three girls. One was
& girl Of Is. another was young married woman
VIZ had lost two children. and the other was a
young woman. One OF them was named Annis
That's all know about any OF them The next
tine. I swimming out q large woman who
lying top OF the water and looked 10 be
dead caught me by the neck n death grip.
had 10 fight Tor ny life When they dragged Us
out I tainted. The woman was badly wounded
Afterward I helped 10 bancags her arm 7 saved
i've from the boat and had pulled n ever so many
by the tine I tainted"
Pauline PuItz's tremendous exertions may cos,
her dear. BY jumping down from the paddlewheel
she bruised her foot ana IS hobbling around IN
consequence. Yesterday afternoon, after waiting
table Il nothing had happened. she tainted
dead away. and when she came 10 was carried
or 10 bed hystericaI.
And then there Mary Clarke. tall. dark with
a thin worn face and eloquent eyes. a chamber
maid.
u vas drinking a cup OF coffee in the kitchen
when 7 heard the whistle. and. thinking It might
be the Edison on FIRE, I rushed down 10 the pier"
she said. When 7 saw the steamer al on fire and
the people crowded n the stsrn. ran along the
hanks calling TO them 10 Jump When they cid
jump. they fell right one top OF the other Then
saw the rail give way. AS pulled the children
OUT. Alice Meinhart. a kitchen maid took them out
Of NY arms and fed them with hot milk and put
them IN dry clothes.
Il was changing the clothes O: little boy OF nine
or ten Ia pulled out Leave me- he says. and 60
10 some who Is hurt worse. He lived n Sec
ond-ave. I'm so glad mother didn't come he
Gays or else she and baby would have been lost
He the manifest little fellow ever saw
BUT they were all brave Everybody wanted some
one else 10 be helped first. I also saved an older
boy. who had had the skin burned OF both his
hands, and TWO women
The story OF the herOism OF the workingwornea
OF North Brother Island-the scrubwonen Iaun-
dresses and waitresses-just the plain. simple peo-
pie. who, cay after day. go about their humble
tasks without acknowledgements OF any kind viii
never be known. Take Catherine Hanley, the cook
AL that terrible Wednesday afternoon and Wednes-
day night she stood the range IN the big
kitchen, preparing soup and sending It down by
the bucketf-l 10 the workers at the waters edge
She would take no rest, except 70 go 10 the beach
and help the others. Kate Duffy. a cook. was an
other heroine All day and night she shaved, heat
ing milk and soup
Mar Mccain. q helper n the measles ward.
another heroine. she said:
and 51gt % go 5a5y Eirs ana brought 5 them in
Then went back for a boy OF eleven. Then
esuEat ne b. ne leg. 50 that I could not STIR
The water urickling into my mouth. and
They I-- the gl-l Il barrel. but she died. She
had a qua nifty Of dark red hair She was very
kTe5 III '-- : brought tx o1' o. INC "a's['
Especially courageous was Emma OConnell
waitress who dashed out TO the wreck although
she carrC- swim. Emma is twenty-three years old
What shan I doo I can't swim: but can't see
those children burn" she called 70 OF the
iaundresses. And with that she jumped in.
i saw q Ittle hand stretched out Of the water
she said and when 7 got 70 It I found IL
little TT baby OF eight or nine months. I thrust
her into the arms OF Alice Meinhart, a kitchen
fnaid. Then went back and pulled out two more
and gave them 10 Alice The next time brough:
OCT four or I'VE months old baby. II died
Wanted 70 go back, but they wouldn't LEI ne.
so I helped on the lawn. taking off the wet
clothing and putting dry. We ran short OF
Clothes. Run % 20 my room and get all my
taiags. told Nellie Brown. and she did We fed
Tie children and carried down pals Of milk Nor the
Workers Then I changed ny wet things and
waited on che table
Mary 1laher q helper IN The measles ward, was
making toast for q patent when the alarm came.
A few minutes later she standing IN the water
nearly Up 70 her waist. She saved three boys and
one woman, besides one woman who proved 10 be
DEAD II only did my duty" said Mary.
Margaret Lawrence. another helper. rushed
without her stockings. ana. with the water above
her waist. rescued three boys. three babies
man AID -hrec women.
i worked until $50 in the evening IN and out Of
Tic water. ana then began covering the faces OF
"