Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-01-24
MILLIONS IN MILLINERY.
TIE FLAMES REVEL FOR HOURS
AMONG BONNET MATERIALS.

An Aggregate Loss of Property Amount
ing to 81, 500, 900 in the Philadelphia
Feminine Head-Gear misunderstanding
! Scene at Chicago Fire-Seventy-nv,
IIoys in a rnnie--No One Badly Hurt.
| PmLADELPHIA, Jan. 81 --Au alarm OF
\ fire was sounded from Eighth and Arci
streets at O'clock Monday night. The fir,
| department responded promptly. The fire
| proved TO be il chimney, and, as supposed,
was put out without bringing the depart
ment into service. At II p. M, another
alarm was sounded from the same location
| In n few moments the entire structure OF
Marks Bros millinery and ladies' wear
northwest corner Eighth aud Area, was re.
duced to ashes
The conilagration spread with almost I'M
credible rapiiity and the heat was most in
tense the contents OF the buildings being in
the highest degree intlammable In very
few minutes the fire had made such progress
that the flames leaped across Wartield place,
little alley separating Marks Bros build
ing from that of Shoneman Bros, extending
on Eighth street from 10 to l22, and seize
upon 1t. Their tierceness was checked, how
ever, by the tiremen, and though the build.
ing was badly Quilted it was not SO entirely de-
stroyed as that of Marks Bros.
At the same time the intense heat and the
flames set fire 10 the buildings on the east
side of Eighth street These were occupied
by Adolph Heller, importer and dealer in
milliner's goods, from No. lOl to llS and
Slrause, Thanhauser a. Co, Nos. ila to rs
also dealers in millinery goods, The build
ings were old three story structures and were
Il led with the same class of goods as the
buildings first on fire. StraIse g. Than
hauspr ~ Co. also had a front at 7S3 Arch
street, and the rear of this building also
caught.
Shortly after Il O'Clock violent explosion
occurred, said to have been caused by the
chemicals in Rodrigo's establishment. After
the walls on either side of Eighth street had
tumbled in the fury Of tas fire began to ex-
haust itself, and tho fircmen were better
able to put in some effective work. The heat
from the fire for sohle time was so intense
that it was impossible to stand within several
hundred feet Of the burning buildings. The
flames shot out of the Marks building and
across Arch street with great ferceness, set
ting fire TO the building on the southwest
corner Of Eighth aud Arch streets, occupied
by Frederick knappla, confectioner 1t was
with the greatest difficulty that the building
and several occupants were saved. knapple's
loss eau not be estimated but it will he sew
eral Thousand dollars; covered by insurance
No. 500 Arch street is Shuster's cafe and
confectionery store The building is an
"L"-shaped one and extends through to
Eighth street The roof and woodwork on
the Arch street front of the house was burned.
Mr. Shuster has an insurance of S. 600 on it.
Other firms losing by fire and water were
William MencIie; Abel q Co, importers of
feathers and flowers, sos Arch street; L.
ba, silI al
goods, sos Arch; W. II. Clark, Butterick's
patterns, and Mrs Avornt, boarding house,
SO Arch All the above were well insured.
At 2:3O a IN. Tuesday the fire was well
under control The estimated losses foot up
B., 800 600.