The Sun.
London, England, 1863-01-08 00:00:00

THE GREAT FIRE AT PLYMOUTH.

The following are the details of the great fire at Plymouth
Royal Theatre and Hotel which broke out on Tuesday
mprning between 12 and 1 o'clock, and destroyed the inte-
rior of the theatre and the greater part of the hotel. The
hotel, assembly-rooms, lnd theatre were built by the corpo-
ration in 1813, at a cost, it is now stated, of over £50,000.
During the performance of the Christmas pantomime on
Monday night, at which there was a crowded audience, a
strong smell of fire was perceptible, and some uneasiness
displayed, but confidence was restored on a strict eximina-
tion of every part of the building, and a declaration that
the supposed smell of burning timber arose from a piece of
burning wood from a fire in one of the apartments of the
building. The performances were brought to a close, and
the audience left in as merry a mood as could be wished.
After the house was clear, on a suspicion that a smell of fire
still existed, the manager, Mr. Newcombe, his son, and
others again went over every part of the premises, and the
house was left under the assurance that all was right. Not
long after, however, the alarm was given of the outbreak,
which showed itself by the smoke making its way into the
apartments of the hotel, immediately adjoining the theatre.
The police and the agents of the fire offices having engines
soon received messages of the occurrence, while signal guns
from the citadel and the guard-ship in Hamoaze aroused the
military and naval authorities. The fire-engines immedi-
ately attended ; but the fire plugs could not be got up for
want of keys, and the military, though turned out, were
kept at " stand at ease" till an official request was made for
their attendance, At last a detachment of Royal Marines,
under the command of Col. Clavell, arrived with the bar-
rack fire•engine, followed by a detachment of the 73d, with
an engine from the citadel, under the command of Major
Wood. The 37th Light Infantry also sent a detachment,
commanded by Major Clapcott. A large party of the Royal
Artillery and Engineers were also present, as was also Bri-
gade-Major Keith. The naval brigade was accompanied
by Capt. Vesey, of her Majesty's ship Royal Adelaide. The
Mayor, superintendents, and a strong body of police, were
early on the spot. The other engines in attendance were
the West of England (which arrived first), the County
Fire, and the South Devon Railway—making about seven
in all.

lhe fire meanwhile had raged furiously, threatening the
hotel, the inmates of which were aroused and escaped, and
the most valuable portion of the furniture of Mr. Pearse,
landlord, was also removed. A little before 1 it was evident
that the firo was one of the most serious that has ever
takes place in tbo neighbourhood. The fire had, it was
clear, spread to the ball-room, and by a little after 1 the
whole of this splendid room was doomed. At a quarter-past
1 the roof of the beautiful portico fell in with a tremendous
crash. A roar, as of a gun, resounded through the air, and
a dense volley of smoke and sparks shot up from the lurid
mass. From that time huge rafters all aglow kept on fall-
ing, to the no small danger of the men who were working
at the engines. In a short time the card-room and the
assembly-room of the hotel were destroyed, and towards 3
o'clock, with a rising wind, the whole building seemed
doomed; but by this time the firemen appeared to have got
the mastery, and were able to prevent further destruction:
By about 10 o'clock in the morning the fire had been com-
pletely subdued. The following is a description of the
damage done :—ln the hotel " There are not many of the
rooms destroyed. The whole of two of the longest corri-
dors are left unhurt, and may be put into immediate ser-
vice for business. But the whole of the western parts of
the building are in an entire state of ruin. The card and
billiard rooms and the end of the ball-room are destroyed,
as are also the grand entrance and a portion of the tea-
room. What the fire did not destroy we fear the water
and the means taken to put out th,3 fire have made a wreck.
We could not ascertain with any certainty the amount for
which the c)rporate property is insured, but we were told it
_ _

was about £19,000. Mr. Pearse is insured for £3,000." In

the theatre the lessee and manager, Mr, Newcombe, his son,

Mr. Albert Newcombe, the secretary and treasurer of the
establishment, Mr. Terrell, the principal machinist, and
others familiar with all corners of the building, led the
way to rooms where valuable articles had been deposited,
gave directions for their removal, and assisted in clearing
the unburnt portions of the building of all that the hurry
and affright of the moment allowed them to remove. Mr.
Newcombe was particularly zealous and daring in his enter-
prise, and it is said most of the wardrobe was saved, though
the loss must still be great, as he was not insured. The fire
was by degrees subdued in the gallery, and driven to the
corridors, and there finally extinguished. Consequently,
the apprehended total destruction of the interior of the build-
ing was not realised. The lower circle of boxes, the upper
circle of stalls, the pit and boxes generally, the stage, the
machinery above and below the stage, were not touched by
the fire. Nevertheless the fire had done its work with no
sparing hand. The box entrance and box lobby, a portion
of the corridors and the staircase leading from the lower to
the upper tier, the whole of the refreshment department—
which contained furniture and fittings of considerable value,
the property of Mr. Holmes, of George-street—the whole
of the rear of the gallery corridor, and a considerable por-
tion of the gallery itself, are completely destroyed ; while
the action of fire and water has either utterly demolished or
thorou.ghly spoilt the whole of the decorations and the more
delicate fittings of the theatre.

COUNTRY MARKETS.

~.,

NEWARK—WEDNESDAY.
At our market to• day there was a small supply of wheat
with a firm b_.siness and is higher in price than last week
White wheat new, 48s to 54s Barley, grinding.. 30s to 32s
Red do. 44s to 50s Oats, old, .. 2Bs to 31s
Old white 49s to 54s New do 22s to 24s
Red do. 46s to 48s i Beans. 38s to 45s
Barley, malting.... 38d to 42s Beans, new.. —s to —s
Peas, ....44s to 48s.