A Youthful Hero.

Auckland Star, Volume XVII, Issue 98, 24 April 1886, Page 4

A Youthful Hero.

The Waimate correspondent of the " Press " tells of an act of bravery at tha Waimate fire by an eleven-year-old boy named Evan Fox. A man named Sullivan and his family occupied one of four cottages, and, though the fire missed the three first cottages, it somehow caught that occupied by Sullivan. Sullivan was busy at the time trying to remove an entire horse to a place of safety, when little Fox rushed up and told Sullivan that his house had caught fire, and that his children, seven in all, were in bed. Sullivan rushed to the house, and found that his wife and two of the children were safely outside, but that five •thers were in bed, and that the flames had already reached the bedclothes. Sullivan caught up three of his children and rushed to tne back door with them, but before he could got out, little Fox, who had fearlessly entered the burning building, took up one of the two remaining children, and in a remarkably short apace of time conveyed his burden to a neighbouring paddock. Fox darted back to the house again, and saw Sullivan make a fruitless attempt to get out of the back door, which was surrounded with flames. Quick as thought young Fox was through the burning door and away past Sullivan, and was BJen to pick up another child that had been conveyed to the front part of the house. A moment afterwards Fox was seen tottering towards his own home, carrying one naked child in his arms, and with another running at his heels. Following the example of young Fox, Sullivan escaped by the front door. Sullivan expressed himself in terms of the deepest gratitude towards Fox, and attributes the saving of the five children's lives ent'rely to the timely warning of Fox and-the little fellow's truly noble and brave action, I have made careful inquiries and talked with several eye-witnesses of tho courageous conduct of Fox, and give theabove particulars as actual facts. While a number of people were standing looking on at the building being consumed, and while they seemed helpless as soon as it was known the five children were in the greatest danger of being burnt in their beds, the little lad Fox had presence of mind and courage enough to enter and. emerge from the burning building twice, and after he had rescued tne children his first thought and action was to convey them to his own house. Such conduct on the part of a boy eleven years of age is not only worthy of being placed on record, but worthy of some substantial recognition.