The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1911-03-27

Tito tonight, "Gaspary and myself ran
our elevators up to the eighth floor
where In front of the door were hun,
dreds of young women. Max Blanck,
one of the owners of the Triangle
Waist Company, was standing there
and holding in check as best he could
the young women. To me Mr.. BLAME,
gave the order to run the elevator
until she falls, and then heard hin
shout, Let the women go down first.
Operator Sees Flames.
When | opened the elevator lead
ing to the eighth floor all could see
were the girls and men, and behind
them great flames and clouds of
smoke. Fully twenty women crowd
ed into my elevator on the first trip
and as many more came down with
me on the second trip. When | went
to the floor the tnird time | could see
some Of the girls standing on the
window stills, surrounded by fire, but
they seemed so terror stricken that
they didn't hear the shouts of Mr.
Blanck and other men on the floor
who called to them not to jump.
After the third carload had been
taken to the street, started up the
fourth time and, hearing screams ana
shouts from those in the ninth floor,
L stopped my elevator there, and is
possible the operators were more
frightened than were those in the
eighth floor Gaspary also made a
trip to the ninth floor, but after the
fourth trip | could not go by the
eighth floor, as the girls would jump
on my elevator, and | was afraid be-
cause the door was open that they
would fall into the shaft. Perhaps
both of us made more than five trips,
but ! can't say for sure
Girl Startles Crowd.
While the fire was still In progress
young girl with her hair dlshevelcd
and ner clothing almost torn from her
body ran through Broadway near
Wanamakers store and gave to Ii
large shopping crowd the first init
nation of the fire, Hysteric from the
excitement of the narrow escape from
death that she had she dartel in and
around street cars and shouted to
the crowd lining the street FONT
let them hurt me! Don't let them
nurt met"
She was taken to n drug store,
where after calming down she said
she was Anna Dougherty Of 222 East
Twelfth street. SHE said she was
employed in the Triangle shirtwalst
factory and related how she was IL,
rected, together with twenty other
panic-stricken girls, to the roof of the
building and to safety by an Office
boy
All Ready to Leave.
I'VE We're all eady to leave the
1--WE were all ready to leave tbs
work" said Miss Dougherty, "and
most of Us had on our wraps. Some
one cried FIRE. and the next thing
knew the room was filled WITH
smoke did not know which way
to turn, but seeing number of girls
running toward the rear, where I
knew the fire escape was located
followed There | found many ahead
OF me and knew | had little chance
10 get out that way. | ran back to.
ward the elevator, when heard some
girl cry out! My God. They say it
is not coming up again.!
81 was about to faint and fall on
the floor when little Solly Cohen, an
office boy, took mold OF my coat as
he ran past me. saying Come on
to the roof that's the only way 7
don't know how found my way along
but ! followed two other girls, who
lei the way to a small stairway to
the roof. | breathed prayer wuen
| saw the open sky above me and fell
on my knees.
Saved by Students,
81 had only been there second
when another girl turned back and
shouted for me to come on arose
and followed. There were about
twenty girls besides tire Cohen boy in
the crowd. Some men on the roof of
another building then helped MS
across. understood afterward that
they We're college students In the
New York University Law school.
When we reached the street seemed
to lose my mind"
A miraculous escape from death
was related by Miss Cecilia Waller,
90 years old, an operator employed
by the shirtwaist company, living at
% Stanton street. She Is among the
injured in st. Vincents Hospital and