National Republican., 1883-11-20
A SERIOUS FIRE.
Explosion OF Non-EHplosIve On-scveral
Mcn Severely burned.

nIen Severely burned.
FIRE that caused great CONSERVATION and
was attended with several painful, If not fatal,
accidents occurred yesterday afternoon on F
street. At dis box 131 struck the alarm, and
engines Nos. 1, g and 6, and truck "a, !" hur-
ried to the scene of action. 1916 + street. Tho
house is occupied by Danforth g. McKoy,
agents for Danforth's non-explosive fluid.
The explosion of this fluid caused the fire.
A colored employe, John Blackstone, was in
the act of drawing can full of the oil when
the gas generated by the fluid caught fire and
exploded with tremendous force. The noise
was like that Of q cannon, and produced so
violent conclusion of the air that tho win
dows of the adjacent houses were shattered
into fragments, while tho buildings themselves
were shaken as il a mine had exploded in tho
street. The fluid itself caught fire and burned
with terrific rapidity. Light and volatile, the
| flames spread in an instant, licking up all
easily combustble material in their path and
threa tening destruction to tho entire neigh
borhood. Tho fremen went to their work
with will, and by vigorous and systematic
efforts succeeded in apparently putting out
| the fire. Two of the engines ceased working
and the hose was taken mp. when to the sur
| prise and CONSERVATION of the witnesses the
| flames burst out again. This time they
| leaped and writhed around tho building rs If
endowed with sentence. Starting from
the lower story they filed the inside
of the house with body of fire
instantly, sending broad and flashing sheet
of flame through the second story windows,
driving the firemen and police out TO the
street, and following them with angry and
MANAGING rapidity. They presented spectacle
here that was appallingly interesting and
seldom seen. A stream Of water had been Inn
| ItnNA A1w
and the flames leaped into the air, wrapped
themselves in q fiery embrace around the
watery column, enveloped the falling spray in
blazing mantle, and rushed down the
ascending stream, as IL in deadly conflict,
clear to the nozzle driving the nozzleholder
to the pavement. For briefwhile the conflict
| OF the two elements was terrific and grand, but
the fiery element at last was bsffled and
beaten. Before it yielded, however, it did
| great damage The flames completely en-
veloped Mr.. Thomas Scott, Of truck A, from
head to foot in their scorching embrace, hor-
ribly burning him. The Kissing tongues
| of flame licked the skin entirely off
his face. head and hands. lie was borne out
of the building by his comrades and taken to
| Hendershott's drug store, Thirteenth and +
streets, whore Drs. Bliss and Magruder rem
dered medical aid, after pronouncing the in
| juries dangerous if not fatal William Roach
and Horace Hineline of the same company,
|
| the head and face. Mr.. Danlorth, the agent,
and Blackstone, the colored laborer, were also
| slightly burned, as was also Mr.. Mccoy.
Blackstone, who was drawing the oil when
the explosion took place had narrow escape
| from death.
The building is owned by Mr.. James John
ston, and insured in the Arlington and Co.
lumbia companies for $4,000. The damage
done the building is about $780, with about
$d00 to the stock. The property loss was sur
prisingly small considering the commotion
and the sensational features.
The building is occupied by Danforth &
Mccoy, f. b. Libby, broker; DIR. De Montre-
ville dentist, and several roomers. Nos.
1913 and 1917 are occupied by Mrs. Marlow
and Mr.. &. j. Ennis, and were slightly dam
aged by smoke, water, and the conclusion of
the explosion. The inmates were badly
frightened. Had the fire broken out at night,
probably everybody in the house would have
been burned to death. The firemen never
worked more gsllantry than they did yester-
day, the peculiar character of the fire giving
it an appalling oud terrific character.
1t was reported last night that Thomas
Scott, the fireman who was so badly burned
at the fire yesterday afternoon, will lose the
sight of one of his eyes, and that both of his
I hands will have to be amputated.
No FANCY prices at Fick's, GIL Pennsylvania
avenue.