Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1910-11-30
,osntfa-s o. mhoan two NAV die.

hospitals, Q: ss}.nrn two may die.
The rush of the flames was so swift |
and threw such terror into the bud
died working girls on the top story |
that the body of one was found still
seated on a charred stool beside the
machine at which she had been busy
when the first cry of Fire fright
ened her
The building was very infiammable |
and the first gush of flames cut off all
possibility of escape nv the stairwavs
The elevator made one trip. but took
down no passengers and never came
back. The only exit was by two mar
row fire escapes, the lower Platforms
of which were twenty-five feet from
the street. To these overcrowded
scorched and steep lanes pressed for
ward a mob of women. blind with
panic. driven by the fire and the 9th
ers behind them. A net was spread
beneath the windows, and the girls
began to jump.
Like rats out of a burning bin, -
was the wav fireman described that
pell nell descent. Some of them were
dashed off the fire escape to the pave
ment sixty feet below Others stood
in the windows outlined against the
flames and jumped clear: others
leaped from the landings: still others
from the steps where they stood The
air was full of them, and they fell
everywhere-fnto the net, on the fire
men. and fifteen of them on the stone
slabs. When the rain of bodies
ceased there were eight dead in the
street, and the cutters ran red Others
died in the hospitals,
Thousands f10cked to the fire and
made the work of the firemen and
police more difficult Silk workers
fell in the street and prayed Priests
and clPrgymen worked their way
through the press to give the las:
consultations. Amhulances and auto
mobiles. Communicated for emergen-
Cy service. were hurrying in Oppo-
site streams to the hospitals and back
again
The building was four story brick
structure. occupied on the two lower
floors by the Newark Paper Box Com
pany and the A A. Drake Paper Box
company: on the third floor. where
the fire started. by the Anchor Lamp
company and the Aetna Electric com
pany. and on the top floor. where the
death list ran heaviest. by the Wolf
Manufacturing company. makers of
underwear. The wooden floors were
soaked with oil drippings from the
machines. and the flames ate through
| them like pastehoard When they
warped and weakened the weight Of
| the machinery tore them from the
walls. and they fell into the basement
| in tangle of hot iron and mangled
| humanity.
Sadie Benson, an employe of the
! Aetna Electric company, was cleaning
an electric light fixture in a gasolene
! bath The gasOlene took fire-she
! does not know hOw-and trickled in
a little rivulet of flame to the floor
where there was a full can of gaso-
lene. The can exploded. and the
burning liquid flew far and wide.
Lewis Coke, an employe OF the box
factory on the second floor, was
standing in the hallway at the time
of the explosion. The shock was
strong enough, he says, to hurl hin
against the wall, but the girls uT
stairs at their whirring sewing ma
chimes heard nothing.
Fire Chief Ashley laid the RESPONSE
bility for loss of life to delay in turn
ing in an alarm. He says that five
minutes were lost in trying to figh
the blazing gasolene with sand in {
barrel. IF those precious minute!
had not been wasted, he almos
sobbed, 1--WE should not have lost on
single life"
Frederick Weimar, chief inspecto
of the public prosecutors office, i
making an investigation to determln
, the responsibility of the tenants AM
, owners.