Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1894-01-11

CHICAGO, ILL, Jan. 9.-It is not definitely
known what caused the fire at the Worlds
Fair grounds last night, but thecommonly
accepted theory among the thousands on
the grounds is that it had been caused by
the tramps sleeping in the Casino.
Customs Inspector Il. h. Phillips was
early on the ground 81 am at a loss"
said he ito give any opinion as to the
value of the contents Of the Manufao-
turers Building. In all there were IL. 900
cases of exhibits stored there as a bonded
warehouse and all are well packed. The
Russian and French exhibits are intact,
and are right under the heat of the fire on
the roof. This is also true of the British
exhibits. These will surely suffer greatly
from water if they escaped the fire. AS
soon as | saw the danger 10 the goods
ordered their removal to the basement of
the big building and the work was at once
commenced
At = o'clock this morning the fire on the
roof OF the Manufacturers Building was
extinguished
THE LOSS 81, 100000.
The loss by the fire will amount to
$1,000, 900 and possibly more. The proper
estimate is hard to make, as the goods are
all boxed up in the Manufacturers Build
ing, where the main losses occurred. The
Music Hall, Peristyle and Casino were
totally destroyed. causing loss of 5000, 600.
The fire in the Manufacturers building
was not extinguished at midnight, and
hence the loss may be greater than the
estimate given above. The damage to the
Manufactures Building itself is , put at
S250,000, but as the structure is worthless
comparatively the loss is not felt. The
losses in the main fall upon exhibitors
from Germany, Japan, France, England,
Belgium, Canada, Russia, Switzerland,
Brazil. Denmark, Spain, Italy, the Neither.
lands and Turkey.
ONE KILLED, TWO INJURED.
One life was lost and two men were in.
jured during the fire. They are:
Dead-William Mickey. pipeman of en-
gine company No. 81; killed by falling
from the top of the Peristyle; lived az No.
S45 Forty-eighth street.
Injured-Eugene Durand, watchman at
the Agricultural Building, hurt by the
falling of statue from the Casino; will
live. Frederick Getz, captain of truck No.
16, badly hurt by falling through the roof
of the Manufacturers Building; will die.
j. A. Meadow, a Columbian guard, over
come by smoke; taken to Terminal sta
ton; will recover.
The fire was discovered at $50 o'clock on
the second floor In the northwest corner OF
the Casino. Guard Mason, who was on
duty in Music Hall, saw it and ran to fire
alarm box and tried to turn in an alarm,
but the key would not work. Then he
went to another box and again failed. He
tried third with the same result. and
then fourth. Then he gave it up aud
hunted up a telephone, and succeeded in
getting an alarm at last.
BY this time flames had gained strouk
headway. 1t was too late to attempt Is
most of their attention to saving the Agri-
cultural Building and to checking the flames
OH the Peristyle. Colonel Rice was on the
ground with $40 Columbian Guards aud
was kept busy in forcing back the crowds
that quickly gathered. A strong detach-
ment of police was also sent from the
stations nearest the Fair grounds.
The fire quickly spread to the Peristyle
and from there to the Music Hall. The
wind rising the flames were carried to the
Manufactures Building, where the greater
part of the damage was done.
About SSOo,OOO on the Bulldings-No
Estimate of the Loss on Exhibits.
CHICAGO, ILL, Jan. "a rough estil
mate places the loss on the buildings at
about $S00,000. No estimate of the GLOSS
on the exhibits can be given until the
cases containing the stored goods are
examined.
AT II o'clock the attention of the fire
department was turned toward saving
the Manufactures Building from the
danger of total destruction.
The smouldering embers of the Peristyle
were famed to life again by the brisk
breeze and set fire to the piling. Slowly
the flames worked toward the Agri-
Building. Four engines were
Kept busy playing on the burning piles
and succeeded in subduing the flames
aud putting the Agricultural Building
out OF danger.
When the piling under the Peristyle
iad burned away the earth, deprived of
support, gave way and fell into the lake
with crash, leaving hole 100 feet in
ength and 20 feet in width. The statue
If the Republic was left unframed,
'aye for little scorching by the heat.