The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1889-04-20
A BIG CONFEDERATION,
The Fiercest Fire Witnessed in
New York For Years,
THE EAST NORTH RIVER BANK
swept For squares.--An Immense
Amount OF Property Destroyed
and no Telling How Many
People laos, Their Lives,

People lost Their Lives
Nrw YoRK, Aprill0.-The biggest and
aerest fire New Workers have witness.
ed in this generation swept the east bank
Of the North river clear to-day from
Fihy.uintll street to what would be
sixty.hith street, II that street ran to the
river lllcstroyed more than million
anl ahaf of property belonging to tho
New York Central Railroad, and at least
hl.ia million dollars worth OF lard, flour
anil the like belonging to other persons,
notably n. X. Fairbanks, the great Chi.
cago lard merchant.
The flames destroyed two big eleya.
tors, "a" aud "B," Of tho Vanderbilt
system, q big brick building stretching
from Fiity.ninth street to Sixtleth street,
and occupied jointly by the Fairbanks
Lard refinery und the Rossiter stores, and
wiped ont the dock property Of the New
York Central railroad system from Fifty.
ninth street to past Sixty-afth street. At
least one man was killed in his headlong
flight from the FIRE. A number were in
mred Jumping from the windows OF the
burning buildings, but in the wild ter
r0r OF the conillgration no account was
kept Of them. The police have n record
olihr following casualties;
H-ffESEY BENNiSG, single, workman,
killed in jumping from third story
window.
JUnS JOHNSON, q workman, severely
injured on the back by jumping from a
window.
CHARLES BRowN, severely injured
about the head from the same cause.
WILLIAM j. NOZZLE, fireman, pros.
trated by the heat while at work at the
foot Of Fiity.ninth street,
EpwARD II. TOnIS, fireman, pros
trated by the heat,
Rnmors were rife all evening that
number Of workmen had been caught
and burned in the Fairbanks Refinery,
but ii been thus far impossible to as.
certain the truth OF them, AT least a
quarter OF million people turned out
to watch the brilliant sight from beyond
the police lines on Twelfth avenue. All
the west side streets were blocked and
the Elevated trains carried swarms up
and down town to swell the crowds.
The police reserves were called out TO
preserve order,
Every fire engine above Fourteenth
street was called out In the work OF eX-
tnguishing, but the tiremen fought
against tremendous odds-ilrst, owing
tD the rCsistless rush Of the flames, and
second, because Of the conformation OF
the gtOund in tho locality, which Is
upon rugged slope. The fire broke out
in the southeast corner Of tho Fairbanks
Refinery, where wOrkmen were busy at
tile time setting up new lard cooling
apparatus, when the fire started, how,
no one knows, and probably no one ever
will know.
The men ut wOrkin every story ran to
save their lives. The stairCases formed
glowing chimney, throwing out fire
through every floor. The windows pre-.
sentcdthe only means Of escape. Pur.
sued closely by flames, men flung
themselves out by scores headlong,
aud behind them burst out the
flames. How many there were no one
could tell. Those who came ont
were picked up and carried away by
their friends, shuddering to think that
some might hayeibeen left. Crying wives
and mothers crowded the police lines
shouting for their husbands and sons, or
begging for news OF them. They were
turned back and hidden to look in the
thfong Tor those they sought. They
would, the policemen hopefully said,
probably find them there.
There wRs no way for fire engine to
reach the elevators except along Six.
ticth street, past the building and that
was then almost impossible and soon
was blocked entirely. Chief Shaw saw
1t, and led his men TO fight for very
life to save the elevators. Soon
every available hose was playing from
some window in the roof. The pump.
ing works in the engine house were
working to their utmost and q select
company Of tiremen directed operations.
1t was all in vain. The tremendous heat
from the fire across the street dried and
warped the wood work OF the big frame
building Though 1t was sheltered witt,
corrugated iron and protected with slate
It tshrivCIcd up like withered leaves. The
states fell from It's side in red hot rain.
A shout went up "tnere she goes"
and then came q burst from half q
dozen windows ut once and the building
was on fife. The covering OF slate and
iron rolled OIL In great cracking crusts,
the flames shot upward for hundreds Of
feet aud burning pieces OF material slid
and flew in all directions with vicious
force.
A corner Of the wall swayed q moment
then il ipll with II laundering crash.
The falling wall released hundreds Oi
tons Of stones that rolled out In a blazing
heap and filled Sixtleth street,
cfIectually blocking It. Two engines
had run the blockade Of the
awful heat and got In on tho railroad
tracks. None could follow For that
matter they would have been useless. III.
Cvator "An wRso fire and nothing could
save it. The huge building was ablazG
from end to end, from the ground to the
top Of its tall mRnBard roof, AT the
fst intimation Of danger TO the elevator
policemen had warned tho hose and
noulemen out Of harms way. They
fled leaving their apparatus and ronl
too early. A hundred casks oil ale that
halbpcn rescued from an iron shed on
the river before II went TO the bottom
with tie pier and stood upon common
wreck, were burning where they lay
No one cared. No ono any longer caret
for anything but flight, Complete de-
noralization had seized upon Overybod!
near the fire.
TWAS 7o'Clock when the second elova
tor caught fire, aud as twilight fell ant
night came OH the leaplng flames reach
ed upward Into the sky until they brokt
and lCll and burst high In the aiF again
The thousands Of spectators wor
nwed into silence. There was solOmnit.
about II. The second elevator was on
tilcly consumed, and at II o'clock whei
tue fire was controlled, half milo O
ruins sent out furnace heat.
At u late hour II Ia stated that iou
men were In the ruins Of tho WilCo
Companys building,
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An Appeal for Aid,
DANyiidR, VA. April lO,-Judgo A