Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1853-12-13
DESTRUCTIVE FIRE.
The Establishment Of
HARPER & BROTHERS In RUINS.
OVER 81, 900 600 or
PRO ERTY DESTROYED

The enormous Printing, Stereotypmg, Binding,
and Publishing Establishment Of HARPER &
BROTHERS, which has been for many years Of
the magnificent monuments of private enter.
prise which our City, and indeed country, could
boast, was entirely destroyed by FIRE on Saturday
lasI,-and now lies shapeess mass Of smouldering
ruins. The buildings, were ten in number, extend
ing through the entire block from Cliff TO Pearl
streets,-6ve fronting each. These buildings
were five stories high and all new.
Having suffered from fire ten years since,
the HARPERs had taken extraordinary precautions
to prevent the recurrence Of sucl calamity They
had large sleam-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 sae. All the
buildings we're heated by steam pipes, which had
been carried, at an eXpenFe oil over $4,000, into ev
cry part of them and, instead Of the charcoal fur.
naees generally used in bindery establishments for
heating the tools, gas burners had been provided TO
take their place. Under these oircums,ances fire
was impossible, but for of those accidents which
cannot be oreseen, and against which, therefore, no
provision can be made.
Ii is necessary 10 clean the ink rollers used in the
Adams presses; and this only he done effectua.
" by employing canlphene.. In order to render the
use Of this perfectly safe, small room had bee pro.
vided on the third floor Of the lower building on
Pearl street, adjoining the press room, as to be
easy Of access from it. This room had been care.
which seemed necessary to insure its safety. The
camphene used WIS kept in shallow iron pans, and
the paper, rags, &c, with which il was applied, of
course, scattered about the room. Ii seems
that Humber was employed in this room on SaIur-
day to make some repairs; and in course Of his
work he lighed pipe or cigar, and hrep the match
into one Of the camptene pans Supposng to be u0ater.
1t blazed up insantly,-set fire the paper, rags,
&C., with which il was acknowledgement through
the partitions, and almost instantly swept with
mendous fury through the entire range Of buildings.
This occurred at O'Clock: and in less than tue
hours the entire establishment was in ruins. Some
twenty minutes elapsed before any engines brought
their streams Of to bear upon the flames and
then the confagralion had become too fierce to be
checked
The alarm oil 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 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 bewildered to
avail themselves Of this until il was too late and
we're rescued from the windows by the firemen's
ladders. Most OF the men employed IN the Press
room were compelled TO rush out for their lives be-
ing unable to seize even their hats and coais All
the presses at work, but not one of them, not
even one of the stereotype plates npon them, could
he saved. The engine companies poured streams OF
water upon the flames, upon either side, but with
no apparent effect and their attention soon
turned to The task Of saving the adjoining buildings.
The police we're present in large force, under The
immediate direction Of the Chief, and were efficient
in preserving order, and IN facilitating the opera
tions of the fremen
Finding the fire still gaining ground, the Chief
Engineer ordered the general alarm to be given,
which brought to the ground nearly the whole force
Of the Fire Department with great number of en-.
gines from Brooklyn, Harlem, and Yorkville.
AT about halfpast O'Clock the walls of the lower
buildings Pearl Street fell IN; soon alter The
walls Of Nos. so and SO Cliff Street fell in also
and not long after the floors and inner wall tumbed
in with Tremendous crash. The several buildings
were divided from each other by brick walls, and
the iron window shutters had been closed but
neither seemed to offer any apprecable resistance to
the flames. By 4o'clock the walls Of all the build
ings had fallen dnwn--the vast store of books and
other property had been consumed--and immense
heaps Of brick and mortar, over which the flames
and smoke continued TO hover as if with grim and
but half satiated Jury all that manned Of this
great and renowned establishment.
The following is probably as nearly accurate
statement OF the aggregate property in the buildings
and OF the amount saved, can be made in advance
OF an official investigations:
PROPERTY IN THE BUILDINGS.