The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1893-03-29

LITcHTELD, Ill, March AIT $3.50
o'clock Tuesday morning fire was dis
covered in the big Mailer Touring mill
in this place and despite the efforts of
the employesit quickly spread through
out the building. In less than twenty
minutes the flames were beyond con-
troll While the employees and firemen
were fighting the flames terrific ex-
plosion, caused by flour dust occurred
and the immense structure was blown
TO fragments John Cowie, head mill
wright, living at Waterloo, N. Y, was
instantly killed and several employees
were seriously injured. The explosion
wrecked nearly every business place in
the village Many persons were badly
hurt by flying bricks and falling tim
bers The shock was felt in the adjoin-
ing villages of Clyde, Butler, Gillespie
and Hilisboro In many of these places
the conclusion was so great that plate
glass windows were broken.
When the fire started the citizens OF
the town were warned by the ringing
Of fire bells, and before many OF them
could dress they were stunned by the
terrific shock of the explosion and the
next minute found the walls Of their
homes falling upon them.
Those badly injured by flying glass
and timbers are: Mrs r. Eichelroth,
Mrs P. Lynch, John Donohue, Mrs V.
Hoffman, Joseph Neuther and John
Kaveny. Their injuries are severe, but
will not prove fatal
The fire was discovered by the night
watchman in the bran room Of the -four
mill. lie ran to hydrant but the wa
ter pipes did not work properly and in
an instant the flames spread to adjoin-
ing rooms In less than two minutes
the flames reached the flour rolling
room and an explosion OF flour dust fol-
lowed. The night watchman was
hurled through window and badly in
jured. Millwright John Cowie was
stunned by the shock and unable TO es-
cape. He was burned to death. The
immense building tottered for second
and fell, heap of blazing timbers.
The flames leaped across small pas
sage-way and ignited two large grain
elevators In the elevators were stored
$4,000 barrels of flour and 200, 900
bushels of wheat The fremen were
driven back by the intense heat and in
less than half an hour the elevators
'and their contents were total loss.
Several small buildings adjacent to
the elevators were burned. The shock
Of tho explosion was heard twenty-five
miles away and window glass was bro
ken and chimnevs blown down in towns
ten miles away. Nearly every house
in radius OF two blocks from the mill
was badly wrecked. All the plate glass
in the stores on Main and State streets
were blown out About forty small
dwelling houses were wrecked and
many others slightly damaged. The
Wabash railroad tracks run between
the -four mill and elevators and were
covered with debris for distance Of 200
: feet
The mill was the property OF Mailer
Bros, Of st. Louis The capacity Of the
mill was 1000 barrels Of -four daily. II
iemployed $50 men, and was 1t Is
claimed, the largest -four mill in the
United States General Manager Smith
6tated that the amount Of insurance
carried on the mill, elevator and con-
tents was about $500. 900, while the loss
will run mp TO almost million dollars
Although the proprietors of the estab-
lishment are St Louis people, in the
loss Of the mill Litchfeld loses, tempo
rarily at least, her best industrial insti.
tuition