Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1891-12-16

erty, and two OF them attended by
losses of life. Four firemen were
crushed by falling wall, and in the Sec
ond score of girls were penned in the
upper story of a blazing candy factory.
The first fire originated in the Boone
Paper Company's building, and was
supposed to be fully extinguished a lit
tie after o'clock last night, and later
all the engines were withdrawn. The
ladder men were the only men left.
They were watching the adjacent
buildings. Four men were in the Bam-
berger, Strong q Co. building
about twenty minutes before o'clock
this morning. Laddermen McEvoy and
George Duff were IN the adjoining build
ng OF BLISS, Wilson q Co. A terrific
explosion was heard, when McEvoy and
Duff rushed out. They escaped unhurt.
McEvoy says the explosion came from
the building of Bamberger, Strong &
Co. The four men were caught by
the crashing walls and limb ers.
The instant the explosion occurred
flames broke out from every floor and
shot out through the roof The fire
must have been smouldering for several
hours in the cellar, and when each of
the four stories had become filled with
heated air and smoke the explosion fol-
lowed, and the building was Instantly
turned into one mass Of flames. 1t was
with great difficulty that the fremen
prevented the flames from spreading
further. A number of people were
sleeping in the upper rooms of the
buildings, but all escaped.
OF the hook and ladder men caught
under the falling wall of Bamberger,
Strong & Co.'s building, Fire Chief
Hughes and Capt Weatherford were in
jured, four dead iremen lay under the
walls, and others are badly hurt. The
dead fremen are William Moore, Will
lam Davis, Sam Baker and Tony
Schlicht
At s o clock another fire was raging in
F. A. Mem & Co.'s wholesale candy and
fancy grocery house, a square above the
Boone Paper Co.'s building. The origin
of the fire is a mystery. Forty girls
were at work wrapping candy on the
fourth floor, and all were not able to es-
cape. The fire was out at IL o'clock,
and then the work of taking out the
bodies began. 1t is certain that at
least twelve persons persisted here. @.
T. Mem, brother of the senior
member of the firm, is supposed to have
been burned to death. The fire cut off
escape by the stairway leading from the
fourth floor, where the girls were at
work. Many jumped from the win
dows to a second-story projection and
escaped with broken limbs and bruised
bodies. Others got out unhurt.
To add to the casualties and the con-
fusion, Maj. Hughes, chief of the fire
department. was so badly hurt in an &C
cideEt early this morning that he may
not recover. He and Henry Weather
ford started up Market Street to what
seemed to be a big fire. They happened
to get on the wrong side of the street,
rs Maj. Hughes himself states. The sal
wage corps ran into their buggy as
they we're rapidly driving up the north
side of the street and almost literally
ran over them. The buggy was
smashed and the horses tramped on
both Chief Hughes and Capt. Weather
ford. The latter's wrist was badly hurt
but when the Chief called out for help
and that he was badly hurt, Weatherford
was unable to go to his assistance. Mai.
Hughes was taken to his bed, and the
doctors fear trouble on account of cry
sipelas- Weatherford, with a badly
damaged and much bandaged hand, was
able to be at the O'Clock fire.
Going to the fire the No. Is engine
ran into the pavement at Twelfth and
Broadway, throwing off Engineer Jim
Nuttall, hurting his back and probably
crippling him for life. Pat Shea,
member of No. Hook and Ladder
Company, was at work on the building
occupied by Frank A. Mem & Co. He
started to fall, but grabbed at the broken
skyiight. He saved himself from prob
ably fatal plunge, but nearly severed
his hand from the arm at the wrist.
In the face of these disasters and ter
rors the tiremen stood bravely to their
work and new leaders took the places
of those removed. Assistants Bache
and Adds directed the movements, the
water tower was manned and dozen
streams were brought to bear upon
Menus place Within half an hour the
flames were under control, but within
this time half score of lives were sac
rificed. OF the forty girls, two
escaped at the cost of griev-
Gus wounds. They were Theresa Holt
haus and Lizzie McGarvey. One of
them had broken leg and the extent
Of the injuries of the other could not be
learned. Some of those who escaped
did SO by leaping from the rear fourth
story, the windows IN the rear being
only two stories.
The fire is supposed to have started
probably exploded. At any rate the
flames communicated with the new and
big stock of Christmas fire works. The
first explosion among the fire works
scattered fire brands in the shape of
Christmas fire works all over the
store. The skylight fell in and the en-
tire stock, much of which was highly
inhammable, was fercely blazing al
most Immediately. The skyrockets,
Roman candles and giant frecrackers
were so wild in their havoc that they
impeded the work of the fremen and
made it exceedingly dangerous for them
to work until the last one exploded.
The five bodies taken out up to noon
are so charred and blackened that iden-
tifcation is SO far impossible. Great
confusion exists. Main Street, where
the principal wholesale traffic of the
city goes on, is blockaded, and business
is almost at a standstill.
The loss on Mem & Co.'S building
and stock is placed at 5000, and the
total loss will be nearly $4,000. The
flames were stopped at George
Wicks & Co.'s cotton house. The
bodies of the girls were removed
as soon as possible to undertaking es-
adjustments.
The Wholesale boot and shoe house of