Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1922-02-03
FRosrpuRo'a DOG
SAVED TWO LIVES
m RED GABLES FIRE
Continued. from page l

ADOut III nOuE IiAu cl0HSCus AsAA
Forstburg learned later, when no
awoke to md his pet Airedale,
"Lickey." In great distress. Tho dog
had both paws on Mr.. Forstburgs .
chest. and was whining dolefully.
With his nose he had removed the
covers and was caressing his master
most affectIonately. Thinking that
something out of the ordinary had ocA
cur. .od to make "Lickey" act In that
strange manner. Mr.. Forsthnrg
against his inclinations, jumped out
0. bed. In a moment he smclled smoke,
and after an inspection found several
of the rooms alfeady enveloped In
flames.
Aroused From Deep Sleep.
Quickly arousing his brother from
an equally deep sleep, both donned
their clothing. and. together with
"Lickey,' the hero of the occasion.
The night was cold. and a drenching
rain which fell steadily, made 1t very
unpleasant for the two men, who
were none too warmly clad
However, they made their way to
the Seven Stars Hotel. in Village
Green, and from that point were able
to telephone to Media and Chester, Pa,
for fire companies. BY this time the
fire. which seemed to originate In the
bottom. part of the house. was steadily
sweeping upward, and gaining head
way. Because of the heavy drifts of
snow, which made MOST of the roads
In Delaware county impossible, the
fire companies were unable to come
to the rescue, and the fire, without
any interference whatever, gradually
into ashes the beautiful
mansion which had so long sheltered
prominent Delaware county families
and was the centre of attraction In
the neighborhood by reason of its age
and aristocratie traditions.
| Fortunately. the tenant houses and
outbuildings, which were nearby. were
not reached by the flames. probably
because of lack of wind and the
!, rain. which was falling heavily mean
while.
The two men, who were beginning
| to feel the effects of exposure to the
rain and cold, started an automobile
out of the garage and set off for VIII
mington, TO tho home OF Mr.. and Mrs
/ Lackey. They took an open route tc
Media, via Glen Riddle, and arrived
In Wilmington without mishap.
Many Valunbles Burned.
/ Practically all of Mr.. and Mrs
Forstburg's clothing was destroyed
by the fire. Only that which Mrs
Forstburg had brought with her or
her visit TO Wilmington and tha'
'. Mich the two men had gathered to-
gether before they left the burning
builIing was saved.
Il But the biggest loss of all was th'
/ furnishing contents OF the house
which comprised % rooms, all elegant
lily furnished. and equipped with thu
most modern and expensive facilities
The furniture was all of costly maxi
and the best quality. and Represented
what had taken many years 10 as
senihle. One of the rooms had tus
been refurnished "a short time age
land had been. transformed into 4
beautiful apartment.
In fact. Q. large part of the furnish
p
purchased not long ago, for only tw
! years ago, Mr.. and Mrs. Fcrstbur
: had gone there TO occupy il as brid
and groom. They started dair
! ibusiness some time agoAand the farm
2 which comprised about l65 acres. an
. Twas one of the finest in Delawar
county, was wen stocked with breede
Guernseys. 1t is looked upon a
especially fortunate that the flame
did not sweep TO the buildings wher
these cattle were housed.
In addition TO the modern furnish
ings with which the house was equiv
ped, and the up-to-date facilities whic
: had been installed from time TO tim
- but which did not detract from III
last century appearance of the hous
= there were many private possession
gifts. etc. and articles which had b.
< longed TO the pasts generation. all
which were valued for association
that were destroyed, and this ad,
greatly 20 the loss experienced by Il
- Forstburg family.
Z Famous Old House Is No More.
= Practically al Delaware countian
Z at least those Ming in the rural Sc
II tions. and many others, are acquain
ed with the history of Red Gables
1t has been termed by some III
house of tragedy" At any rate mar
startling events, some Of which ha'
never been traced TO their source
have occurred at the old mansio
which has most aristocratic appea
ance, and stands on prominent 81
& in Village Green.
Probably the event of its histo
which caused the most sensation
= Pennsylvania was the murder, abo
n Is years ago. of J. Clayton Erb,
wen-Known Philadelphia political
the last owner and occupant of Z
house prior TO the residence there
the Forstburg family. The blame +
the deed was placed on his sister-i
law. This caused discussion far al
vida largely hy reason of fhp DOiitiC