Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1888-08-21
FIRE.

an alarm Of fire aroused the town. but
not very suddenly, as everybody
seemed to be sleeping the sleep that
righteousness and clear conscience
combine to produce. The denizens
OF the burg, or most of them, were
wrapped in slumbers SO soundly that
they were not easily aroused by sound.
Mr.. Reel, the night watchman,
rushed up and down the streets sing
ing solo with all the force, vim and
earnestness that he could command.
The first verse he sang was FIRE! fire.
the second verse repetition of the
hrst, and SO on. His singing finally
drew everybody out of bed and to the
scene of the confagration, which was
at the old smokehouse of John Gar
recht, on the corner of Main and
Commercial streets, and diagonally
across Main street from his meat
market. Parties with buckets, axes
and hooks did what they could to
check the fire until the hose cart arrived
and stream was turned on the flames.
BY this time James Coleman's house
and China house, both south of the
smoke house, were in flames, and also
the south side of John Harleys
blacksmith shop, across the street,
north, from the smoke house, and
facing Garrecht's meat market. Two
or three minutes after the water shot
through the nozzle, the hose uncou-
pied by the breaking of rope used
in coupling. The water had to be
turned off in order to recouple, caus-
ing quite delay, the FIRE being a
long distance from the reservoir.
Men with buckets had hard work to
save John Harley's residence, and the
residences of John German and Jo
Cave, north of the blacksmith shop,
and directly across the street from
where the fire was then raging, the
stable of John Garrecht and residence
of Frank Groves being enveloped in
flames. The roof of j. B. Emery's
big warehouse, north of and adjoining
the residence of Mr.. Groves, caught
fire, and this caused great alarm, as it
looked then as if the town was
doomed to be laid in ashes. Men
rushed up stairs, knocked off the burn
ing shakes, and string of men with
buckets soon checked the destructive
work of the fire. If this building had
burned the flames would have spread
across the narrow street to the resi-
dences of Cave and German, and
there is notelling how much farther, as
the houses stand near each other from
there to the heart of town, and these
were beyond the reach of
the stream from the hose. There
was not breath of air stirring,
which was very fortunate. With
breeze the on-rushing flames would
have crossed the street, and bade de-
hance at the powerless bucket bri-
gade.
Six buildings were burned, and
with all the contents, except Nose
kempner's trunk and a blanket or
two carried from the residence of
Frank Groves. Garrecht lost a
sleigh, saddles and various articles
slowed in his smoke house and sta
BILE, and the value of the loss he can
not estimate to any degree of exact
ness. A buggy and an old wagon,
owned by Nose Kempner, in Gar
recht's stable, went the way of the
rest of the contents. John Harley's
blacksmith shop was almost a new
one. He had it repaired and over
hauled generally this season. Mr..
Harley is in Graham, where he has
been the past ten or twelve days.
The only casualty worth noting is
that Mr.. Reel lost his voice by over
exertion of the vocal organs in sing
ing ''6re!" to awaken the slumbering
residents of the town. He can scarce
ly talk above whisper, but his vo-
cal organs will soon be in prime con-
dition again so that he can arouse the
town should there be another noe
turnal conhagration.
How the fire originated will al
ways remain mystery. There had
been no fire in the smoke house,
which has not been used as such for
many years. Some think it was the
work of an incendiary, and others
that some one had carelessly dropped
a lighted cigar or match from which
the fire started.
Mr R.al paSSad tho Soola bousa