Wichita eagle., 1888-07-12
THE FIRE.
MURPHY SUPPOSED TO HAVE GONE
TO PARIS, TEXAS.
Gerke's Condition Last Night Reported
Very Hopeless-He is Said to Have
Given Up Hope.

The burning of the North Main street
horse stables of the Wichita City Railway
company at $40 yesterday morning was
the all absorbing topic of conversation
Yesterday and last night, on the streets, in
hotels, on street cars and everywhere. In
terest centered in the fate of the old man,
William Murphy, who formerly creased
the tracks at the curves and was supposed
TO have been asleep in the hay loft OF the
stable and has not since been seen or heard
from. From the latest and most reliable
Information it is highly probable that he
has gone TO Paris, Texas. The ruins were
thoroughly overhauled yesterday by a
gang Of workmen in a vain search for
Murphy's body. The railway people spared
no efforts or expense to ascertain the facts
in his case.
One rather remarkable circumstance IS,
that if he did go away, he said nothing to
anyone concerning his intentions. How
ever, he is said to have kept his business to
himself. For some time he has kept a
bank account at the state national bank.
He had not been in the habit OF drawing
any money out of the bank, but last Sat
urday drew five dollars and the same
amount again on Monday.
Tuesday afternoon he came
into the bank and asked Mr.. H. W. Liv-
ingston for all of the money he had on de-
posit. amounting to $3.50, which was paid
him. During the day he is said to have
imbibed pretty freely Of liquor and when
at the car stables mentioned the fact that
be came here from Paris, Tex 1t was re-
ported, but could not be verified, that he
had in the evening before the fire told a
colored man near the Occidental hotel
that he was going to Texas that
night on the train" Ii was further report
ed that he had shown ticket for that
point TO the fagman at the Douglas ave-
nue. depot and was by him put on the
train south These rumors came to late
to be verified last night. Whatever may
be the case, at present the Indications
which it is TO be hoped are correct-point
to the probable safety in Texas of the man
Murphy.
1t is feared though, that the fire may yet
prove fatal in its results. The young man,
VIM Gerke, who was so badly burned
and afterwards removed TO the St. Francis
hospital, was reported to be in a very low
condition late last night. There was also
4
employees at the car barn on North Main
street last night, that Gerke himself had
concluded he could not live and
expressed great desire to de. In fact
one Of ths attending physicians stated that
his recovery seemed impossible.
Tobias Wiele, the other young man, al
though seriously. was not fatally burned
Both he and young Gerke were spoken of
in the highest terms by their associates,
who said they were young men of eXeu p
larry, industrious and frugal habits.
They came here from Cincinnati,
where they had worked in a
street railway bar. Since working here,
each had saved Z a snug sum Of money,
but lost everything in that unfortunate
fire
Tie number of mules in thastable at the
time the fire broke out was eightyf0ur, of
whom some forty We're burned i'll the
building. Sheriff Hays and another gen
tleman are reported to have cut the ropes
of large number. OF chose that got
out, many We're horribly burned and eight
or ten were shot yesterday TO relieve them
of their sufferings.
The loss, as nearly as can be ascertained,
is about s., 600 or $, 900. The building was
worth $1,000. To estimate the loss is diff
cult, as no accurate figures of the property
destroyed are procura5le. The stable
building was insured for s1,450 81, POO of
which was with the Northern Assurance
company. of London \ f. Niederlander,
agent, and $3.50 with the Phoenix, of
Brooklyn wv. L. w Miller, AGENT. The
hay and feed was insured for only $50.
The live stock had s., 600 on it, not to ex-
coed $50 on any one mule
The origin of the fire is not known.
The first persons to cry an alarm were two
young men named William Ross and c. h.
Williams who happened 70 De passing at
the time The first alarm was turned in
from the A. D. 7. Office nearly three blocks
away and the alarm from box &c, - corner
of Main and Third, and also the one from
box -" were not turned IN
until after the department had started
for the scene The reports that
there was any fault with the alarm system
are entirely without foundation. They
were simply not turned n until the fire
had broken through the roof An EAGLE
reporter and Chief Walden went last
night and turned in alarms from the boxes
with perfect success. The department did
all it was possible 70 do under the circum-
stances. Al. Brownell spiked his foot on
nail and Bob Armstrong had his
breast badly burned. Both are laid up
temporarily.
The company had intended to unite al
of its stables in some one more convenient
location. even if the fire had not happened.
This viii only serve to hasten their action.
In the mean time it is probable, they viii
erect Temporary structures to carry on
their business Notwithstanding the loss
of a great many mules and sets OF harness,
the public was not allowed to suffer from
inferior car service In fact all Of the
routes were run on schedule time.