The Washington herald., 1914-03-15

i met i ne SmOkc was 50 tinSk tndt We
had to feel with our hands as we
CROPPED from room to room in the four
little cubbyhole fats on the floor We
found nobody and worked our way to
rear window for breath Of air. The
window we reached overlooked the lit
tie space in the center Of the block
The rear wall of the factory had fallen
and all the contents of the building had
spewed into the court, setting fire to
the abutting tenements The coyrt was
patch taken right out of the middle OF
he'll and we breathed fire instead of air
as We looked out of the window.
"F1ooeyT | whispered to myself
] This is sure nasty one
Suddenly heard Johnny give a cry
at my elbow.
Holy Virginp' he yelled as turned
to see what was the matter. One of
his long arms was outstretched and he
was pointing to a window across the
PIT Oi hiS- n SouhS "oihdii was Sldhu-
ing on the outside of the window sill.
holding to the sash with one hand and
elirging to baby that was kicking and
clawing on her breast.
They'll look out for her on the 9TH
er street." | shouted to him and Duffy
above the roar and cracking of the fire
in the court and in the rafters above US.
Like hell they ,willp he shouted
back. That's my fat over there, and
that's my Annie and my babyI'
He pushed me aside and leaned out
of the window, looking up knew he
was measuring the distance to the Cor
nice of the tenement we were in. Then
he pulled back in the room and banged
down the sashes. The frames creaked
as he crawled over them and finally
worked himself to a standing position
He balanced himself and then lcaped
outward and upward for tie cornice,
catching it. The next minute he disap-
peared over the edge of the roof, leav-
ing me wondering whether he had
burned off his hands on the hot tin.
The roofs OF the tenements on three
sides of the block were level and ]
knew his plan was to make his way
to the roof OF his own fiat house and
above the top-story window where his
wife and baby were caught. l looked
and saw smoke pouring out of the scut-
tie and knew that the way TO the roof
was cut off for Annie Graham and her
kid.
The son of a salamander, l hope he
finds a rope on the wayp shouted to
Duffy, when I'm brushed by the second
time and my red-headed engine driver
wriggles up that window like a boa
constructor, balances himself and leaps
upward and outward. / thought my
heart had stopped, bit he made the cor
nice and was out Of sight
My business was with my company,
so l beat it back to the front and Or
dered the retreat to the fifth floor.
| We got three more stretches OF hose
and a full crew of aXmen on the fifth
floor, and | knew that the fourth alarm
had been sent in. With the REINFORCE
ment | knew that We would check our
fire, and l hurried to the back to look
for my two men who had gone to the
roof.
got to a window Just in time to see
Graham reach the roof above his wife
and baby. He was running about like
lost dog trying to get scent OF his
owner. and l knew that he was hunting
| for a rope: but il wasn't wash day in
the Bend and poor folks don't leave
their clothes-lines out to tempt other
people. He gave up the rope hunt and
went to the coEnice and leaned SO far
over toward his wife and baby that |
thought his balance would be lost any
second and he would drop to his death
He tried to reach them but he couldn't
do it by three feet or more She was
still holding to the sash with the baby
Johnny wriggled back to the roof just
as Duffy come running up to him.
| saw the two of them begin to talk,
both jawing at once. and Duffy looked
desperate.
Suffering Tammanyr thought; 'if
they try to settle that old row now it
will cost four lives
But there wasn't any fight. My driv-
er seemed to win the argument on its
merits and dropped on his belly to the
roof He fattened out and wriggled
to the cornice and over it. His shoul-
ders went over the edge, then the whole
trunk of his body, and finally his knees
came heaving over and | saw Johnny's
handsome face at his heels. He was
holding his enemy by the heels over the
brink of a red-hot entrance to eternity.
He had spread himself out fiat on the
roof and the two of them had gone this
far like a broken-backed snake.
Johnny Graham is strong man," l
said to myself uneasily. 4 see he's got
his elbows braced right against the
sheet metal and he can hold the weight