Indiana American. [volume] (Brookville, Ind.) 1833-1861, 1853-12-23
Destructive FIRE IN NEW YORK
THU ESTABLISHMENT OF
nsaryer a mkethefs In faulns.


INCIDENTS OF THE FIRE.
Tho enormous Printing. sterotyplng,
Binding and Publishing Es,ablIshmcnt
OF Harper a Brothers wa entirely dc.
Stroyed by FIRE on Saturday last. and
now lies n shapelcss mass OF smould-
ering ruins. Tho buildings were Zen
In number. OK tending through the en-.
tire block from CliIf TO Pearl streets
I've fronting on each. These buildings
were five stories high, and all new, -
, The lower floor of The FIRST two, Nos.
3eb and 3e7. was used for the ware.
room and the delivery Of goods; In tho
front part OF the next, No. $50. were
the private and business room Of the
gentlemen Of the firm; tho fourth. No.
33l, was filed with books and the
9Th, being unfinished. was not oecu.
pied at all, On the fourth floor OF No,
35l was tho large SIereotyplng and
Eeetrotyping establishments. and the
fifth story was used rs Composing
Room The Bndery was In the
building running back TO cllig street..
The second and third floors Of the two
lower buildings on Pearl street were
used rs Press Rooms; there being In
them thirty four Adams Presses Of
the largest size. constantly nj work..
The fourth story OF these two buildings
was occupied rs a stitching and folding
room. and was filed with girls. The
9Th story was used ~ n drying room.
and was kept OF very high temper.
allure by stcamppcs. carried through
II for that purpose. The other por-
tons of all the buildings were packed
full Of 6ooks--of which there WAS an
enormous amount. the accumulation
Of business pushed with extraordinary
energy and success, for long series OF
years.
Having suffered from Gre some ten
years since, the HARPERs had taken
extraordinary precautions TO prevent
the occurrence OF such a calamity
They had large steam-boiler In the
cellar; but. with this exception, no fire
was ever allowed TO be used about the
building in any form. The gas lights
were so arranged as to be perfectly
safe. All the buildings were heated
by steam pipes, which had been car
ried, at an expense of over $6, 900, in
to every part of them: and, instead of
the charcoal furnaces generally used
in bindery establishments for heating
the tools. gas burners had been proyi-
ded to take their place. Under these
circumstances, a fire was impossible
but for one of those accidents which
cannot be foreseen. and against which,
therefore, no provision can be made.
1t is necessary to clean the sak roller
used in the Adams press; and this can
only be done effectually by employing
caasphene. In order to render the use
of this perfectly safe, in small room
had been provided on the third floor
of the lower building on Pcarl-street,
adjoining the press room, SO as TO be
easy to access from it. This room had
been carefully lined s0ith zinc, and all
the precautions taken which seemed
necessary to insure its safety. The
camphene used was kept in shallow iron
pans, and the paper, rags, DC, with
which it was applied, of course, were
scattered about the room. IL seems
that Plumber was employed in this
room on Saturday, TO make some re-
pairs; and in course of his work he had
occasion to use light. He lit an oil
lamp and threw the match into one Of
tie eanaphene pans, supposing tito be
wdtcr. 1t blazed instansly, set fire to
the paper, rags, &C., with which it was
surrounded-burst through the par
titions, and almost instantly swept with
tremendous fury through the entire
range of buildings. This occurred at
| o'clock and in less than too hours the
entire establishment was In ruin
Some twenty minutes elapsed before
any engines brought their streams of
water to bear upon the flames, and
then the confagration had become too
fierce to be checked.
The alarm of FIRE of course, created
the greatest CONSERVATION among the
operatives. Those in the greatest
peril were the girls in the folding room,
in the story above the one in which the
fire had taken. Most of them rushed
to the stairway, which was their usual
place of egress, and escaped without
difficulty. Others were too much be-
wildered to avail themselves of this,
until it was too late, and were rescued
from the windows by the freman's
ladders. Capt. R osenquest, the fore
man of the Bindery, was very efficient
in forcing many Of them to go down
the stairway, and by his GOODNESS and
courage, aided in saving valuable &C
count and other books. Most of the
men employed in the Press room were
compelled to rush out for their lives,
being unable to seize even their hats
and coats. All the presses were at
work, but not one of them, not even
one of the stereotype plates upon them,
could be saved. As soon as the alarm
was given in the business office, Col
John Harper, the financial partner,
took $4,000 which was lying in his
desk, called the Bank clerk, gave him
the book of a Bank where he knew his
account had been slightly overdrawn,
and sent him to deposite the amount
fearing lest the Bank officers should
be uneasy after the fire! He then
went TO the head OF the stairs leading
to the Press room, and seeing the
hopelessness of attempting to save any
thing-directed the engineer 10 make
his way to the boiler and let off the
steam. The other members Of the
firm gathred together all the books Of
accounts, subscriptions, receipts, DC,
n