Two Dead; Two Badly Burned When Mother Attempts to Rescue Flock
MRS BLYVIS AND YOUNGEST CHILD DIE EARLY TODAY
Mother Love, Which Caused Her to Cross Flames Four Times, Bested Prudence.
MAURICE, SON, MAY RECOVER
Rosie's Condition Dangerous Fire Was Small and Easily Extinguished.
In charity's own home, mother love last night paid the great sacrifice a needless one.
Mrs. Peter Blyvis of 410 West Van Buren street sought to save her sleeping children as fire gnawed at the door that was their only escape to the stairs, but her efforts at mercy had the opposite effect. The mother and her youngest child Atta died early this morning from burns received, while the other children, Rosie, 11 years old, and Maurice, 9, are in Nichols hospital, suffering from burns which it is feared will prove fatal.
Fire Loss Small The fire loss was but $150. The house is owned by the Charitable Union, and in the past the rent received has been the only source of revenue, aside from donations that have been received. The money is spent in charitable work only.
It was about 10 o'clock last night that Fred L. Christian, passing the house, saw flames coming from the roof. He went to the front door and when Mrs. Blyvis appeared, called through the locked door that the house was afire.
Mrs. Blyvis, instead of letting him in to give assistance or advice, ran to the stairway, a small one, in the same room. Mr. Christian went to a nearby home and turned in the fire alarm.
The fire had evidently caught from the kitchen range just back of the front room and burned through the celling, which, on the second floor, was the landing at the top of the stairs. This landing was about four feet square, and from it opened three bedroom and the bathroom doors.
Directly in front of the stairway is the children’s room, and Mrs. Blyvis found herself confronted by a furnace of leaping flames. The door, closed, was burning.
In this crisis her anguished desire to save her children overcame her judgment, and all though, for her own safety. Leaping through the flames, she burst open the burning door and grabbed Atta, taking her through the fiery cauldron and downstairs. Her own clothing burning, she, unmindful of the terrible suffering that must have been her lot, made a second trip up the stairs, through the fire, and grabbed Rosie, taking her through the fire and downstairs. Meanwhile the door, left open, provided an outlet for the roaring flames which leaped into the room where Maurice, still asleep, remained.
Fireman Makes Rescue By this time the fire department arrived, and the mother, her clothing nearly burned off her body blackened and crisped, shrieked that her three children were in the house. John Bryant fireman of No. 3 station, went upstairs and got Maurice, bringing the last of the three children at home, downstairs. He already was badly burned, however.
Meanwhile the mother, still conscious and able to walk, was supported by persons who gathered near. A passing automobile was hailed, and Rosie and Maurice taken to Nichols hospital. It was then discovered that the baby was missing. A few minutes later it was found that a colored woman who lived nearby had taken it and given, first aid. The mother and smallest child were then taken to the hospital.
One Child Remains The fire was noticed about 10 o'clock last night. The fire department had the flames under control, with use of chemical apparatus, in about seven minutes.
The fifth child, Bennie, is now with his uncle in Coldwater.
The Father's Greeting The husband and father, Peter Blyvis, was at the Army and Navy Store, on South Jefferson street, in which he is interested when the call came for him to go to the hospital. There he went to find, in the children's ward, his entire family, save one, on four beds, all but the baby mercifully lulled into unconsciousness by pain and sedatives.
It was Atta a wooly haired little cherub, her cheeks a purple black from the flames, but her eyes still bright that gave him his only Treating.
"Daddy", she murmured, "it hurts."
It was a call of distress, an uncomplaining one. There was a note of hopefulness there, as if "daddy" could help. Nurses and doctors turned their heads. It was a situation that welled their eyes with tears, accustomed as they are to grief.
Father Told to Cry Pete Blyvis leaned over the bed and wrung his hands. He said nothing. The doctors walked out of the room. He followed them.
"My wife?" he asked.
"She is not suffering," Dr. William Dugan said, "she is too far gone for that."
The husband and father turned to his brother, who stood nearby and the brother sought to console him.
"Let him cry," the doctor told him. "He needs to cry. It is the best thing for him."
