The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1917-11-05
AGED MEN TRAPPED
IN BURN|AG HOME
OF SALVATION ARMY
Many Burned Beyond Recognition and
Others SERIOUSLY Injured and
Rushed tn Hospital.
INMATES CUT Off FROM
ONLY FIRE ESCAPE.
Firerncn Dramatically Save IAfe OF
Man Whose Face. LAghfed ny
Flames, Il Seen at Upper Window.

Paterson, ". j., Nov. 4.--Nineteen
men lost their lives today at a are
which destroyed the Paterson Saliva
ton Army Rescue mission at ~ Mill
street Eighteen OF the victims were
burned to death before rescuers could
reach them. The other. one OF four
tear -ta-ken Ia -.Ac hospital =seeasnseA
there to his INJURIES. Many others
were badly injured. either in the surg
Ing mass OF humanity which, panic
Istrickened. stsmpeded from the build
ing, or by ieaping from the windows
Six Of the dead were identified al
the morgue. whittier their eharred
bodies ware taken affArs~the FIRE had
been extinsuished. They were: Henry
Downing Michael Grimes. Fred Rren-
nan, John Shell. Frank Costello and
William A. MeCabe-
Nest. IL rot all, Of the other victims
are believed to have been burned be
yond recognition. Some of the bodies
may never be recovered.
/ Over a score sustained injuries OF a
minor character. These we're treated
! by ambulance surgeons. OF those who
: teaped from the windows Of the barn
: ing building thirteen were SO badly
MUIR mat iHSRf w TAG. fRS
pital was imperative, Some of these,
III vas said. may not recover.
| The ere started among a large stock
OF newspapers and magazines stored
| in the rear OF the building. II spread
rapidly TO s. large pile OF kindllns
wood in the yard near by and licked
up the side OF the building. which
burned Ike finder.
There vas some confusion IN send
/ ing in an alarm. The first alarm was
sent by telephone. That was quickly
I followed by the pulling of severa'
ho~es at different points. The firemer
were delayed several fatal minutes In
resp onding because OF the uncertainty
as to the exact location OF the FIRE
When they arrived the building was
doomed.
There were eighty-Hve men sleepins
/ in tile building when the FIRE started
Some we're old snj some crippled
: Few were in the full xiEnr at fsaaR-
hood, as the reset mission was con
Quoted as haven for uniortunates
who possessed no home and but 1T
tie means OF livelihood
Police squads under Captain A. J
Mcbride and Lieutenant; JOSEPH
Mosely reached the scene before the
aremen arrived. Even then the build
iatk W as ~ AoAh 4aAH AF<f fat aiA'
police, their forces quickly augmented
by number OF detectives, addressed
themselves to the work of rescuint
the inmates
Lead them to the IRE escape
quick" yelled Captain Mcbride. but L
was discovered tho buildings one frs
escape was at the rear. Escape hJ
that means was Impossible
| A mad rush for the interior stair
way followed. Choked by smoke
which also so blinded them that the,
CROPPED dazedly while surging towart
the stairs. the crowd of men each &C
the only interior means of egress or
masse It. was inevitable that some o
the crippled and weaker men shoult
go down In the rush. At least fivt
probably fell either on the stairway o,
near its foot. Their charred hodie.
were later discovered huddled In tn,
lower hall They had apparently flrs
been trampled and later burned Il
death.
Directly after the frcmen arrived
a life net was spread to catch the mer
who were jumping from third ant
fourth stories.
Some of the men, crazed by fear
lsprang from the windows withou
waiting for the net. They were badl,
injured A few others, even after this
net had been spread, disregarded 1t
or failed to see II in their panic an
ileaped over II or to one side.
Andrew Mcdonald, an aged inmate
of the building, was trapped on thu
fourth floor. Crippled by rheumatism
he managed to make his way to tht
window, but was unable to pull him
1setf over the ledge. His white face
was seen, lighted by the flames, a
the window, Long ladders had beer
fetched by that time and one wa.
Iquickly raised to the window. Lieu,
! tenant Moseley and two OF his mer
scrambled up the ladder at the immi.
nent risk OF their own lives, for ths
| flames were even then licking up the
side OF the building. Reaching thu
window, they drew the crippled THAT
through and made as hasty descent
as safety permitted. As they reach
ed the ground the entire side OF the
building was enveloped by fames
Paterson's thirteen IRE companies
under Chief Thomas Coyle. had much
difficulty y preventing ~ assl