The morning call., 1893-11-12
He LEFT WIDOW AND CHILD.
Burned to a Crisp in the King
Street Fire.
THE OWNERS HEAVY LOSSES
Aftermath of Costly ConfIagration.
Damage Placed at 100000.
A Firms Luck.

The BODY OF JoDn Peralta, fireman Of
No. Truck Company, stationed on Mar
ket street, between Tenth and Eleventh,
lies on a slab in the Morgue. He
was a brave fellow, who risked and lost
his life at the fire on King street yesterday
morning.
The alarm was rung in from box 1872 al
1915 o'clock. There had been slight
blaze. it is said. in the large frame build
ing owned by the Wisconsin Furniture
Company. on King street, early in the
evening. When the flames broke out in
the morning they are said to have started
from a shed adjoining the warehouse,
filled with oil, and owned by the Califor-
MIA Furniture Company. which occupied
one floor of the burned structure.
At o'cl ock the fremen thought they
had gained control of the blaze. but half
an hour later, when members of 10, 9 and
IS companies were in the building. there
was an explosion OF varnish. which threw
several of the firemen upon the floor. They
rushed to the windows and were rescued,
with the exception Of Peralta. by their CO.
workers. 1. was not known at the time
that any one was left in the building.
The flames spread along the roof, and at
:55 O'clock the interior was full of fire,
and a second alarm was rung in. The
6remen and the employees of the Under
writer's Fire Patrol worked like slaves to
save the contents of the building, but
their efforts were futile. BureauX. lounges,
beds. tables and chairs of the most costly
woods were licked up by the flames, and at
4 O'Clock nothing remained of the big
ructure and It's contents but heap OF
fiery ashes ana smolderIDg timbers. hiding
tie charred body of Peralta.
The fire was discovered by Special Ken
lin, no turned in he alarm. 1t had then
gained considerable Roadway. On the
pany, whose salesrooms are OH Geary
street, between Kearny and Dupont, had
stock valued al S33, 900, which was insured.
The company is congratulating itself to-
day because several carloads of goods Or
dered for the holidays and expected daily
had not arrived.
The building was valued at $4,000. 1t
was owned by the Wisconsin Furniture
Company, whose salesrO0ms are at 762
Mission street. The eompany's goods
stored in the building were valued at $685.
600 and were insured for $4,000
When the second alarm was turned In it
was plain that he burning building could
not be saved. and he fremen were ac-
cordingly ordered to turn their water on
10 the ADJOINING UuliuiURS, one OF winch,
on the corner of Seventh and King streets,
is occupied by the American Oil Com
pany, which it was feared would catch fire
anu explode.
At one time it was thought that the fire
was under con troll. but the flames seemed
TO break out afresh. and it was at this time
that the roof of the building fell IN.
SIGN are: W. Cronin. engine 9, face
burned d. Bridge wood. engine 9. hands
and face burned; James Buckley, engine
6. hands burusd; John Conroy, engine II,
hands burned, and j. Ryan, engine 10,
hands burned.
After the explosion of the varnish the
building was doomed and nothing could
be done but save surrounding buildings,
the most dangerous of which was the fac
tory of the Golden City Chemical Works,
just opposite, Oh Townsend street. The
building contained several hundred tons
of sulphur and other chemicals which, the
foreman of the factory said, had they
caught fire would have made it almost
death for every person within hundred
yards of the place from. the poisonous
gases that would have burst out The
building was on fire several times.
East of the blazing furniture factory
were the oil factories of Graham & Co
and the American OIL Company, and they
were only saved with great difficulty
Several times they caught fire, but the
flames were eXtiDguished. In both fac
tories great quantities of oils were stored,
and two or three times the roofs of both
of them were on fire. The loss on the fac.
tories Is about $4,000 each.
West of the furniture factory was large
frame building. occupied by G. w.
Straight. folding-bed manufacturer. The
roof was burned off and the contents of
the place drenched with wafer. Mr..
Straight places his loss at about $4,000.
The fremeD, assisted by fifty aborers
furnished by the Street Department,
worked upon the ruins until late yesterday
afternoon, when they managed 10 subdue
the flames and recover the body of Peralta.
who it is thought was crushed BY the fall
ing roof. just after the explosion of var.
nsh. About 2 o'clock in the afternoon
the workmeu found the body. A hand
and foot of the dead fireman were pro.
truding through the heap of hot ashes
when they were discovered. His CON-
panions in the fire company say that he
entered the building with them and was
struck by timber just after the explo-
sion. They thought that he had escaped
with them.
Peralta was SO years old. He leaves
widow and child, who live at 33h Ridley
street. He was painter, employed by
the California-street Railway Company.
The losses, besides those sustained by the
furniture companies, were: Warehouse of
c. w. Straight, 629 and 633 Townsend
street, $50; American Oil Company, 800;
building on the corner of Seventh and
King streets. $50. and saloon and dwelling
Hant nv Mrs g. n MAYNARD c50