And Pete Blyvls, who learned in a twinkling that the happiness that has been his- that was to be his- had been swept away, gropingly started down the stairway to go he knew not where.
Made Great Mistake The loss of life appears to have been unnecessary. Although the heat from the flames had blistered the inner side of the door of the children's room, It was but a matter of seconds until the fire department would have arrived and there were three windows through which the children might have been taken.
The Blyvis family came to Battle Creek about eight years ago, Mr. Blyvis working for the Castle Lamp company, at that time. They are Russian Jews. He has been in the fruit business until recently when he entered the clothing business with his brothers.
Mrs. Blyvis, although she spoke English with difficulty, had a heart that was filled to overflowing with mother love. Her neighbors told today of her devotion. She wore old clothes poor clothes, always.
A Mother's Devotion "People wonder why I don't dress as good as other women," she had remarked. "I am saving all the money I can for my babies." Mrs. Blyvis and each of the children had savings accounts in a local bank.
Her experience with danger has been more than the usual lot. Several years ago, while wheeling a baby past the West Main street crossing of the Michigan Central, she stepped into the pathway of a fast passenger train. She escaped with minor injuries, however, the pilot of the engine merely brushing her to one side.
One Child May Recover Mrs. Blyvis died at 3:40 o'clock this morning and Atta's death followed within an hour. It was said this afternoon that Rosie is very low and death at any time would not cause surprise. Maurice has a fighting chance, it was said, and it will not be known for a day or two whether he will recover, depending upon the extent of Internal burns.
Prompt Medical Care. The utmost in hospital and medical care was given the stricken family. Day nurses were aroused and when the victims started coming into the hospital, their cries of anguish, preceding their appearance, every emergency facility possible was placed at disposal. Doctors had been notified and, so swift was the work of the nurse staff in charge of Miss Waffle. that by the time of their arrival, the victims had been oiled and placed in beds.
Dr. MacGregor and Dr. Dugan responded to the emergency call and did what was possible to relieve intense suffering.
The bodies of the mother and Atta were removed to Hobble's under taking parlors this morning. Funeral arrangements awaited word from a rabbi in Kalamazoo. Battle Creek Enquirer 29 March 1922 page 1
MRS BLYVIS AND YOUNGEST CHILD DIE EARLY TODAY
Mother Love, Which Caused Her to Cross Flames Four Times, Bested Prudence.
MAURICE, SON, MAY RECOVER
Rosie's Condition Dangerous Fire Was Small and Easily Extinguished.
In charity's own home, mother love last night paid the great sacrifice a needless one.
Mrs. Peter Blyvis of 410 West Van Buren street sought to save her sleeping children as fire gnawed at the door that was their only escape to the stairs, but her efforts at mercy had the opposite effect. The mother and her youngest child Atta died early this morning from burns received, while the other children, Rosie, 11 years old, and Maurice, 9, are in Nichols hospital, suffering from burns which it is feared will prove fatal.
Fire Loss Small The fire loss was but $150. The house is owned by the Charitable Union, and in the past the rent received has been the only source of revenue, aside from donations that have been received. The money is spent in charitable work only.
It was about 10 o'clock last night that Fred L. Christian, passing the house, saw flames coming from the roof. He went to the front door and when Mrs. Blyvis appeared, called through the locked door that the house was afire.
Mrs. Blyvis, instead of letting him in to give assistance or advice, ran to the stairway, a small one, in the same room. Mr. Christian went to a nearby home and turned in the fire alarm.
The fire had evidently caught from the kitchen range just back of the front room and burned through the celling, which, on the second floor, was the landing at the top of the stairs. This landing was about four feet square, and from it opened three bedroom and the bathroom doors.
Directly in front of the stairway is the children’s room, and Mrs. Blyvis found herself confronted by a furnace of leaping flames. The door, closed, was burning.
In this crisis her anguished desire to save her children overcame her judgment, and all though, for her own safety. Leaping through the flames, she burst open the burning door and grabbed Atta, taking her through the fiery cauldron and downstairs. Her own clothing burning, she, unmindful of the terrible suffering that must have been her lot, made a second trip up the stairs, through the fire, and grabbed Rosie, taking her through the fire and downstairs. Meanwhile the door, left open, provided an outlet for the roaring flames which leaped into the room where Maurice, still asleep, remained.
