New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-06-16
CHILD HEROES OF DISASTER.
BOYS AND GIRLS IN THEIR TEENS GIVE LIFE PRE-
SERVERS TO WOMEN AND Babes.
Tlr4s Work after Being SaedMen Hold S5eehearts
10 of Burning Boat--CEng o PaddIesoheeZs
TALES OF CHILD BRAVERY
In Scene of Terror They Thought
of Others First.

of Others First.
Many were the stories Of heroism on the part
of children and of harbreadth escapes from
death by flood of fire taken TO the sorrowing
lower East Side last night One man saved his
sweetheart after a terrible struggle in the
strong tide; a boy, scarcely thirteen years DID,
rescued little girl, and nearly lost his life in
his efforts to rescue six-year-old baby; another
boy. after being taken ashore. plunged over
board and swan ashore with the bodies of his
mother and grandmother.
Arthur Link, thirteen years old, Of No. 76
Avenue A, the son OF a cigarmaker, was on the
lower deck Of the Slocum when the fire broke
out. with his brother Edward. eleven years old.
and his sister Lottie, eight. Sitting next TO him
was Mrs. Peter Heckert OF No. So Avenue A,
who held her six-months-old baby in her lap
Everything around u.s." said Arthur last
night, began 10 burn at once I awfully
frightened. and Mrs Heckert was, too She
knows I SWIM and she gave the baby.
Never mind me- she said. but save the baby
II couldn't move myself. but every one began
TO push me 10 the side OF the boat. tug was
almost touching I remember that a man
took the baby from me. but can't remember
anything else. When woke up shore some
one was putting a bandage my head and
telling me not TO be afraid"
The Crosse children OF No % First-ave..
made up a party OF five all OF whom were
saved. They were in charge of Miss Mamie
Crosse. who is twenty-one years old. Curt
Crosse. eleven years old. saved the whole party
by his GOODNESS.
BOY SAVES ENTIRE PARTY.
we were all on the upper deck" said the
boy near the bow. We were talking and
laughing and eating lot Of cakes that father
had given All OF a sudden there was big
fire right IN the middle of the boat. My sisters
got scared and started TO run TO the front of
the boat. but It began TO blaze there. too. They
didn't know what TO do. but told them to go
to the side OF the boat. where it wasn't afre.
1 made them stay there. for every one else was
trying TO run TO the back part OF the boat.
They were awfully scared. and kept yelling
'Firer and saying their prayers
Il wanted 10 say mine. but 1 didn't have time.
A lot Of people who were hanging onto the
front OF the boat from our deck fell into the
fire when a piece of IL broke off There must
have been more than twenty OF them. Then
towboat got up close to and slid down
post to the lower deck and climbed board.
My sister Mamie fell into the water but a tow
boat man pulled her out. The men got all the
life preservers they could and tried TO put them
around the women, but they were so scared
that the men had awful hard work TO do 1T
CLINGs TO BOAT WITH FIANCEE.
In the last boatload to be saved from the
burning steamer were Henry Iden. nineteen
years old. OF No. 100 East Fourth-st., and his
sweetheart. Miss Amelia Swartz. OF No 141
East Third-st. Iden lost his four sisters-Annie.
aged twelve; Eta, nine; Minnie. seven. and
Grace. five. Miss Swartz was hysterical with
grief over the loss OF her mother. Mrs. Louisa
Swartz; her grandmother. Mrs. Anna Swartz.
and her aunt. Mrs. Christina Burkhardt, and
her three months-old daughter. Mrs. Burk-
hardt's son Adam. eight years old was saved
Miss swartz and I went TO the rail" said
Iden. I'VE a lot OF people waving their
arms at We stayed close by the rail where
it wasn't hot. until the steamer grounded.
Then we jumped into the water couldn't
swim with Miss Swartz. so we held on to the
boat. 1t got so hot in two or three minutes that
1 had TO keep ducNng her TO keep her hair from
being burned. and had TO duck myself. We
were finally saved by towboat. but not until
our faces had been blstered and our eyebrows
burned off"
GIRL GIVES BELT TO WOMAN
John Tischner. thirteen years old living at
No 401 Fifth-st, is scarcely four feet tall and
does not weigh more than ninety pounds. Small
heroes that the disaster revealed When the
fire first broke out he found life preserver for
Ida Wytzka. fourteen years old. who was with
him. She lives at No. 404 Fifth-et., directly
across the street from the Tischner boy and
the two have been playmates for years The
girl saw woman with baby unable to get at
q life preserver, and she unhesitatinglv gave the
woman hers Tischner tried TO get another
from the racks. but was not strong enough.
I'VE were sitting the lower deck eating
ice cream and smelling the CLAIMS they were fry
ing, thinking how nice they would taste" he
said after he got home. "All of sudden every-
thing around US got afre. and for a minute
didn't know what TO do. Every one was crying
and praying and yelling Fire. lot of women
around me were running back and forth with
their hair and clothes afire. I pulled Ida back
out OF the way. so she wouldn't catch fire
Finally got life preserver for Ida, and she
gave 1t to a woman with baby. 1 tried to get
her another. but It stuck in the rack and
couldn't reach ii we'll enough to pull Il down
Finally a man gave another life preserver
and I put 1t on Ida and pushed her overheard.
Then I jumped in the water and held her up
until a tug picked her up"
The girl added to the story
NEARLY GIVES LIFE FOR ANOTHER
when Johnny pushed me overheard" she
said, 81 tried to paddle away from the steamer
but the water kept pushing me back II was
awful hot. and my face got burned Johnny
then swan up to me and pulled me away. After
he and had been pulled out of the water he
tried 10 save baby. A lot of the women were
throwing their babies into the water and
Johnny saw oe little boy. about six years old
hold on TO a piece of wood. He swan to him
and tried to bring him over to the tug. We
were a long way off then and he was too TRAD
TO hold O % him