Free trader-journal. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1916-1920, 1917-02-26
POLICE LAUNCH QUIZ
BUSINESS BLOCK OF RICHARD
WOLFE IN NORTH OTTAWA Is
GUTTED BY FLAMES EARLY
THIS MORNlNG-lTALIAN GRO.
GERS TAKEN INTO CUSTODY BY
AUThOhlTlES

Sixteen people fled from the burn
ing business block al the conner Of
Marquette aad La Sale streets this
morning at o'clock, when a fire,
claimed by the police to have been of
incendiary origin, caused a ten thous
and dollar damage to the building.
Two arrests have followed in the wake
Of the colllagration.
The people who were forced to fee
from their apartments above the store
In the building were Mr. and Mrs.
Oscar Strubel and three children, Les
ter Beckman, Miss Nicola Bcckman,
willard Coates, cripple, Elma
Coates, Mr.. and Mrs. Lester Locander
and aged mother, Mrs. Whitney, aAd
the four Locander children The To
canders resided in a suite Of rooms
across the hall from the Strubels,
The blaze originated in the rear end
of the Sylvester & Augustine grocery
and spread with great rapidity. The
II. j. Mitchell Produce Co, S ware
room, where was stored thousands OF
dollars worth of flour, potatoes and
ether foodstufts, suffered loss of
$3.50. The damage TO the italian
grocery Is estimated ata$5, o, while
at least S50.9 damage was done to the
building
Tenants in Danger.
At . O'Clock this morning M Stru'
lei was awakened to find his room
filed with smoke He Immediately
aroused the members OF his family
and carried his wife to safety. On
his next trip he brought two small
children TO the street below. The
boards Of the stairway actually ba9ed
his frttGn his heroic efforts to save
tho nlnmbers OF his family The
smok4.Glled hallway made hia task q
dflleNbt one, but he did not faltCr until
all werc safely out OF the building
Perhaps, however, the rescue oi
willard Coates, cripple, was more
dramatic than the others. LesteI
Beckman, q lad Of fourteen years, car
ried Coates on his back down th'
stairway and fell exhausted when hc
finally reached the street
When Strubel had regained hi
senses he found that the members o
the Locander family were still I'M
aware Of their terrible danger, the,
having evidently failed to hear tn,
warning which he sounded at the cut
break Of the fire. Strubel again dashe,
into the burning building and with HI
weight he succeeded in opening tn
door OF the Locander home Member
OF the family left their beds but wer
bcWildered in the smoke filed hal
ways Their cries by this time wer
attracting 1eighbCrs, who were 500
on the scene of the blaze. Strube
sncCeeded in leading the entrappe
people to the stairway landing, whor
they were able tc grope their way /
the darkness and smoke to the stree
below
An were forced TO fee from tn
burfiiHg building In their night clothes
John a1taFlynn, who conducts saloo
on MbrthI Sale street, offered she
ter t0i tho unfortunate people and the
remained him during the night
'8hI Department on Scene.
Whcn the fire department arrive
on Me scene The building was a mas
of flames. Two streams Of water wei
directed on the flames by Chief 10
eph Boissonin and his aids.
The fire originated in the rear po
ton of the italian grocery, the flame
then spreading to the Mitchell stol
room. For over an hour the fremc
fought the flames before they Il
ally conquered them Smoke, wat
and fire destroyed everything in Il
grocery store, while smoke and wat
did the most damage to the Mitcht
wareroom A huge pile of potatoes
the south wall of the Mitchell sto
room served as BARRED to the flame
SO intense was the heat, howev'
that the potatoes were actually bake