Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-07-25
Chaos Follows Alarm.

Cha0s FOLLOWS Alarm.
The alarm came from the outside,
and heavy barred gates and high stone
wall faced those who sought to warn
inmates and their protectors. Once
warning was given chaos ruled. The
few nuns, the staff of the home, strug-
gled TO lead to safety those of the $50
patients las men and los women
they could reach. OF the inmates them
selves, the stronger helped the weaker;
those who could struggled from window
to window, crying for rescue; those
whose inhrmities pinned them to their
rooms, followed the example of blind
Mrs. Mary Kline. 80, who "dropp.d on
my knees and prayed to God" and
many OF them were saved.
Outside, firemen battered down the
heavy gates to get in their equipment;
fought futilely for a time to maintain
aga list the walls ladders that burned
as they were reared. and then turned
to ife nets, frantically calling to the
imprisoned to leap for their lives
Even before flremen reached the
scene scores Of the men of the poor
neighborhood in which the home stood
had scaled the walls and begun the
work of rescue. Before fierce heat
drove them back they raced into the
burning structure, bearing cut the help
less. When heat within frustrated them
they formed human chains on fire
escapes, passing old men and women
one to the other until the ground was
reached
Physicians Kept Busy.
On the wide lawn below physicians
and nurses from throughout the city
piled their tasks. Nearly all these
brought out required treatment of some
nature few were administered
IN ha cHol - h. fr,F0
that had been the home of their dying
days.
Within and without. priests gave the
last sacrament to the dying at the risk
of their lives
Yet the terror Of the sudden alarm
their helplessness and the doubts as to
whether they could or would be saved
were not the first concern Of many of
those borne to safety. OF those who
were given first aid on the lawn of the
home many had clasped in their arms
the holy emblems of their faith
The fire, it was established hours
later, started in the morgue in the base
ment OF the four-story brick charitable
institution at Penn and South Aiken
avenues in the East End section. What
ever the cause, flames soon ragged
throughout the structure. BY the time
hremen had begun their work the Gu
pola topping the building collapsed, in
Jurlng three OF the rescuerS below.
All Turned to Rescue.
Such Roadway had the fire gained
that all hope of saving the building was
abandoned. All concentrated on res
cue-fremen, police. nuns, priests and
every man who could get through the
fire lines. quickly established On every
floor nuns remained at their posts,
trying to rescue where they could. re-
fusing to be rescued and insisting that
their charges be taken first when help
was at hand
Madly eager was Sister Agatha. moth
er superior of the home. Taken from
the building, she tore herself from her
assistants and rushed indoors once
more. Nuns pleaded with firemen to
save hzr. An hour later she was found
struggling to help the enfeebled, crying
Historically, exhausted from her labors,
barely conscious amid the confusion of
smoke and falling debris.
OF the $50 parsons confined to the
home, not one was under so years old,
and most Of them were much older. So
many were inf1rrn that fremen ad-
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