Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1875-05-05
Montpelier to be Rebuilt at Once Of Brick

! meets and Plans for the Future Extracts
| from sundays Sermons.
Montpelier to be Rebuilt at Once Of Brick
For the second time, this spring, our town has
been devastated by fire, and great ~ the destruc-
ton by the first seemed to be, the rayages by the
second have made IL dwindle into comparative
insignHcance. Going down Main street, ono APP
precates for the first time the terrible disasters OF
the Western towns, and our hearts leap out to
Oshkosh, who, to-day, like ourselves, sees her
best streets in ashes. This second fire, coming,
as II did, just as our citizens were bending re-
newcd energies TO remove the yestiges Of the first,
has east an unwonted gloom over the community,
and the spring OF 1875 must always be remem-
bercd as black one for Montpelior-ln which
families were rendered homeless merchants de
| prycd Of stores and goods, workmen thrown out
Of employment, the rich crippled, and the poor
made 10 lose their all In truth, the saddest incl
dent Of the fire is the number Of working people
who have been literally burned Out Of house and
home hardly saving clothing enough for a change,
and possessing no insurance. But with Yankee
energy and pluck our people are even now be-
ginning to make good the loss-almost as we
write, the cheerful sound Of the builders hammer
| can be heard and by another spring the burned
districts will be filled with substantial brick edi
fees, whose solid walls and fre-prooi roofs will it
is hoped, he nsuperabe barriers to another great
| coRaagn,ion.
.i' ABoRrIVE tScESDIARIsM.
At about quarter before eleven O'clock last
Friday night the community was aroused by an
H. no oil hntI xNlt
caused by slight fire in the old Collamer resi-
dence on State street It was confined to the
closet where It originated, and the engines though
called out, were not used. This was the third fire
In this building within six months, and the second
incendiary fire The house has been occupied for
some three years by Mr.. aud Mrs. Horace Fales,
who came here from Mortified where they had
kept the hotel About year ago, Fales sold the
place TO J. II. Bostwick of this place, who in turn
disposed of 1t To T. 7. Jewett aud T. j Hubbard,
Its present owners The faleses have been selling
off their furniture for some time past and on Fri
! day night had nothing loft in the house but some
| packed trunks. Mrs. Falcs says that they were
| intending to sleep at the American House. and
were Sitting In the southwest room on the lower
floor, waiting for the arrival OF a man to whom
they had sold some silver-ware. lie was TO have
/ come for II at ten o'clock, but did not, and they
| had concluded to wait no longer Thereupon she
and another lady, JEANNE Atherton by name, went
towards the back Of the house and found the /
door, leading into the back yard, open. Knowing
that Mr. Fales had locked and bolted this door Sc
cutely not long before, they were frightened, i'm.
mediately returned to the front room, and she in.
formed Mr. Fales that she shouldn't leave the
-. A.. ~ "A.
and silver would be stolen, being convinced thai
somebody had surreptitiousy got into the house
Her husband 1--WE are still continuing Mr. Fales
story then made temporary bed ON the floor fo
himself and laid down the women sat up in tn,
same room Overhead was the room formerly oc
cupied by the hired girl funnel hole raj
through the door. Mrs Faos thought she hear,
n noise overhead; presently it seemed as thougl
the air was sucking through the funnel hole sh
asked the girl II she hadn't left the window II
her room open the girl couldn't remember sh
and the girl went up stairs together, found tn
window open, put 1t down. and, returning to tn
entry way, saw light through the hali-ope
door in the l. room, on the east side Of the house
went in there and found the closet on fire. ran dow
, stairs, 10 the front door, screamed Fire." an
raised an alarm Mrs. Fales was the first to clair
that the fire had been set, and her theory is tina
some one must have entered the house during tn
day or evening secreted himself, set the FIRE, an
I then escaped by the Ldoor, which she found open
, This is the substance OF Mrs Fales story.
When she screamed fire at the front door Nj
Albert Bailey, OF Wells River, mail agent on tn
Montpelier & Wells River railroad, Mr. Isaa
( rIalleck, book agent OF Hubbardston, Mass, an
/ Mr.. Ziba r. True, of this village, were seated /
the bar-rcom of the American House They in
mediately ran over and were met by Mrs Fales
the door who informed them that there was n
$ water or pals in the house, and told them to {
c back and get some Messrs. True and Balleck di
50, and with an axe and a few bucketsfnl Of wats
put it ont before Mr.. Bailey had got the engine
out by raising an alarm A very few minut,
S more, however, would have snniced to Civ
T the fire strong Roadway and the building, bein
: did and dry, must have burned like finder 1t wa
undoubtedly set and by some one well acquainte
with the interior arrangements Of the house, an
> Why an outsider should have gone up stairs whe
e there was every facility for setting fire in tn
y v0odshed, is mystery. In putting out the fiji
n Messrs Halleck and True assembled to an M
finished loft over the closet and there Mrs Fal,
called their attention 10 small pile OF shaving
: near the chimney. Mr. Samuel Wells, who can
# nto the house after the alarm had been sounde,
d took possession OF these shavngs and ascertaine
=. that they were from hemlock, spruce and blaC
ash lumber The next morning pile Of Shawn!
from the ZANE kind Of lumber were found in II
n woodshed and Mr. Chester Clark, OF the Amer
e can House, bought some shayings OF the same d
d serptlon from Mr. Falesa short time ago, and no
4. tt.a a..
House first heard Mrs fales calling Fire." Il
cries sounded 80 faint that they supposed it was
y little boy In fun, and did not stir for two thr
~ minutes. Probably the incendiary will never
"a found out; but it was desperate attempt ON Il
, part OF some evil-minded person. and what Il
> motive could have been it is hard To conjeotur
Al Mrs. fales observed soon after the fire HI
4 been extlnguished, she and her husband &c
,e ttinly had no pecunlary interest in burning Il
"a house. for nearly everything Of theirs had be-
moved out"
. BEGINNING OF THE GREAT FIRE.
No great damage having been done at the Fal
house, the iremen and people went home for go'
'e nights rest but only few minutes sleep wi
J. In store for them. Our readers will fememb
[. that the great fire in March began in wood
pWNihs VII WAN etftr'i occupiti Ny Josrph
:. Clogston. and that two-story brick buildin
with wooden L, owned by jefferson Bruce, ia
u south OF it, was little scorched. Mr.. W. A. Bo
h telle, millner moved into the front part of b
lower story few weeks ago; the lower floor
n the l. was occupied by Mr. X. 7. Eastman, carriag
maker, and the upper floor was occupied by NJ
NJ Bruce, his wife and two daughters-the main bull
70 ing as a dwelling house, and the L as whe
ic wright, paint and blacksmith shop, Mr.. Bruce bell
IS aknd Of Observation-Disclosures. Just back Of the Bru
a L w4s a laf,e barn about seventy feet long, ooe
pied,by John Adams as II livery stable Betwe
these two buildings was a space-way, about Gig
VI foet in width, and in the space-way, some sta
which led To Bruce shop, These stairs were I
w as wide ~ the space-way. The sides of the sta
~ were. boarded up, and deposited behind were SOL
mouias used for bending carriage stock, two
y three barrels full OF straw, in which eroekery
al been. packed and other loose stuff. Close by "
il a new sleigh owned by Mr. Eastman. Just TO I
Sc south was priyy, and east temporary shed, |
h. der which was stored about four thousand feet