The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1877-12-21

mpanies the ground and working Chief
Bates TOO, arrived and took command. The water
service IVES excellent, and thers were 81 eas. thirty
streams playing sho IRE n time. Some Of the
hose run In through the stores fronting
Greenwich street and Park place, carried
up the rooS Of the houses adjoining Greenhcd's
and the Groeer's Bank.
TIE SCENE coSyLA0RArloS.
To properly understand tho situation Il would BE-
we'll 10 consider the diagram here given. In The nrs
place, xr. Grsenneid's premises L shaped, one
OF the letter pointing 10 Barclay street. the other
TO College place. On Barclay street Grecnneld's was
No 90, and between and the College place
were the paper store OF Daniel Tompkins, No 81,
and the Grocers Bank, No 50. The College place en-
trance the middle the block and between the
bank. . restaurant ana Borden's condensed milk es
sablishmenL In The Barclay building we're the
ohces OF the propretors the hands employed sales
people, and the engine and boiler which burst and
the occasion OF The calamity. In tho College place
building were the packers and greatest number OF the
employees, who, Is hoped, escaped before the flames
from the other part reached shem.
T1xAcHxRoUs moy 'FRONT.'.
The building Immediately adjoining GresnAsld =
Sons store occupied By TompK:ns' paper factory
now engaged the attention OF the nremcn The bat
tie between them and this store brci the flames
devourng she Inside OF II with frghtful rapidly.
The front OF this building was OF from and Just nm
dsrneath the cornics offered 10 tho eye three large
circular windewA These formed a species OF Que
through which the roaring, angry flames shot with
force which plainly TOLD what going on inside
Al about twenty minutes 10 six the roof crashed
through tho top door Tho fire made short work OF
this, eating through II and the next one with
what looked. to use . figure Of speech, like real
viciousness The beams Of this building rap
Idly Effected its utter ruin, for they came
crashing down, like huge Orders of ncandesccnt
steel, they carried ell before them and left only the
iron front standing. At this time the interior OF the
building presented the appearance OF blast furnace
The bright names rendered outline OF tho front so
we'll defined that the practsed eve could ~ once de-
,cct detection from the perpendicular IN the iron
work. Slowly but surely this buged out, warning tho
hremen engaged below that II look their
safety. All few minutes before six II tell out.
ward In one compact mnss street, crashing
with like thupdsr against the stores on tho
other side and apparently placing them In imminent
danger. In moment tho nremen had the hose turned
TO the burning mass. soon putting an end TO any
danger which might have been anticipated.
Meanwhile tho nfo had been busy At the extreme
corner Of the building which forms tho angle OF Col
ege place and Barclay street. Nothing here seemed
for time able TO check It's fury II forced It's way
along the and top story Of this building and
uniting It's huge lambert tongues with the danes al
ready ~ work inside, swept . fearful looking
curved stream Of dre round into the windows OF tho
building the ground door Of which occupied by the
Grocers' Bank. Here the dcvouring element, as
though It's appetite thoroughly whctted, ate out
the whole OF the top story in incredibly short
space Of time. Although tho nremen worked with
great pluck and Dissemination clear that, for
the time, the odds we're heavily against them.
- RUIN AND DRsoLArIoN.
It was now evident that tho critical moment had
come. The bank stood alone. brown rock 10 q sea
Of Ore. Its rooms were 1T Up with vivid tongues Of
flame and every article in them could be by those
IN the Streets the housetops from the ndows
OF adjacent storeG The nremcn worked With 4 will
Every one Of the three connections on tho large
hydrauts was utilized and Chief Bates said that
the value OF the new twcntyour inch main
lately laid the west side Of the was now ap-
parent perfect delugs Of tell upon the burn.
ing pile which seethed and blazed alternately Evory
now and again tho fall Of beam would ding up
brands and embsrs. which the strong breeze hurled
up or The street. endangcrng the safety the
buildings around Here an awning took nrc: thore a
roof Major, Knapp los lnhosraphic establish
mont several times impsrillsd, but tho Efforts OF
tho nremsn Immediately overcame the danger and
were again concentrated the great nre ITSELF II
was evident that these endeavors should be re-
doubled the whole block would be destroyed. To
prevent this the stores on Greenwich street were
opened ana hose run through to the rcars, whero
there was communication by window with the Green
field establishment. Men mounted James Eng.
l,sh's house. No e5. and from the roof played
Eve streams time on the burning mass beneath
Truck and hook and ladder were engaged n Col
Iege place with axes hewing away josts. beams,
smashing down party walls and removing, so far as
possible anything that might help TO continue or
feed tie 1ames
ARE THERE BODIES?
While this going on the crowds increased grad
ually and the reserves Of the downtown precincts
under Inspector Dilks, were kept busiiy engaged
holding in check the thousands OF workingmen aud
women who had heard that over ono hundred
OF their class had persisted beneath the ruins OF
workshop The Kissing Of the steam engines, tho
shrieking Of their Whistles the hoarse commands OF
the fire captains and the dense clouds Of smoke now
and then rlven by lighsning-hke sheet OF are pre-
scnted IN appalling picture 10 the eager eyes OF tho
multitude whose faces blanchcd they were forced
TO make way for the ambuAncos which came
and won't go rapidly with or without a
living freight. "Oh! havc they found anybody
YETI" was frequently asked Of the stern officers who
were forced to hold the nqulrers back with tho ends
OF their batons. "How many have been lost2 Tho
Lord have mercy their souls" and ''May they
spend their Christmas in heavcn!" calculations
heard herc there, and many Of those who uttered
them hastily brushed aside tear, shed at tho rcco-
lection that the victims overworked and poorly
paid, perhaps. and lett, no doubt helpless ones to
mourn their loss at home
TIE HOSPITAL SURGEONS BUSY
The whits ambulances oame ana went IN charge OF
the surgeons, bearing the bodies OF living sufferers
from different drug stores in sho nsighborhood and
.oc of them stood In waiting for the bodies nj IN.
dead that had yet been found. Fremen wore hurt
In their eagernoss check tho nrc and were attended
TO on the ground; but mono Of thcm, far as could
be learned, went TO the hospital The surgeons in
most instances merely accompanied the injured EN-.
ploy6s the hospital, whore their suncrings wero
attended To-
THE FIRE UNDER CONTROL
vAioug about seven O'Clock the boarding house OF
Mrs. English fell In and camo very near buryng q
couple OF nremen who were standing on a ladder
reared against IL They had only just got down with
aha hui dinC~ nd