Daily Kennebec journal., 1911-04-14
Led by Leader Of Drill, They
March Calmly 10 Safety.
Three Men in Court for Allowing
Fire Escape Obstruction.
Jury Now Considering Evidence In
Washington Place Fire.

New York, April 13.-Sixty factory
girls marched in unbroken ranks to
safety down fire escapes and across
roofs when fire broke out today in a
six-story building occupied by the
Manhattan Soap Co. Barbara Nolan,
young forewoman, who had designed
and perfected the fire drill by daily
practice since the Washington Place
disaster, directed the retreating girls
and was the last to reach the ground.
The fire swept through the building
rapidly, causing damage estimated at
$4,000.
Escape by the stairs was blocked by
smoke and flame, and firemen ran up
ladders to adjoining buildings and
brought many of the girls down from
the housetops. Miss Nolan's foresight
and eooness, they say, saved many
lives The burned building was in West
36th street, near the Hudson river.
New York April 13.-Taking of tes-
timony in tie coroner's inquest into
the factory fire in Washington place
in which more than 40 persons lost
their lives, was completed today with
the production of the lock of the door
on the ninth floor of the building,
found after the fire with the bolt shot.
The lock- in a glass covered box was
produced as mute evidence that the
door on this floor was locked, making
it is alleged, virtual prisoners of the
working girls on that floor.
The jurymen asked for a few days
to go into the evidence carefully and
| a1
iournnent until Monday when the jury
Will meet and retire for the prepara-
tion of their findings.
The building department summoned
three factory proprietors to court to-
day for not having free and clear pas
sage ways to the fire escapes on the
building they occupied. All We're ten
ants of the six-story loft building at
POI Wooster street. They We're given
until Tuesday to remedy conditions.
The men are Max Stern, sixth floor,
who employs 90 girls; Herman Katz.
third floor, who employs % girls. and
4. Goldman. fourth floGr. who en-
plcys So girls
Three of the witnesses "Wednesday
were women employed by the Triangle
Waist Co, who escaped from the hurn-
ing building. one Of them, Mrs. Irene
Szivos, said she always understood
that the Washington Place doors Were
locked. and she remembered once.
when the freight elevators broke down
and Mr.. Harris. of the firm, wished to
send the employees down the stairway,
he was obliged to ask some one for
key.
The first five Witnesses We're firemen.
one captain and another lieutenant.
They said there We're two places where
bodies We're found-one against the
partition by the Greene street stair
way and the other by the door in the
dressing room leading to the Washing
ton Place stairway
Annie Doriety. of No. 22S East 18th
street, a dress preSser. who escaped
from the tenth floor. said she had been
employed by the Triangle Company "a
year and did not know there was a
door on the Washington Place side.
She said the girls We're not searched
by representatives of the firm TO see
whether they had taken waists away
from the building in their handbags.
tSodC SUI II, Supei illteHteilt vi tiie
| Asch building, and Samuel Bernstein,
| manager for the Triangle Co. were
continually asked to repeat testimony,
and Bernstein had to correct himself
several times. Stern swore that lights
were going in the Washington Place
! stairways, but his subsequent testi-
mony showed that he hadn't been
| through the stairways very often anG
| that he based his assertion about the
lights on the fact that there was a
switch in the engine room. Some OF
the women witnesses said there were
no lights in the stairways.