Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-03-05
RECORDS OF BRAVERY
EVEN LITTLE CHILDREN WERE
HEROES AT NEED.

CLEVELAND. March 5.-Even in the
face OF the pitiful disaster, the worse
that the victims were mere babies, there
were instances Of heroism to warm the
heart. Some are known. others probably
are closed to earthly record under the
smoke pail.
Miss Catherine Weller, one of the nine
teachers in the school. lost her life in a
vain effort to marshal the pupils of her
class and lead them to safety. She died
in the crush at the rear door. Her room
was on the second floor, and when the fire
alarm sounded she marched her pupils out
intothe hall, thinking 1t was only fire
drill There the truth dawned upon both
teacher and pupils, and control was lost
The children, in their frenzy, plunged
into the struggling mass ahead of them
Miss Weller attempted TO- stem the rush'
but went down under 1t, and her body
was found an hour later piled high with
thoseof her pupils. Miss Weller formerly
lived in Detroit and was educated IN
Toledo.
The police were utterly unable. through |
lack Of numbers to keep away the crowd |
that pressed upon them. and the situa-
ton soon became so serious that num- 1
Der Of the more cool-headed men in the
throng took it upon themselves to aid in
lighting back the crowd. while others
worked to help the firemen and the po-
lice.
Fathers Heroic Fight.
Among these latter men was wallace
Upton. who reached the building shortly
after the front door had caved in. and
disclosed to the horror-stricken crowd the
awful scenes that had been enacted
there. Just in front of Upton's eyes was
his own ten-year-old daughter helpless in
the crush, badly burned and trampled
upon. but still alive. The fire was close
upon her, and II she could not be saved
at once she could not be saved at all.
Upton sprang to help her, and. with all
his strength. sought to tear her from the
weight that was pressing her down and
from the flames which were creeping
close. Although he worked with a desper-
alton of despair, his strength was unequal
TO the task He fought on until his cloth
ing was partly burned from him, and the
skin Of his face and hands was scorched
black. Other men attempted to induce
him to move, but he refused until he saw
that his girl was dead. and that he could
not save her life by sacrificing his own.
He then withdrew from the schoolhouse,
and. although SO seriously injured that he
may die. fingered about the place for sew
eral hours. refusing to go to a hospital or
TO seek medical attendance.
Saved Her Little Brother.
Besides the children who were killed
Ridgeway. Anna Roth and Gertrude
Davis-were instantlp killed by leaping
from the attic to the ground.
Miss Ethel Rose "a teacher on the first
floor OF the building. whose pupils were
the youngest in the school. managed to
get all but three of her charges out of
the building in safety. Two of the small
err ones she carried In her arms
Miss Laura Bodey the only teacher on
the third floor formed her pupils in line
and marched them down to the second
floor, where finding the flames rushing up
the stairway. she turned them arounc
and hurried them back again to the third
floor She here broke window with a
chair. and, getting onto the platform of
the fire escape. lifted out her pupils one
by one and sent them down. Four or five
children who broke from the line she had
formed and ran down the stairway were
killed.
One of the heroines of the catastrophe
was little Marie Whitman of 5217 Lake
street. She ran through the smoke-filled
halls and crashed her little brother whom
sne MANAGED TO drag from the room and
take out through a window. both Of them
being nearly strangled with smoke
Teachers Heroines.
Miss Goldman. a teacher said:
1T was awful. / can see the wee thinpa
in my room holding out their tiny arms
and crying to me to help them their
voices are ringing in my ears yet, and
shall never forget them. When the
alarm gong rang I started the pupilk to
marching from the building. When they
started down the front stairs we were
met by a solid wall of fame ana clouds
of dense smoke. We retreated. and when
we turned the children became panic
stricken and could not do anything with
them. They became jammed in the mar
row stairway. and / knew that the only
thing for me to do was to get around to
the rear door. II possible. and help those
who were near the entrance.
When l got there after climbing out of
= window, / found the children SO crowd