The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1880-12-16
FIERCE FLAMES

FIERCE FLAMES.
PensacoIs. Fla, Almost Entirely Destroyed
Fires With Loss of Life ut Cincinnati
and Baltim0re-O.her Disasters.
HALF MILLION FIRE IN PENSACOLA.
PENSACOLA, Fla, Dec. 1.-THE custom
house and records burned last night. In adj
ditlon nine-tenths Of the business portion OF
the city was destroyed. Loss about $780,
OOO. The loss to merchants is very heavy,
as they have just received their fall stocks.
The origin of the FIRE is unknown. It started
in the building occupied by S. Damiani az
confectionery store, the inmates of which
barely escaped with their lives, two being
severely burned, and saving nothing. The
names might have been checked
sooner. but the steam engine
being out of repair. was in a
machine shop. The Gazette and Aa0unce
Offices are totally destroyed. The fire lasted
for eight hours. Five blocks in the heart Of
the city burned. Palafox street, from Wit
ticks corner to the middle Of the block OBJ
poslte the Plaza, is swept clean. The FIRE
stopped on Government street, at thee ity
hotel east and one square back of the Gus
tom house west. Over one hundred eetab-
llshments are gone, embracing the main
business buildings, and turning out about
fifty families from their homes. The custom
house, postoffce, Merchants hotel, Brentz
bank, both telegraph Offices, both uewspa-
pers, the Dunn exchange, Wright's dry
goods house and the county clerks Office are
among the weII-known buildings
burned. County Clerk Larne, for the
fifth time in his term.
saved the records. But while doing this
his own residence was burned and he is
hunting for his family. The railroad depot
and adjacent mills seemed csrtain to 90 and
locomotives stood all night fred up ready to
pull the company's equipments and other
property out of town. Much suffering must
ensue. The fire originated in the oonfec-
tlonery store of Damiaria. His family re-
sized above the store and several of them
were burned. Mrs. Damiaria will die.
The insurance held by those burned out
amounts to about quarter of million dol
lars. The postof6oe and United States
court clerks saved their mail and papers,
FIVE FREMEN's LIVES LOST.
CINCINNATI, Dec. 11.-At $50 o'clock this
evening lire, among the most tragic in the
history OF Cincinnati, was discovered in the
dry house of Jno. P. Gays bucket facto.
~ on New and Culvert streets, near the foot
OF Mount Adams. The dry house, a branch
OF the four story main building, was two
stories high. The main building was saved
The dry house was destroyed. Next the drv
house was four story brick, owned bv Jno.
2. Gay and occupied by the Grown Manu-
featuring company, who made kindling wood
and window ornaments. It it were stored
large quantities of inflammable
material. From the dry house flames
quickly laid hold of this building, COM
menclng on the ground floor. First in i'm
portance and foremost in interest to the
people Is the loss of life in this building.
Ihe nearest fire company to these buildings
was NO. 4. This company was first on
the ground and first to enter the second
story of the Grown manufacturing companv's
building. Their object was to fight the fire
raging on the ground floor by sending a
stream down shute and down the stair
ways, in fact to arrest it's progress to the up
per stories. which were yet intact. In the
room were Chief Bunker, Assistant Marshal
Ocheldmeyer, Acting Captain Higginson of
the fours. All of the above came out alive.
Ihere were also Thomas Cool.
ing, son of Capt. Cooling.
Of the Fours, VIM. Kelly and David Love,
regular plpemen, Ed. Parker, runner of
The Fours, and Andrew Barrett, a pipeman
of the Skies, all five of whom were brought
cut dead. They were standing around the
'nute, sending stream down, when sudden
y, as If shot from cannon, burst of
'oorching air and binding smoke, mingled
With flame, broke up with lightning sudden
ness through the shute. Those who GOT out
Jan hardly tell how they got out. All five of |
me victims were dead when their bodies |
we're obtained three hours later. It was not !
IN explosion at the bottom of the shute. "a |
% now known. but mass of shavinps. ETC.. |
together with mass of highly combustible |
5lndllng wood. 1t is the present |
:heory that the flames, which had
been gaining on the fremen in the basement |
'r cellar and ground floor, got sudden, |
fresh impetus and, with augmented energy.
struck this inflammable fuel and leaped up
through the hatchway. The victims tried to |
:un, as shown by their position when found.
Four of the bodies we're taken to an under
aker's near by, and one, that of Andrew
Barrett, was taken to his grief-crushed FAM
~. All the dead, except Thomas Cooling,
we're married. He was the youngest, only
about rs years old, and was runner. The
other four were nearly the same age, about
50, and all leave wives and children. When
'no aocluont became KnOWn, as 1t did in |
'tantly, the hose Of the Fours was manned
With fresh hremen, and from that on the most
desperate energy of the department. was di-
:ecteo to saving the second story, and put
ting it in condition to enable men to bring
2ut the bodies. This fight lasted three hours.
Inc floor was saved from falling in, and the
aodles were taken OUT when the flames
we're raging holly in all the floors above, and
beneath this one. Great crowds were drawn
% the scene, and the loungers, waiting for 3
possibility to bring out those bodies, were
by that awful stiffness which
Iiways attends deep and pervadinp feeling.
low and then the silence was
broken by the voice of inquiry
rom some woman who asked |
n tones that cut to every heart il her hus.
,and, brother or son was there. The casual
y is suoh as no prudence could foresee and
uch as tiremen are always liable to en-