He loses consciousness and is rescued by firemen, who tell him his entire family have died in the fire: Mathilde, Robert, Bertha, Dora, Margarethe, and Johannes. Everyone praises his courageous attempt to save his family, everyone is aghast at his loss. He grieves deeply, his pain inexpressible. But he is free! Free for Bertha, free to escape with her, perhaps to Italy, perhaps to America, free to begin all over again.