The Washington times., 1905-04-08
FIRE IN FLATS
CREATES PANIC
AMONG INMATES
Sleepers Awakened by
Letter Carrier Are
Saved.
RUSH OUT HALF DRESSED
RUSH OUT HALF DRESSED
Mother and Baby Brought
Down Ladder by
Fireman.

Pandemonium- reigne6 at sp early
morning fire in the apartments at az
Second street northwest. where upward
of 400 damage was done. and a num-
ber of persons were rescued from q
third floor window by Acting Capt J, r.
Steele and Private Frank Mcpherson. IF
Truck D company.
The occupants of the fats were peace
fully sleeping about o'clock this morn
ing when Eugene l. Walter, letter
carrier. on his way to the Postofhce.
saw smoke issuing from the cellar graf
ing and turned in an alarm from Box
2eS.
Walter then ran through the building
knocking on doors and awakening the
occupants OF the various rooms, He
gave valuable assistance to the flremen,
Work of Rescue.
Steele and Mcpherson are both young
men and have not spent many years 81
the Fire Department. They are both
fearless and courageous, and were loud
l. applauded by the crowd w1sch
gathered around the foot of the sa6Esl
when the firemen reached the g-duz8
with their human burdens. These zS2
are candidates fe- The Times medals
offered for conspicuous bravery Al
though they have never figured IN 7Ea-
lie as they did this morning they have
paid strict attention to their duty TEzsE
they have rescued other persons X
due to the fact that the opportunity
has not presented itself
The fat dwelIers were thrown into z
panic. Women and children rushed
from the burning building with bun
dies of clothes IN their arms. Many OF
them Were in their night clothes. None
of them had time to put on shoes or
stockings or even their outer clothing.
How the fire originated has not yet been
ascertained. but Assistant Fire Marshal
Nicholson is making an investigation to-
day and will make a report to Chief
Belt as soon as it is finished
In the Furnace Room.
Members of Truck D, who fought the
fire, say it originated In a furnace room
near the dumb waiter shaft. No one
was found today who could offer any
explanation how fire could have orig
mated there. as no one was near the
place at the time it broke out.
The fire was not confined to the lower
floor, but swept up the elevator shaft
and did more damage on the second
and third floors than In the cellar and
on the first floor.
Gregory M. Nix, occupies the lower
floor with G. W Fortune and H M
Smoot On the second floor A. L. Hick-
man and family live, as does Mr. Nix
and his family. II. NJ. Smoot and T. A.
Dobbert have their sleeping apartments
on the third floor where several women
also occupied rooms.
In Dangerous Position.
Unmindful that a fire was raging un-
der them, and had been for some time
the residents of the fat slept on, while
the flames leaped up toward the sleeping
apartments 1t was about o'clock that
a Columbia car drew up to Second and
II streets and stopped to take on pas
senger Walter, the letter carrier,
locked over toward the apartment house
and saw smoke and flames coming up
from the cellar While the car was
going at full speed he jumped off and
after satisfying himself that there was
a fire he ran TO box 26S and sounded an
alarm and afterward rushed into the
fats and yelled fire al the top of his
voice.
This aroused the sleepers, who bound
ed out of bed, grabbed their clothes, and
ran toward the main entrance of the
building. Those who lived on the first
Continued on Second Page)