Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1885-06-18

The Board of City Trustees held a spec
ial session yesterday for the purpose of
investigating the facts relative to the al
legged insufficient supply of water at the
Phoenix Mill conhagration Monday morn
ing
Frank Miller said : | was not present at
the fire at Schroth's mill, and therefore can
give no evidence, exc pt hearsay, but 1 am
informed that number of gentlemen will
appear before you, or can be easily sum
moned, among whom are J. II. Arnold, c.
l.. Relyea, II. Relyea, H. Wittenbrock,
Charles Robin, J. +. Hill and others, who
live in that neighborhood. and all the fire
men. They seem to indicate, so far as |
can learn, that the pressure of the water at
the beginning OF the fire was much less
than ii should be. respectfully ask that
you will send for these gentlemen and con-
unue your investigations from day to day
until you have arrived at a conclusion sat
| isiactory to your Judgment.
The Trustees assured Mr.. Miller that
they would sift the matter to the bottom.
J. II. Arnold, one of the proprietors of
the burned mill, said he heard the first cry
OF ire, and Immediately ran to the mill.
He found the truckman trying to Put a
lance from the end of the hose to the fire
was less than twenty feet, but the pressure
was so slight that the water was not thrown
over eight or ten feet. Finding he could
not reach the fire in that way, the truck
man rushed of to get bucket | ran and
got some hand-grenades but by this time
the blaze had reached the roof, and the
smoke in the building was SO dense a per-
son could not stand it, | threw in four
grenadeS, but don't know whether they did
any good or not. The engines were on
hand in a short time, but they could not
get any water. The hose spoken of was used
every day, and with the ordinary domestic
pressure threw a stream over the top of the
old mill He said there would have been
no trouble in saving the new mill after the
engines arrived if they could have had
supply of water. He gave detailed state
ment of the fire, of the force of the water
and Of the half hour that passed before the
engines got . stream on the mill, and of the
fremen standing by and seeing property
destroyed without the pc wer TO save. His
testimony was corroborated by Fred. Bliss,
the Waterman Mr.. Schroth, the dravman
Chas. Robin, Christopher Suter, A. H.
Relyea, l. Il. Burke, NJ. l.. Wise, c. S. OFT
and others. Mr.. Arnold said if they de-
sired more information he could bring a
oeC4C oi iioic "a women ana men IN That
neighborhood, who, during the conhagra-
ton, attached hose to The water pipes to
wet down their premises. and found but
little water, no pressure, and, in some in
stances, no water at ALL
A test was made at the mill site yester
day with the same hose and hydrant
used at the fire, which on that occasion
threw stream less than eight feet. With
only the tank pressure which registered
eighteen pounds at the water works and
the same at the fire-plug at the mill
stream was thrown fully forty feet.
A test of the mains will be made at
Thirteenth and streets at 10 a. NJ. to-day. |
by..both the fire engines, underline direction |
of the Citizens Committee, and Chief En- |
gineer Sullivan.