Fireman Makes Rescue By this time the fire department arrived, and the mother, her clothing nearly burned off her body blackened and crisped, shrieked that her three children were in the house. John Bryant fireman of No. 3 station, went upstairs and got Maurice, bringing the last of the three children at home, downstairs. He already was badly burned, however.
Meanwhile the mother, still conscious and able to walk, was supported by persons who gathered near. A passing automobile was hailed, and Rosie and Maurice taken to Nichols hospital. It was then discovered that the baby was missing. A few minutes later it was found that a colored woman who lived nearby had taken it and given, first aid. The mother and smallest child were then taken to the hospital.
One Child Remains The fire was noticed about 10 o'clock last night. The fire department had the flames under control, with use of chemical apparatus, in about seven minutes.
The fifth child, Bennie, is now with his uncle in Coldwater.
The Father's Greeting The husband and father, Peter Blyvis, was at the Army and Navy Store, on South Jefferson street, in which he is interested when the call came for him to go to the hospital. There he went to find, in the children's ward, his entire family, save one, on four beds, all but the baby mercifully lulled into unconsciousness by pain and sedatives.
It was Atta a wooly haired little cherub, her cheeks a purple black from the flames, but her eyes still bright that gave him his only Treating.
"Daddy", she murmured, "it hurts."
It was a call of distress, an uncomplaining one. There was a note of hopefulness there, as if "daddy" could help. Nurses and doctors turned their heads. It was a situation that welled their eyes with tears, accustomed as they are to grief.
Father Told to Cry Pete Blyvis leaned over the bed and wrung his hands. He said nothing. The doctors walked out of the room. He followed them.
"My wife?" he asked.
"She is not suffering," Dr. William Dugan said, "she is too far gone for that."
The husband and father turned to his brother, who stood nearby and the brother sought to console him.
"Let him cry," the doctor told him. "He needs to cry. It is the best thing for him."
And Pete Blyvls, who learned in a twinkling that the happiness that has been his- that was to be his- had been swept away, gropingly started down the stairway to go he knew not where.
Made Great Mistake The loss of life appears to have been unnecessary. Although the heat from the flames had blistered the inner side of the door of the children's room, It was but a matter of seconds until the fire department would have arrived and there were three windows through which the children might have been taken.
The Blyvis family came to Battle Creek about eight years ago, Mr. Blyvis working for the Castle Lamp company, at that time. They are Russian Jews. He has been in the fruit business until recently when he entered the clothing business with his brothers.
Mrs. Blyvis, although she spoke English with difficulty, had a heart that was filled to overflowing with mother love. Her neighbors told today of her devotion. She wore old clothes poor clothes, always.
A Mother's Devotion "People wonder why I don't dress as good as other women," she had remarked. "I am saving all the money I can for my babies." Mrs. Blyvis and each of the children had savings accounts in a local bank.
Her experience with danger has been more than the usual lot. Several years ago, while wheeling a baby past the West Main street crossing of the Michigan Central, she stepped into the pathway of a fast passenger train. She escaped with minor injuries, however, the pilot of the engine merely brushing her to one side.
One Child May Recover Mrs. Blyvis died at 3:40 o'clock this morning and Atta's death followed within an hour. It was said this afternoon that Rosie is very low and death at any time would not cause surprise. Maurice has a fighting chance, it was said, and it will not be known for a day or two whether he will recover, depending upon the extent of Internal burns.
Prompt Medical Care. The utmost in hospital and medical care was given the stricken family. Day nurses were aroused and when the victims started coming into the hospital, their cries of anguish, preceding their appearance, every emergency facility possible was placed at disposal. Doctors had been notified and, so swift was the work of the nurse staff in charge of Miss Waffle. that by the time of their arrival, the victims had been oiled and placed in beds.
Dr. MacGregor and Dr. Dugan responded to the emergency call and did what was possible to relieve intense suffering.
