Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1912-09-27
TWO PERISH At
FIRE IN CROWDED
TENEMENT HERE
Hemmed In by Flame
and Smoke ON
Stairway.
HAD TARRIED TOO LONG
TO GATHER UP CLOTHING
Fifty, in Night Attire, Escape to
Street-Two Jump to
Neighboring Roof.

Hemmed in by smoke and flames
two young men were suHocateo y
death as they crept down the s.aiis
.f Az Patterson street. a crowded tene'
nent house, when they were aroused
from their bed by an early morhine
fire today.
Forty or fifty other persons, crown
ed eight and ten in room iieo u
wild panic and managed 10 man
their way to safety down the weaA
creaking stairways
Two men jumped ten feet from
window to the steep gable roof OF the
now house. and after all but slip
ming off the smooth slate surface
crcpt TO the top and roasted there
until taken down by firemen.
THE house which burned Is not iaf
fron, the plant of the Celluloid Com
nanv and residents of the neighpor-
hood one of the most congested IN
+ha citv turned out in a body fear
ing that it was the big factory tna'
was burning.
An But the Two Reached Safety
Michael Galen, II years old. aho
George Gento. 10 years old, employees
of the Central Railroad of New Jer-
saw are the two youths who dieo
They lived with Mr. and Mrs. Georse
roeske. the latter Galen's sister, on
tba third floor. Six others were In the
front room, about twelve feet square'
with them. crowded into four peas
All hut Galen and Gento made Tor the
wooden fire-escapes In the rear anu
got to safety.
Tn a rear room slept Mr.. and Mrs
Hoeske. their t5-month old son ana
three women. In another room "ere
man and his wife and four young
women.
Across the hallway in the apart
n,ents of Joseph Throit were he and
bjs wife and eight boarders, four men
nnd four women.
The second floor was just as crowo-
ed but. strangely. 1t was not toucneu
nv the flames. which started IN the
rear of a saloon on the ground noor
kent by Joseph Kovack
residents of the second floor had
no difficulty In escaping, for the lower
mart of the house was practically Tree
from smoke.
aPasserby Discovers Fire.
Tho fire was discovered at 2;5o
..oioc,s nv a passerby, who pounded
on the window of the bedroom oil MRS.
Pahecca Kazlow, at the rear OF her
GROCERY store, adjoining Kovacks
saloon. on the first floor. Mrs. haz-
low and her f4-year-old son, David
locked out and when they saw the
flames in the upper part of the ouiid-
ing David jumped out the WINDOW
and turned in an alarm.
BEFORE the arrival of the fire en-
zines occupants of the house were
aroused and started on their rush lor
safety through the narrow haliWays.
John Dobias and John Galen, the iat-
Ter a brother of one of the victims'
looked out of their bedroom and, see
ing the hall crowded, made for the
window.
Both Jumped to the slanting roof OF
enc house next door, and narrowly
esraped falling three stories to the
ground when their bare feet found II
dificult to get a purchase on the sllp-
merry surface. Finally they managed
10 make their way to the top, where
tbev stayed, shivering, until rescued
by firemen.
Galen and Gento, the two boys who
were suffocated, seemed to be the
onIv ones who had made any attempt
20 take their clothing out with them.
Coat. trousers and shoes were founo
beside each body when the hremen
entered the building. The bodies were
taken to Mullins morgue.
The entire third floor and the rear
of the saloon on thesfirst were burned.
The damage is estimated by the fire
department at about $4,000
Plainclothesman Brex. of the Third
precinct. and Detective Godfrey, of
the prosecutors office, are conducting
an investigation into the cause of the
blaze.
Fire swept Up Like in Chimney.
"There was no reason why these
two unfortunate men might not have
gotten out as easily as the other peo-
ple on the top floor" said Captain e..
Albert Casser, head of the bureau of
combustiles and fire risks. There
was no fire in the rear of the house
and the back rooms and the back
/, piazza are not even scorehed.
'.The two men who we're burned to
death were sleeping with four others
IN the front room of the south half
Of the house on the top floor They
were in the greatest danger. but they
were the first to get out.
,nrhey ran through the hallway and
down the inside stairway directly in
the path Of the fire. which was then
coming M these same stairways after
the front windows had been blown out
of the saloon and the draught had
carried the fire through the narrow
stairs much like the fire which is car
ried I'D the chimney from a stove.
They were overcome halfway down.
Their companions, who left the
upper rooms after these two men had
cone down. ran to the rear and down
the hack stairs. That there was time
for all to have escaped is proven by
the statement of the saloon-keeper
His wife called him and he and his
wife. each with a child, went down
the back way. Then the wife shouted
that the oldest boy, maybe years
old, was stiil in bed, and the father
ran back and got the little fellow and
carried him to safety"