Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1908-03-13
HOW |62 HELPLESS SCHOOL Children
Went 70 THEIR Death IN FLAMES
Rear Doorway Is damned

the top with white faces. Little
hands stretched out supplicatingly,
begging to be saved. Mothers faint
cd where they stood. Others tried to
gather in the young children. But
volunteer firemen and policemen
held them back. Then the fire crept
up through the mass, silencing the
wailing voices of the children, for
whom nothing could be done.
though rescuers were crowded in
front of the doors.
In their wild panic, the children
had wedged themselves so tightly in
to the passageway that the rescuers
pulled the flesh from the arms OF
| some trying to draw them out.
The fire was discovered by three
little girls who were in the base
ment. They saw the flames eating up
into the wind of the front stairway.
They rushed through the basement
and told Fred, Hitter, the janitor.
He sounded the school fire alarm
gong.
Mrs. Moran, principal OF the
school, supposed 1t was the regular
practise fire drill. The teachers
marshaled their charges in good Or
der and started for the stairs. There
was no panic at first. The children
on the first floor passed out safely,
thinking It the usual practise drill.
Teacher Saves One Glass
Those behind then saw the smoke.
| They cast frightened glances at It,
but maintained order. Many of the
children on the third floor were saw
ed in this manner. But the flames
the children on the third floor had
come into the hall, the smoke and
sparks were coming up the stairs in
great puffs.
Miss Laura Bodey, who had charge
, of the single room on the third floor.
kept her head and started the chill
/, dren down the stairs. When they
reached the second floor the flames
were eating their way up the stairs.
Miss Bodey called to the children
1
fire escape, through a room on the
second floor. Most OF the children
obeyed her and were saved. Some.
however, had broken away and fed
down the stairs. They were caught
in the death trap.
Nearly all the children on the sec
ond floor persisted. Their teachers
led them to the stairs in the rear.
for the front stairs were enveloped
in flames. At the sight of the fire
the children took fright at once.
They started pell nell down the
stairs and into the narrow passage
that led to the outside doors.
Held in Death Trap
The first few escaped. Some of
those following tripped on the stairs
and rolled to the bottom. Others be-
hind them ran over the tangle at the
lotion of the stairs and crowded in-
to the passageway. Some fell over
PROSTATE bodies and made the con-
fusion greater. The children COM
menced dropping over the bannisters
to get out. Those who had fallen on
the stairs began to get up and in an
instant the entrance to the passage
was blocked. Not yet had the flames
spread to the passage.
At first the children wedged into
the passageway were all standing.
! But as the others urged from behind
and as they struggled to free them-
selves from the death-hold of the
Jam, they fell forward in turn. 1t
! was kept up this way until the pas
sage was blocked to within foot of
the top. Only the faces of the chill
dren could be seen from the outside.
Behind the human partition were
scores OF other children crowded
against the barrier In a moaning
huddle.
Various Statements Made
What happened at the foot OF the
first flight OF stairs will never be
known, for all of those who were
caught in the full furry of the panic
were killed. After the flames had
died away, however, huge heaps OF
little bodies, burned by the fire, and
trampled into things Of horror, told
the tale as well as anybody needs to
know it.
Various and unconfirmed state.
ments are made as to the cause of
the fire, and also that the doors of
the building had been locked at the
front entrance, while but one door
OF the rear entry was unfastened.
The janitor, Fritz Herter, himself be-
reaved OF two children, says that the
doors were open according to Gus
tom, at any rate the congestion of
fleeing children in the hallway be-
low effectually barred the way, and
the little ones went to their death
totally unable to evade the flames.
Within three hours after the start
OF the fire 1t had burned itself out
and the work of recovering the bod
les proceeded The village fire de-