The Globe-republican., 1889-12-04
ANOTHER BIG BLAZE.


Equal It Since the Great FIRE Of 1879
Two Acres Of Business Houses Burned
Tho Estimated Loss.
Boston, Nov. 29.-The most disas-
trOus fire from which Boston has suf-
fered since 1872, and one in which the
property lost more than rivals the great
confagration at Lynn on Tuesday,
broke out about $50 a. m. yesterday in
the six-story granite building owned
by Jordan, Marsh & Co. and occupied
by Brown, Durrell & Co., dealers in
dry goods, on Bedford street, corner OF
Kingston.
The great fire of 1872 broke out on
the corner of Kingston and Sumner
streets, and the alarm of yesterdays
fire was rung in from the same box
which did similar duty at 7:13 p. m. on
the evening of November 9, 1872, when
the fire fiend broke loose, and before
being subdued consumed nearly $780,
600, 900 of property.
The first alarm rung in yesterday
was Immediately followed by the first
general alarm in Boston since 1872.
Yesterdays conaagra ton ragged for six
hours, burned over two acres of terri
tory covered by magnificent structures.
AS soon as Chief Weber, of the pro
tective department., arrived, it became
apparent that long, hard fight with
the fiery element was before the de-
partment, and general alarm was sent
out, and this was soon followed by
calls upon neighboring cities and towns
for assistance. The flames were soon
pouring from all the windows and the
roof of the Brown-Durrell building.
At s:45 they had spread to the Shoe
and Leather Exchange building,
another large granite structure adjoin-
ing Brown, Durrell & Co., on Bedford
street. From both buildings the flames
swept in great masses across Bedford
street to the opposite corner, thence
across Kingston street, along Bedford
to Chauncey street, where it was
stopped in the store of Farley, Harvey
& Co.. the upper stories of which we're
burned.
The scenes about the fire were re-
plete with excitement and activity.
The police were prompt in roping of
the streets and keeping back the
crowds, leaving ample room for the
firemen. On every corner engines
pulled, rumbled and emitted torrents
of black smoke, while hose lines by
the score lay in a twisted, tangled web
up and down the streets for blocks on
all sides. The territory bounded by
Kingston, Bedford and Chauncey streets
was the principal theater of destruc-
ton. Here the conf1agration leveled
every thing. Within an hour after the
first alarm sounded the whole structure
of Brown, Durell s. Co.'s building col
lapsed with tremendous crash. The
flames were darting from doors and
windows and the interior of the block
was ALLOWING furnace. Dry goods and
other combustible matter, with
which the houses were packed,
burned to white heat. Granite
crumbled and iron Orders melted
away like ice. The streams from the
engines were dissipated into vapor be-
fore they touched the fire. Suddenly
the cry arose 1.-THE walls are falling,
back, back" The crowd surged back
for their lives, startled by the shout.
Firemen dropped their nozzles and ran
to save the apparatus. Great gaps
opened in the walls and bricks from
cOrnices dropped into the street with
Ominous clatter..
A thrilling rescue from immediate
death was made by Officer Charles
Maynes, of division 2; Officer Benja-
min, of division 16, and Sleepy" the
colored attache of the city hall, about
Gas O'Clock in the building No. 80
Chauncey street. Edward E. Whiting.
a veteran fireman, helped with the hose
on the building. 1t grew terribly hot,
the walls threatened to fall and the
cry was raised to get back, as the
roof was caving in. A desperate
rush was made by all hands to get
out of reach of the tumbling bricks, and
all escaped save Whiting. He was
struck. knocked down and covered by
the heated debris. Officers Maynes and
Benjamin braved the furnace-like heat
and the risk of falling walls and tried
to find the buried man. ''My God, can
any one help me?" was the cry they
heard. This directed them to pile of
truck and timber, under which they
found Whiting imprisoned. Frantically
they pulled and hauled at the hot
debris. Every moment they expected
to be killed with falling stones, but
bravely kept at work. They got hold
of Writings arms and tried to pull him
out, but the burned skin and flesh came
off in their hands. Once more they dug
away at the debris to free the burned
and injured man. They succeeded in
this and got Whiting out. Itwas found
that his right leg was broken, that
he was frightfully burned about the
head, arms and body, and otherwise
injured. He was driven with all speed
to the city hospital. 1t is believed that
his injuries will prove fatal.
Police Sergeant Klmball, Patrolman
Haynes and ex-Councilman David
Berry rescued seven people from the
building at the corner of Kingston and
Bedford streets.
Among the seriously injured are:
Michael Atkinson, policeman; John
HALEY, hoseman; Thomas Quigley;