The bodies of the mother and Atta were removed to Hobble's under taking parlors this morning. Funeral arrangements awaited word from a rabbi in Kalamazoo. Battle Creek Enquirer 29 March 1922 page 1
Two Dead; Two Badly Burned When Mother Attempts to Rescue Flock
MRS BLYVIS AND YOUNGEST CHILD DIE EARLY TODAY
Mother Love, Which Caused Her to Cross Flames Four Times, Bested Prudence.
MAURICE, SON, MAY RECOVER
Rosie's Condition Dangerous Fire Was Small and Easily Extinguished.
In charity's own home, mother love last night paid the great sacrifice a needless one.
Mrs. Peter Blyvis of 410 West Van Buren street sought to save her sleeping children as fire gnawed at the door that was their only escape to the stairs, but her efforts at mercy had the opposite effect. The mother and her youngest child Atta died early this morning from burns received, while the other children, Rosie, 11 years old, and Maurice, 9, are in Nichols hospital, suffering from burns which it is feared will prove fatal.
Fire Loss Small The fire loss was but $150. The house is owned by the Charitable Union, and in the past the rent received has been the only source of revenue, aside from donations that have been received. The money is spent in charitable work only.
It was about 10 o'clock last night that Fred L. Christian, passing the house, saw flames coming from the roof. He went to the front door and when Mrs. Blyvis appeared, called through the locked door that the house was afire.
Mrs. Blyvis, instead of letting him in to give assistance or advice, ran to the stairway, a small one, in the same room. Mr. Christian went to a nearby home and turned in the fire alarm.
The fire had evidently caught from the kitchen range just back of the front room and burned through the celling, which, on the second floor, was the landing at the top of the stairs. This landing was about four feet square, and from it opened three bedroom and the bathroom doors.
Directly in front of the stairway is the children’s room, and Mrs. Blyvis found herself confronted by a furnace of leaping flames. The door, closed, was burning.
In this crisis her anguished desire to save her children overcame her judgment, and all though, for her own safety. Leaping through the flames, she burst open the burning door and grabbed Atta, taking her through the fiery cauldron and downstairs. Her own clothing burning, she, unmindful of the terrible suffering that must have been her lot, made a second trip up the stairs, through the fire, and grabbed Rosie, taking her through the fire and downstairs. Meanwhile the door, left open, provided an outlet for the roaring flames which leaped into the room where Maurice, still asleep, remained.
Fireman Makes Rescue By this time the fire department arrived, and the mother, her clothing nearly burned off her body blackened and crisped, shrieked that her three children were in the house. John Bryant fireman of No. 3 station, went upstairs and got Maurice, bringing the last of the three children at home, downstairs. He already was badly burned, however.
Meanwhile the mother, still conscious and able to walk, was supported by persons who gathered near. A passing automobile was hailed, and Rosie and Maurice taken to Nichols hospital. It was then discovered that the baby was missing. A few minutes later it was found that a colored woman who lived nearby had taken it and given, first aid. The mother and smallest child were then taken to the hospital.
One Child Remains The fire was noticed about 10 o'clock last night. The fire department had the flames under control, with use of chemical apparatus, in about seven minutes.
The fifth child, Bennie, is now with his uncle in Coldwater.
The Father's Greeting The husband and father, Peter Blyvis, was at the Army and Navy Store, on South Jefferson street, in which he is interested when the call came for him to go to the hospital. There he went to find, in the children's ward, his entire family, save one, on four beds, all but the baby mercifully lulled into unconsciousness by pain and sedatives.
It was Atta a wooly haired little cherub, her cheeks a purple black from the flames, but her eyes still bright that gave him his only Treating.
"Daddy", she murmured, "it hurts."
It was a call of distress, an uncomplaining one. There was a note of hopefulness there, as if "daddy" could help. Nurses and doctors turned their heads. It was a situation that welled their eyes with tears, accustomed as they are to grief.
Father Told to Cry Pete Blyvis leaned over the bed and wrung his hands. He said nothing. The doctors walked out of the room. He followed them.
"My wife?" he asked.
"She is not suffering," Dr. William Dugan said, "she is too far gone for that."
The husband and father turned to his brother, who stood nearby and the brother sought to console him.
"Let him cry," the doctor told him. "He needs to cry. It is the best thing for him."
