The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1884-04-10
FIRE and FIGHT.
A LITTLE FIRE CAUSES A BIG ROW
BAD BLOOD AND PLENTY OF
KNOCK DOWN.
"A Fire Policemen With Orders
to let None but Fireman Pass
Has a Hard Battle.
Full Particulars--BOt Sides of
the Story and a Review of
the Whole Matter.

| JIG SIOry ana a heV16W OF
the Whole Matter.
Yesterday about IL o'clock the fir
Dell sounded an alarm of fire in tn
second ward. Excitement RAJ
nigh when it was known tina
the magnificent Breckenridge bloc
on the corner of the Avenu
and Pecan street was tn
scene of the confagration. In tn
block are the First National bank
Lewis 81 Peacock's Parlor shoe store
the upper Hotel Brunswick, etc.. max
ing it a bad place for a fire.
The tiremen responded with grea
promptness, but it proved not to b,
OF serious nature, as the smoke which
gave rise to all the excitement wa,
caused by the burning of fiue in tn,
southeast corner of the block
A little water turned into thi.
soon put out the fire
and prevented any serious damage
However a failure to obey orders OF
wait for orders rather from the chief
came near causing most serious loss
OF property and brought on a serious
conflict between Capt. Ed. Rousseau
nre policeman, and a number of the
leading citizens and has caused the
hrst harsh words against a fireman
ever heard since the present depart
ment was organized. The facts of
THIS DISGRACEFUL BUSINESS
are hard to be obtained, for some of
the tiremen tell a story Numerically
opposed to that told by outside par
ties ami citizens interested. Frank
Jones, foreman of Colorado. acting
under orders of Chief Zillers. detailed
Capt. Ed. Rousseau to stand watch at
the head OF the stairs and not permit
any one but tiremen to come past him.
The object OF this order was good one,
anu ltS WISDOM no one questions.
WITHOUT such a policeman so sta
TONED, the house and varandas would
have been filled with curious lockers
on, and serious damage might have
been done by such mob taking DOS
session of the house. Capt. Rousseau
took his position, and thus matters
stood until the trouble mentioned
below. The chief was up stairs try
ing to discover the seat of the fire, and
had given no orders for water what
ever, when private fireman COM
manded the man at the hydrant
to turn OH the water, which
he started to do. This was ex-
ceedlngly reprehensible, and the pri-
Vate who
so ACTED
be thoroughly disciplined for
assuming to give the commands that
should only come from the chief.
There must be the same system about
giving orders in a fire department
that there is in an army, or there can
be no efficient service whatever. Ma
Jor breckenridge, the owner of the
block, and the president of the First
National bank, was standing in the
street so that he could see there
was no fire except in the fiue
and he knew if the order
OF this private was obeyed
as the man at the hydrant was about
to do thousands of dollars of unnecessa-
ry damage would be done by the flood
ing. The fine stock of boots and shoes
In the store of Lewis q Peacock would
have been ruined, and the First Ma
tionai would have suffered severe loss
beside the damage to the hotel. He
tried to call the attention of
some of the officers to the fact
that the fire was in the fiue
but he could not make them hear.
He then started
TO GO UP STAIRS
to see the chief or some one in au-
thority to consult him about the seat
of the fire, and to inform them about
the irresponsible order to turn on
water. When he met Rousseau the
officer asked him if he was a fireman,
according to an interview with Mai.
breckenridge and the major replied
" No. but / am the owner of this
building, and must see some of your
chiefs at once" Rousseau said
if yon are not firemen 1 cannot let YOU
pass" But" said the major, " must
see some of the chiefs at once" Rous-
seau said: 81 have told you, you can.
not go by and you cannot" Major
replied: Property is at stake, l must
go by" and started to push by Rous-
Seau. Thereupon he struck the major
a severe blow. DR.. Breckenridge then
came up and Rousseau struck him.
Just then Mr.. Assman, one of the fire.
men, came along and upbraided Rous-
seau, and the latter made demonStra-
lions at him. Capt. Chenneville, hear
ing the rumpus came to the place and
told Rousseau to be quiet and let Maj.
Breckenridge pass
WHEREUPON ROUSSEAU
assaulted Capt ChennevlIIe, the SER
geant of police. He ordered police
man Howe to arrest him which he at
tempted and policeman Howe got a
cracker, too. He was finally arrested
and taken to the police court, where
he gave bonds for his appearance. In
the meantime that ever watchful Off
Ger, Chief Zillers, had detected the I'M
authorized order to turn on
the water and sharply counter
manded the order and did the very
thing Maj. Breckenridge wanted to
advise, flood the fiue.
The foregoing is the account of the
matter somewhat abridged, of course,
as related by Maj. Breckenpidge, DIR,
Breckenridge, Capt. Chenneville, Mr..
Assman and number of others who
saw it. On the other hand Capt.
Rousseau says he did not know
Maj. breckenridge or the doctor and
that he did not understand he was
the owner of the building. In regard
to this the major says Rousseau was
so excited he may not have understood
all he said, but he says when Rousseau
said he did not know him, he asked
him if he had not seen him about the
bank and he told him he had not. The
foreman of Colorado. Mr.. Frank Jones
corroborates Rousseau statement, and
so doseveral others. Maj. Breckenridge
says he thinks Rousseau believed he
was acting in the line of his duty.
This is by no means the end of the
tale. When Rousseau met Chenne-
vile after the latter had lodged
charge against him, he asked
him if he filed the charge, and Chenne.
vile replied he did. Capt. Chenne
vile and others say he struck
with a brick, hitting the la4ter on the
head; and again, when Rousseau wa:
being taken to the Jail Capt. Chenne
vile came up and Rousseau asked hin
if he had the presumption to come W
beside him. Chenneville replied hl
went where he pleased, and thereupoT
Rousseau struck at him again.
Public sentiment is somewhat di
vided on the conduct of Rousseau
some taking his part and many severe
" condemning him. He was acting
as a fire policeman with orders to lei
no one pass, and II he did not know
Major Breckenridge he may be justi
| fed. But on the other hand if h,
knew the Major was the owner, ant
simply wanted to consult an officer