Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1884-03-08
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Nocturnal fstase on Mater SHARPE
4 Frsmises Gives the New D1psrtmest tis
Maiden E1psrisncs Goed Work Dens.
4 At about = quarter after one O'Clock
this morning party Of young people,
who were having good time at the in.
sane asylum. bad their attention directed
to blaze in town, which looked TO them,
two miles awsy. - though it might be Of
serious importance. Ed. Odiorne, Who was
one Of the party, Invoked tho aid Of the
asylum telephone, rang up the central
Office and gave the alarm. Will Burns,
manager of the telephone system, made
his way with oil the speed he could
summon to the truck house. sounded the
alarm. and started out with hose cart
number two. The clang Of the bell
brought him speedy assistance, and
guided by lurid light in the northwest
quarter of the city, number two started
Tor the scene. The number one boys BY
this time wero on deck and started out
With their vehicle. The fire was upon Ma
jor Sharps premises. on the corner OF Lynn
and Sixth streets. six blocks away from
the truck house. Number two was the
first to reach the conaagration, which
was dsvour,ng Major Sharp's barn and
adjacent outbuildings. Connection was
made with q bydrant across Lynn street
from Major Shsrp's residence, the hose
OF number two was anreeled and the plug
opened. By this time number one had
fastened to the same hydrant and the
boys were straining themselves to catch
up with the other company. But mum.
Der two had the advantage in time and
fairly earned the credit of the frat water.
In few minutes, however. q stream
from each hose was flooding the fire,
which was extinRuished inside of ten
minutes. r
When the department reached the
scene, the barn, q story and half struc.
ture, filed with hay, was oil ablaze and
adjoining wooden buildings were in
danger of humiliation. Right here the
advantages of our water system demon.
strated Themselves. With hose at
tached to each plug of 3 single hydrant
two powerful streams were turned loose
upon the fire and it was drowned out in
no time. The destruction stopped right
where it was when the hydrant was
opened. And this with green depart.
ment which has not yet been given the
advantages Of drill or complete or.
ganization. The boys were all fresh in
the work and were lacking in
experience, system and readiness which
comes only from familiarity with the
duties Of a fireman. Beside the appara.
tus was not in shape for the most effec
tive service. Each cart carried Eve hun.
dred feet of hose, with the several sec.
tions coupled together. In the entire
outfit there were only two coupling
vrenches, when there should be thirty
or forty. Only about three hundred feel
Of hose to each plug was needed. but az
it was impossible, with the facilities .,
hand, 10 uncouple the sections, the entire
one thousand. feet we're used. The fire
men we're also unprovided with rubbe
clothing, there were no straps upon th
hose and no handles upou the nozzles
Many other little necessaries were lack
ing, but in spite of all the short.coming
of an incomplete organization the boy
did their work magnifcently and ar,
fully entitled to the praise they are re
ceiving.
| The barn and its contents ar
almost total loss. Msjor Sharp's car
rage horses we're in the barn and also
pair of saddle ponies. They were al
dead before the fire companies reache,
the scene, the thick smoke from th
burning hay suffocatlnR them in thei
stalls. A pile of coal and quantity G
books stored in the barn were saved an
two sides of the structure remain stand
ing. The fire is supposed to have bee
the work of an incendiary, though ther
is ne positive evidence on this point
The loss is about $500. Insurance, O
tue horses, $500; on building about $l0t
After the department had returned t
its house, the inadequacy of the iacilitie,
for drying the hose were fully demon
strated. There was no fire in the build
ing, and not even stove. The hos
was frozen stiff and there was only
surplus of five hundred feet OF dry hos
in the house. The firemen worked unit
, four o'clock this morning, in their We
and frozen garments. putting the se,
vicable hose on the carts and disposin
OF the wet hose to the best advantag
possible. To-day stove has been pu
! up in the building and the drying pre
cess is slowly progressing. The scarcit
Of coupling wrenches il the fau
of the parties who sold th
apparatus to the city. A sufficient nun
Der were purchased and entered on th
bill. but were not shipped. This omissic
10 rather serious matter. All thing
considered, the new department has dol
> we'll and its first experience will aid it
preparing for the next.
PERSONAL.
Elder Maxwell came down from Sec
land on Last nights train.