And Pete Blyvls, who learned in a twinkling that the happiness that has been his- that was to be his- had been swept away, gropingly started down the stairway to go he knew not where.
Made Great Mistake The loss of life appears to have been unnecessary. Although the heat from the flames had blistered the inner side of the door of the children's room, It was but a matter of seconds until the fire department would have arrived and there were three windows through which the children might have been taken.
The Blyvis family came to Battle Creek about eight years ago, Mr. Blyvis working for the Castle Lamp company, at that time. They are Russian Jews. He has been in the fruit business until recently when he entered the clothing business with his brothers.
Mrs. Blyvis, although she spoke English with difficulty, had a heart that was filled to overflowing with mother love. Her neighbors told today of her devotion. She wore old clothes poor clothes, always.
A Mother's Devotion "People wonder why I don't dress as good as other women," she had remarked. "I am saving all the money I can for my babies." Mrs. Blyvis and each of the children had savings accounts in a local bank.
Her experience with danger has been more than the usual lot. Several years ago, while wheeling a baby past the West Main street crossing of the Michigan Central, she stepped into the pathway of a fast passenger train. She escaped with minor injuries, however, the pilot of the engine merely brushing her to one side.
One Child May Recover Mrs. Blyvis died at 3:40 o'clock this morning and Atta's death followed within an hour. It was said this afternoon that Rosie is very low and death at any time would not cause surprise. Maurice has a fighting chance, it was said, and it will not be known for a day or two whether he will recover, depending upon the extent of Internal burns.
Prompt Medical Care. The utmost in hospital and medical care was given the stricken family. Day nurses were aroused and when the victims started coming into the hospital, their cries of anguish, preceding their appearance, every emergency facility possible was placed at disposal. Doctors had been notified and, so swift was the work of the nurse staff in charge of Miss Waffle. that by the time of their arrival, the victims had been oiled and placed in beds.
Dr. MacGregor and Dr. Dugan responded to the emergency call and did what was possible to relieve intense suffering.
The bodies of the mother and Atta were removed to Hobble's under taking parlors this morning. Funeral arrangements awaited word from a rabbi in Kalamazoo. Battle Creek Enquirer 29 March 1922 page 1
MRS BLYVIS AND YOUNGEST CHILD DIE EARLY TODAY
Mother Love, Which Caused Her to Cross Flames Four Times, Bested Prudence.
MAURICE, SON, MAY RECOVER
Rosie's Condition Dangerous Fire Was Small and Easily Extinguished.
In charity's own home, mother love last night paid the great sacrifice a needless one.
Mrs. Peter Blyvis of 410 West Van Buren street sought to save her sleeping children as fire gnawed at the door that was their only escape to the stairs, but her efforts at mercy had the opposite effect. The mother and her youngest child Atta died early this morning from burns received, while the other children, Rosie, 11 years old, and Maurice, 9, are in Nichols hospital, suffering from burns which it is feared will prove fatal.
Fire Loss Small The fire loss was but $150. The house is owned by the Charitable Union, and in the past the rent received has been the only source of revenue, aside from donations that have been received. The money is spent in charitable work only.
It was about 10 o'clock last night that Fred L. Christian, passing the house, saw flames coming from the roof. He went to the front door and when Mrs. Blyvis appeared, called through the locked door that the house was afire.
Mrs. Blyvis, instead of letting him in to give assistance or advice, ran to the stairway, a small one, in the same room. Mr. Christian went to a nearby home and turned in the fire alarm.
The fire had evidently caught from the kitchen range just back of the front room and burned through the celling, which, on the second floor, was the landing at the top of the stairs. This landing was about four feet square, and from it opened three bedroom and the bathroom doors.
Directly in front of the stairway is the children’s room, and Mrs. Blyvis found herself confronted by a furnace of leaping flames. The door, closed, was burning.
In this crisis her anguished desire to save her children overcame her judgment, and all though, for her own safety. Leaping through the flames, she burst open the burning door and grabbed Atta, taking her through the fiery cauldron and downstairs. Her own clothing burning, she, unmindful of the terrible suffering that must have been her lot, made a second trip up the stairs, through the fire, and grabbed Rosie, taking her through the fire and downstairs. Meanwhile the door, left open, provided an outlet for the roaring flames which leaped into the room where Maurice, still asleep, remained.
