Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1883-10-16

| last night. Dut elnCe NeM OIicahe
was most vitality interested | presume
almost any further allusion to it, even
if it be repetition, will be read with
interest.
THE COMPRESS, ELEVATOR AND cox
TON YARD,
covering two entire blocks Of ground,
were owned and, l believe, originally
built by company Of your capitalists,
Of which John T. Hardie is Presi-
dent. In its construction a fatal mis-
take was made in locating the engine
and boilers OF the elevator in one cor
ner, or side, of the great cotton ware.
house, and from that vicinity lowered
the huge elevator, at all times filled
shucks and grain, separated BY thin
walls, which were here and there
pierced with windows, and just out
side of which always lay from 5000
to 5000 bales of cotton. 1t was in a
pile of these shucks blaze was first
discovered, resulting in the total loss
OF threa and half blocks Of valuable
property, worth all of $250,00O. To
pass from the engine room to the ele.
vator and from thence to the piles Of
cotton through open doors, was no
more trouble tor the flames to do than
to run up q chimney. In twenty min
utes the whole premises were
ONE BLAZING, LURID HE'LL.
Had all the fire engines in Texas
been brought to play now, they could
have made no impression upon that
furnace of heat.
I On the west side and across Austin
street, was situated the great COM
press, in which the latest aud most
powerful machinery had been intro.
duced. On its open or shielded plat
form lay 1000 or 1000 bales, and to
save this costly property citizens and
fremen made the most heroic and
successful fight. 1t was on fire q
thousand times, and 10 one hundred
places at once, but men fought the
more desperately as the danger rose
higher The FIRE ran over the yard
aud up to the very walls and doors Of
the compress, caught the roofs Of the
sheds, and still the compress was
saved. | saw men and boys standing
all but in the very flames aud frs
dashing buckets Of water on the FIRE
and then on themselves to put out
| their clothing. Of the
! uop-rrr vrorrr r,rur-r, a ,sr,r, ,o,rra xrrve
carrying risks, every one and all theil
clerks we're on the ground Workinl
like ants. The agents proclaimed
through the crowd they would pay 81
salvsge per bale for all cotton take1
out Of the warehouse. This brought
3 battalion Of negro fellows to work
some OF whom made as much as $50
But many OF them had worked like
beavers IRON the first alarm. While
the FIRE vas at its height an engine
With twenty attaches and citizens
headed b. Mayor Smith. from For
MOrth, came, and in a few minutes wa
pouring two streams Of water. Ii il
= miles to the Fort, and ia IS min
utes after the dispatch vas received
her gallant boys had 4 stream of va
ter on the Dallas FIRE. A dense paeI
I ofpe 1ple stood around this steamer
expressing gratitude, and after thu
fire was under control took them t,
the City Hall and gave them an i'm
promptu banquet. We may be iealou
and say hard things Of each other, ye
how true it is zone touch Of naturr
makes the world kin"
, After the FIRE ran across Ross ave
I nue., on the north side Of the ware
! house. it leVeled an entire block Q
grocery stores, laundries, dwellings
the California Wagon Yard and Sill
berstein's livery stable, and did no
stop in that direction until it reache
colIine, just beyond which four O
five houses of DEE. i. Thomson wer
: burned few years ago. This vacan
cy arrested its progress, orelse it woul
q have PROFESSIONALLY gone to the bouu
i dairy OF the city on the north, only tw
q or three blocks beyond. At poir
nearly oppsiite the livery stable
jumped Lamar street, and after burr
!, ing three residences ran up to a lare
n two story frame dwelling, thickly er
4 veloped with full grown umbrell
a china trees. Upon this house the cit
4 gems rallied and made a stand. Tt
4 tremen, with their apparatus, had a
\ they could do elsewhere, Aided /
n the trees, which shielded the house
a great extent, the fire was here final
!, stopped.
q l telegraphed you Saturday nigl
Il the gross loss was estimated as low
IT S25O, 600 and as high as 1900
n think when all the figures are footc
n up they will show
le TOTAL LOSS OF 100000
We There were from 1000 to 5000 bal
OF cotton, 10000 to $1,000 bushels
wheat, and S25, 900 worth of macbin
and machinery stored in and arour
the elevator-the machines and impl
ments belonging to Sinker, Derris
Go. John T. Hardie & Co. lose Si(
" 900; Howard & Co., $25. 600; the Ele
- trio Light Company $l7 900.
~ The loss on cotton will amount
iaee $40 900 to 100000, belonging "a
w. legion Of buyers, agents, merchan
q and planters, but as that wsrehou
has always been regarded as not sal
no one rarely ever placed bale in
z without straightway covering il wi
nj insurance. And hence the loss "
er fall almost entirely upon the insuTap
90 companies-not only upon cotton \
upon the elevator and its contents a,
the property burned, with few We
few, exceptions. The risky nature
9 their surroundings and the ere a +,
" weeksagO on Colline street made eve
body take out policies. And hen
ns Dallas loses nothing in all this caIsn
y she cannot easily stand The burn
district will be quickly rebuilt. sronp
and better than ever.
re TOO MUCH INSURANCE.
l read an interesting editorial
your paper the other day upon 4
=, colossal losses Of late years by insn
lie anoe companies. You seem 10 attr;
ao ute them TO the carelessness Of nsor
&c who are conscious OF the l. c that m
AZ are fully covered by insurance 4
II, this is true, but not all The trn,
ca Our great FIRE originated beyond \,
pit question BY accident. No one thin
as TOR a moment otherwise r.
IL there is not the least doubt fires a
as occurring every day Throughout 4
ne country having their origin in /
I'D much insurance. The agents are
as blame Tor this, for many OF them mn
60 know, as everybody else does thai \
ae policies issued are Of grester val
10 than the property described. / MI,
1s II the companies will not 90 bevo,
1s one,half the value it will stop inoe
7 diarism as well as carelessness
q would be well enough to try the q
le pertinent. The underwriters ~
d have TO come to this sooner or lat,
0. They are many hundred thousand dc
. lars behind in Dallas, and still NO
y in the State at large. The towns a
IS new, with wooden houses, stro,
d winds from surrounding prairies. AZ
2 therefore the best of food for 6re