The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1890-07-20
THE WESTERN UNION FIRE.
INCAlCULABlE DtMAGE DONE
TO GENERAL BUSINESS.
Losses to the Company Over Half a MIL
lion Doliars-A Rendezvous for Deaf
Mutcs-.rroposed New Herald BniIdipg.
Railroad Notes-Generai Mention.
NEw YORK BUREAU
RICHMOND DAILY TINES.

RICHMOND DAILY TINES.
July 10. 1870.
Investigation today shows TO what
great extent the great lire in the main office
Of the Western Union Telegraph Company
has crippled the extensive business carried
on by that company Mr.. William Henry
smith. general manager Of the Associated
Press, says: "Our greatest loss Is the de-
struction Of our reference books, which can
never be replaced. They contained the his
| tory Of the Associated Press from lsi5 to the
present year. our pecuniary loss Is COM
paratiyely slight. 10 will amount 10 aDOut
$1,000" The Western Union Company's
loss will be- over half million. The most
important loss Is the switchboard which
cost S..J0.O00, and was considered the finest
in use. The loss on the building. which
is valued at Sl.3O0,O00, is $4,000. What
the loss in the stOppage Of business viii
amount 10 no one can tell. The wires cen
treing in the enormous switch in the burned
building We're appOrtiOned of as follows:
southwark, lSl wires; New York city, 2O
wires Westward, 1870 wires; Eastward, $50
wires; Long Island, - wires; miscelane-
Gus, - wires. In the operating department
about five hundred male and two hundred
female operators We're employed. There
were $50 operating tables. 40 Morse instru-
ments, q Phelps motor printing machines,
30 sets Of duplex instruments, ~ sets of
quadruplex. , automatic printers. , button
repeaters, Wheatst0ne transmitters, 81 type
machines, and 10 Wheatstone perforators.
not counting the numerous pneumatic and
electrical cOntrVances which went IT, make
up the department. The Western Union
Company purchased the site Of its main
building for 100000 from one Of the Bona
parties. and moved into the building on Feb
ruary /, 1875. the monthly pay roll Of the
nam office alone consisted Of 800 names.
RENDEZVOUS FOR DEAF MUTEs.
Every sunday afternoon the corridors and
ante-rOOms on the main iloOr Cf the Fifth
Avenue hotel are crowded with deaf mutes.
No one knows why this particular rendez-
yOus is selected, or why sunday afternoon
is apparently agreed upon for the gather
ing; but from , 10 ). and sometimes later,
they can always be found lOunging around
the entrances gesticulating and with ami
mated faces, deep in the my steri,s Of their
sign language. Nearly all are young men,
and they are spoken # as ''the noisy crowd"
All are neatly clad and modest in their
ways. but no crowd Of wild-eyed Italians
on the aqueduct ever gestculated with such
remarkable yigor AS do these young men.
NEW HERA Id BUILDING.
1t is rumored that the old armory pro-
perty, on the triangle formed by Thirty
NTH and Thirty-siXth street, and Broadway
and sixth avenue. has been leased TO Mr..
James Gordon Bennett, for n new Herald
building. The property has frontage OF
l3j feet on Thirty-siNth street, l9S feet on
Sixth avenue, 30 feet on Thrty-tlth street,
and 2l0 feet on Broadway. IL belongs To
Lawyer W. +. ID. Manice, OF 81 William
H., l.. IN, Il
Gordon Bennett. The negotiations for the
property have been pending between them
for Il long time. IL is said that the property
has been leased for ninety-nine years, with
renewals. Mr.. Bennett has zen looking
tor an uptown site for some ears, and II
the Herald removes from Printing House
square, the Importance Of the change Ot
base by IA noted institution could have been
equaled only by the proposed removal of
the New York stock Exchange uptown,
which was proposed few years ago.
RAILROAD NOTES.
The Mon0ngahela branch Of the BaI,i-
more and Ohio. from FairmOnt tO Ilarks-
burg, W. Va, win be opened lbis week. IL
is thirty-two miles long. The stock - held
by the Baltimore and ohio, and the bonds
have already been listed.
VIRGINIA SECURITIES DEPOSITED.
\ Wall street authority states that ST.
O00,0O0 0f Virginia securities have been de-
posted 10 date with Brown, shipley X Co.,
the London dcpOsitary OF the Olcott COM
mittee.
THE WESTERN UNION REPAIRING DAMAGE.
The Western Union Telegraph Company
il to-day proving that great corporations
possess great energy and enterprise The
building at the corner of Broadway and
Dey street has small army OF workmen
engaged in repairing the damage done yes
terday. Fortunately. the dynamos and
other machinery in the basement. that sup
piled electricity We're not all affected. With
the machinery in operation the wires
were rapidly tested. BY sundown
Chief Baldwin had nifty circuits
restored to active service. BY Wednesday
next he expects 10 have the 1900 in com
plete working order. About the city and
suburbs POO more linemen are hard AT work
making come ton with the main Offices.
Direct wires 10 all the large cities We're in
operation this evening. This morning alb
circuits were working except those 10 the
south.