The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1885-09-25

ing the 10th gln1e, Latin. Geometry
and German clases on Monday and
Tuesday. y
We begin to. realize Prof. Olin's
worth when we Mud that it takes three
gentlemen to filfhis place.
Two JOTTERs.
THE HUMBOLDT FIRE.
Early last Monday morning news
was brought to lola that the stores Of
s. A. Brown & Co. and Hysinger &
Rosenthal at Humboldt, together with
some of the adjacent buildings, had
been destroyed by fire the night previ-
Gus. The news was confirmed by later
reports and was the main topic Of con-
versatiOn the remainder of the day.
Early on Tuesday morning some of our
citizens who had visited Humboldt the
evening before, brought word that
there had been another fire. This last
report created considerable excitement
and quite a number of persons went
down from here to view the ruins. In
the matter of details the reports that
were brought back were 80 conflicting
that on Tuesday evening, in company
with Capt. Ewing, we drove down to
investigate the matter personally.
We found that the whole block on
the south side of Bridge street, from
the rear of Cunningham's store to the
corner, had been destroyed. This i'll
cluded Hysinger & ROsenthal, s. A.
Brown & Co., Paul Fishers Office, An
drews 4 BabeOck's Office, - SchOen-
berg's shop, Miss Mobiles millinery
store. and the Frisco bakery. All this
had been done by the fire Sunday
night. The fire on Monday night had
been started in Lehman's stable, i'm
rear, and about the middle of the block
on the north side of the square. The
stable was destroyed together with a
fine carriage team belonging to Mr..
Lehman, the Baptist church was burn
ed, and Lehman & HigginsOn's ware
house was consumed.
There can he no question Of course
that the fire was the work of an in
cendiary, and as it was first started in
the basement of 8. A. Browns build
ing it was the general opinion that the
cOnfiagratiOn was the outcome of the
ill-feeling which his method of doing
business has engendered. The fire on
Monday night, however, would seem
to he inconsistent with this theory and
we found in conversation with num-
Der of citizens of Humboldt that they
considered the fire the result of an at
tempt tO burn the whole town. And
a glance at the locations in which the
two fires were started would seem to
sustain this view. Bridge street is very
narrow, and if there had been the least
south wind it would have been impOs-
sible to have saved the buildings across
from Browns and ROsenthals. As it
was, with the flames going directly up
in dead calm, the heat was so great
that the fronts of the OppOsite buildings
were cracked and shriveled, and one or
two awnings had to be torn down in
order to prevent them from igniting.
There are three main business blocks
in Humboldt. A little more wind on
Sunday night would have destroyed
two of these-tle ones on the opposite
side of Bridge street next to the square.
The fire on Monday night was set in
the middle of the third business block,
on the north side of the square, and
here again the slightest breath of wind
from the north would have made the
destruction of the block certain. 1t
will thus he seen that If the intention
had been to destroy the whole town,
the points for starting the fire could
not have been better chosen. 1t would
seem, however. that if this had been
the intention, fires would have been
started i'm different places at the same
time. It is hard to account for the dis
aster Oh any theory that will be con-
sistent with itself from first to last.
While suspicion cannot attach to
any individual as the perpetrator of
the deed, we find that a good many
men with whom we talked
think that the sd. o. Luse gang are
in some way responsible for it. This
gang as old citizens will remember,
was a set Of horse thieves, thugs and
roughs which infested Humboldt for a
long time, but was finally broken up.
Some of its members were sent to the
and the others dispersed,
vowing Vengeance OH the town. d. o.
Luse, who was always considered the
leader Of the gang, though never, as
we remember, convicted personally of
any crime, had a sister, II very estima-
BILE lady, who lived in Humboldt. She
has often been heard to say that SOlong
rs she remained there the town was
safe. This remark is recalled now and
Is considered significant i'm view of the
fact that it is less than month since |
,he moved away from the town.
Whoever it is, that is doing the work,
ne has carefully covered his tracks,
md will probably never be brought to
ustice.
In Lehman & Higginson's ware
house, which burned Monday night,
here were eight kegs of powder which
exploded with terrible force. Hardly
. window in any,Of the business hOus-
q around the square but had one or
more panes of glass broken by the jar.
The noise of the explosion was distinct
y heard by a number of people in lola,
md one or two doors in town were
AIRED open by the conclusion. \
lumber OF people standing close to the
ire were hurt by flying sticks and
stones, but none seriously. The report
N Tuesday morning was that mike"
Fay had been killed, but We met him
n the evening slightly distigured by
cut Just back of his ear and several
bruises on his face and hands, but still
n the ring"
Rosenthal saved a considerable guam
ity of goods, and as he had others in
arS on the side track, he will soon re-
ume business ut his old stand. Near
v all of Browns goods were destroyed
ind it was thought by some that he
would not open up again. We were
nf,r,,oJ hOUoynp that IN Tuesday |