Fireman Makes Rescue By this time the fire department arrived, and the mother, her clothing nearly burned off her body blackened and crisped, shrieked that her three children were in the house. John Bryant fireman of No. 3 station, went upstairs and got Maurice, bringing the last of the three children at home, downstairs. He already was badly burned, however.
Meanwhile the mother, still conscious and able to walk, was supported by persons who gathered near. A passing automobile was hailed, and Rosie and Maurice taken to Nichols hospital. It was then discovered that the baby was missing. A few minutes later it was found that a colored woman who lived nearby had taken it and given, first aid. The mother and smallest child were then taken to the hospital.
One Child Remains The fire was noticed about 10 o'clock last night. The fire department had the flames under control, with use of chemical apparatus, in about seven minutes.
The fifth child, Bennie, is now with his uncle in Coldwater.
The Father's Greeting The husband and father, Peter Blyvis, was at the Army and Navy Store, on South Jefferson street, in which he is interested when the call came for him to go to the hospital. There he went to find, in the children's ward, his entire family, save one, on four beds, all but the baby mercifully lulled into unconsciousness by pain and sedatives.
It was Atta a wooly haired little cherub, her cheeks a purple black from the flames, but her eyes still bright that gave him his only Treating.
"Daddy", she murmured, "it hurts."
It was a call of distress, an uncomplaining one. There was a note of hopefulness there, as if "daddy" could help. Nurses and doctors turned their heads. It was a situation that welled their eyes with tears, accustomed as they are to grief.
Father Told to Cry Pete Blyvis leaned over the bed and wrung his hands. He said nothing. The doctors walked out of the room. He followed them.
"My wife?" he asked.
"She is not suffering," Dr. William Dugan said, "she is too far gone for that."
The husband and father turned to his brother, who stood nearby and the brother sought to console him.
"Let him cry," the doctor told him. "He needs to cry. It is the best thing for him."
And Pete Blyvls, who learned in a twinkling that the happiness that has been his- that was to be his- had been swept away, gropingly started down the stairway to go he knew not where.
Made Great Mistake The loss of life appears to have been unnecessary. Although the heat from the flames had blistered the inner side of the door of the children's room, It was but a matter of seconds until the fire department would have arrived and there were three windows through which the children might have been taken.
The Blyvis family came to Battle Creek about eight years ago, Mr. Blyvis working for the Castle Lamp company, at that time. They are Russian Jews. He has been in the fruit business until recently when he entered the clothing business with his brothers.
Mrs. Blyvis, although she spoke English with difficulty, had a heart that was filled to overflowing with mother love. Her neighbors told today of her devotion. She wore old clothes poor clothes, always.
A Mother's Devotion "People wonder why I don't dress as good as other women," she had remarked. "I am saving all the money I can for my babies." Mrs. Blyvis and each of the children had savings accounts in a local bank.
Her experience with danger has been more than the usual lot. Several years ago, while wheeling a baby past the West Main street crossing of the Michigan Central, she stepped into the pathway of a fast passenger train. She escaped with minor injuries, however, the pilot of the engine merely brushing her to one side.
One Child May Recover Mrs. Blyvis died at 3:40 o'clock this morning and Atta's death followed within an hour. It was said this afternoon that Rosie is very low and death at any time would not cause surprise. Maurice has a fighting chance, it was said, and it will not be known for a day or two whether he will recover, depending upon the extent of Internal burns.
Prompt Medical Care. The utmost in hospital and medical care was given the stricken family. Day nurses were aroused and when the victims started coming into the hospital, their cries of anguish, preceding their appearance, every emergency facility possible was placed at disposal. Doctors had been notified and, so swift was the work of the nurse staff in charge of Miss Waffle. that by the time of their arrival, the victims had been oiled and placed in beds.
Dr. MacGregor and Dr. Dugan responded to the emergency call and did what was possible to relieve intense suffering.
The bodies of the mother and Atta were removed to Hobble's under taking parlors this morning. Funeral arrangements awaited word from a rabbi in Kalamazoo. Battle Creek Enquirer 29 March 1922 page 1
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