Smyrna times., 1911-02-15
FAMILY OF SEVEN
KILLED BY Gas
Father, Mother and Five Chill
drGn Found Dead.
BRIDE-ELECT OEE OF VICTIMS

Deadly Fumes From Tube Detached
from Gas Stove Filled the House
ano overcame Family In Their
Sleep.
Seven persons, including the father,
mother, three sons and two daughters.
were asphyxiated by gas in theil
home at l Pearl place, in the rear OF
22S Christian street, Philadelphia.
The dead are: Hyman Berkowitz.
forty-two years old, fruit huckster;
Mrs. Rose Berkowitz forty years old;
Minnie, eighteen; Michael, twelve;
Israel, nine; Rebecca, seven, and Paul
five years old.
The family was killed by the acci-
dental loosening of rubber gas tube
from a gas pipe running across the
main living room, and the flooding ol
the house with the Illuminating gas.
Not one of the family was able to get
out of bed before being overcome by
the fumes, although the three young.
est children showed evidences of hav'
ing tried in a feeble manner to escape
the overpowering gas.
A particularly sad feature OF the
deaths was that of the oldest child,
| the daughter Minnie. She was to have
been married within two OF three
days to Louis Weinstein, merchant.
| The girls trOusseau was all finished
and was found hanging on the sec
1 oil m
tect it from dust.
| The BerkOwitz family retired early
The father did not return home until
after one clock. In the main living
room down stairs is a gas stove IN
one corner under a window. From II
there is a pipe which extends across
the center of the room. From this
pipe rubber gas tube had been at
tached which ran to the stove in the
cerner.
Berkowitz, the evidence showed, il
crossing the room on his return home
accidentally kicked the gas tube ant
detached it from the pipe and there
upon allowed the gas to escape will
full force.
He went upstairs to bed and lef
the door to his room, where he slep
with his three sons, and the alcov
where his wife and her two daughter
slept, wide open. In short time tn
gas, which escaped with full force ou
of the pipe, had filled the house.
To all appearances no one made an
attempt to get up when the escapin
gas reached them. The smaller Chi
dren showed evidences of a struggle
as if partially awakened, but were nc
successful in getting away from tn
fumes. The youngest child, Paul, wa
half out of bed, but was the only on
to have made any move apparently.
Their bodies were not found unit
J. Marvin, a constable and collectO
went to the home to collect the rel
for the month He pounded at the dot
and later hammered ON it, but thel
- was no response.
} He then went next door to Il
! home of Samuel Smith. Smith to
Marvin that he had not seen the Be
kowitz family, and, fearing that som
thing had happened, gave Marvin
key to the Berkowitz home. MI
! Smith accompanied Marvin to Il
/ house. as did Rose Miller. who nv'
! one door away.
Upon opening the door the lnves
! gators were almost knocked over
the rush of escaping gas. The gas
was found turned wide open. Aft
it had been turned off the people h;
tened upstairs and there found t
Z seven people unconscious and app
! emily dead.
DR.. Levitt, a cousin of the Berl
! witz family, was called. Upon Gle
I examination he pronounced the ent
seven dead.