Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1865-03-30
IATHENkUN BUIIDTEG BVRNf1.
An Extensive Fire-Loss from $40. .OOO
to $50, ,OOO.

con nected with the LEADIsR establishment.
in passing through the yard from the
press-room to the CO. unting-room, discover
ed tnes the Athe'leum Building, on Supe-
rior street next. TO the American Buildings,
was on. ire. He ran to the en-
slne 5louse on Champlain street, and
gave the alarm. For a few moments
before thu FIRE became visible, a dense smoke
poured from the windows of the building,
and S8ttled down in the streets, nearly
strE lgling that portion of the city. On
sudden the flames lesped out all over the
sE-smeared roof, and threatened theAmer-
lean House on the west, and Kelly's block
on the east: Fortunately, the wind did not
blow, and the persistent efforts of the fire.
men kept the FIRE from spreading.
The origin of the FIRE is not known. 1t
was discovered in the rear of the Hall &C.
cupied by Mr.. A. Montpelier, proprietor
and manager of variety show. It proba-
by caught in the dressing rooms or stage.
Mr. Montpelier says nothing but gas lights
we're used in that part of the Hall, and that
all The lights in the building were put
out about eleven O'Clock the night pre-
vious, at the close of the performance.
He suggests, however, that it might have
caught from the hot stumps of cigars which
are swept with the other rubbish under the
stage, at the close of each entertainment.
The probability is, that ikorigiDRted from
sparks Of fre-crackers, many of which
we're let off during the performance,
and which might easily start slow,
smouldering FIRE in the sawdust strewn
upon the floor of the Hall. The
Chief Engineer, however, and others
who have looked into the matter, are of the
opinion that the FIRE was the work of an in
cendiary.
The uPPef story, used by Mr.. Montpelier,
is COMPLETE wreck. Nothing at all was re-
moved. The bar was destroyed. tits claimed
that epirits can't be touched with temporal
irdrmity or loss, but this exception proves
that the spirits above mentioned must have
been tainted by time and drugged with
earth. The piano was burned, as well as
scenery, furniture, &C., and this comprises
the chief loss of Mr.. Montpelier, amount
ing in all, as he claims, 70 $4,000 or $4,000.
He had no insurance on his effects. The
actors lost their wardrobes, one of the ladies
losing at least 5000 worth of dresses and
whatnot.
The second floor was occupied in front by
John Friend and G. W. Lynde, as law offices;
Viets and Savage, Job Printers; Trad Kel-
ley, private rooms, and, in the rear of the
building, by::Deckand and Engelhart, man
ufacturers of hats and caps. Messrs. Lynde
and Friend removed their papers, books,
&c. Their loss is slight. Viets and Savage
will lose quite heavily from the wetting of
their stock. They are insured to the full
amount oftheir loss. Trad Kelley's room was
fairly swamped, his wardrobe and furniture
damaged, but he escaped a wstery gravess
by the skin of his teethl
The stock in the stores on the ground
door was badly damaged by water. The
Cleveland Paper Company claim that their
loss will fall between 1000 and ST., 900.
Hitherto they have not kept large stock
on hand in this establishment, but recently
they filed up with paper of all kinds,
which was Thoroughly drenched. They are
covered with an insurance of SIS, 500.
Decksnd and Engelhart, Hatters and
Fur Dealers, estimate their loss ats1O, 600.
They had just got their furs packed away
in the second story, all of which were de-
Stroyed by fire, or immensely damaged by
water. They are insured in the sum of
800.
j. u. Mack, Halter, must have lost hesv-
lily, but we could not learn the extent, nor
the amount of his insurance.
The water burst through the frs-warpsd
double iron doors between the Atheneum
building and the American Buildings, and
poured into the store of H. W. Luetkemey-
er, inficting about $500 damage.
Vets and Savage used part of the base
ment as press-room, and Charles Snyder
had bowling alley in another apartment.
These rooms were full of water, but the loss
cannot be heavy.
The building is owned by Trad Kelley.
He has $4,000 insurance thereon, which
will no doubt cover the total loss.
As is always the case on such occasions,
several cemicsl incidents were noted at this
fire. The proprietor of an establishment
near the scene, nsmeless here foreVermore,
stood in the streets, wringing his hands and
wailing in his fright, half dead with fear
that his house would go. His babyishness
merited the laughter of the crowd.
Mr.. 1. z. came tearing down the front |
stairs of the burning building, bearing two |
old coats and two novels, which he carried |
to the Merchants Bank, and requested that |
they might be put into the safe, and that
the safe might be left open, for he had some
more traps to bring Twenty-Five cents |
per head were offered by this gentleman to
men who would peril life and limb in rush
ing up into the burning building to rescue
sootiacks and a hundred weight of poetry
in manuscript. A certain man was observ- |
ed carrying small box ofcoal down stairs.
His idea undoubtedly was to prevent the
spread of the cOnhsgrstiOn by starving out
the fire.
A great burly fellow had stolen q splen-
did muff from Deck and Engelhart's store,
and seereted thunder his coat. He had got
as far away as the LEADEE counting room
ioor when the hands of a policeman were
aid on his coat collar. He gave a screw
Ind a wrench, and sloughed his coat as a
make does its skin, and few down the
street, leaving muf and coat behind him,
IS Joseph left his coat in the hands of the
larlot, and wss pursued by the man in blue.
wss not overtaken, but the effects were
AIKEN to the Police Station. He will doubt
ess be identified by the coat.
Sun FIRE Insurance CoMPAEY.-We are
pleased to call attention to the card, in an
.ther column. of the Sun Fire Insurance