Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1894-01-15
If Saturdays Fire Became a
ConfIagration.
Flames Gained Roadway On Acc ,unt
Of Frozen Hydrants
But riremsn Worket Like HeIoss-Thres
Stores and Ho.si Damaged.

fOE uFC hthu 80 ChtuAudy HCL itUk al
almost breathless crowd of people waited
to see the lavoc of terrible confagration.
When about fifteen minutes after the
alarm was runy in and water came through
the long lines of he sc the suspense was re-.
Eeved but there was grave danger ahead.
At9.47 an alarm of fire was runz in.
Tiny threads Of smoke appeared seeking
the outer air through the window castings
under the larg. show window of A. M.
Nights jewelry store. A minute more and
the store was filed with smoke.
Mr.. Wight and his clerks worked as ex.
peditiously as possible but hardly had time to
close their safe. Outsiders rushed in and
took out most of the cases with their con-
tents and carried them to Bates & Trounts
across the street.
Mr.. Wight was once overcome for an in
slant by the dense smoke and one of the
clerks was twice led out to the air.
There was a smell of kerosene oil in the
smoke that now poured in cloud upon the
tiewalk.
The fremen responded quickly to the
alarm and in about five minutes the nozzle
of a hose was drawn up to the basement
window and one of the firemen kicked
through the glass. A dense volume Of
smoke poured out onto the sidewalk. The
frcmen held their ground.
But where was the water?
The hydrants sre frozen" came the cry.
The flames had now burst from the base
ment in great sheets driving the fremen
before them. At the rear Of the building
the space between Hotel North and the rear
half of Viewers restaurant was filed with
dense smoke. The large plate glass win
dows in the fronts of Wight's and Smart's
stores we're swapping and falling to the side
walk in fragments.
The situation was alarming. The wind
vas blowing strongly from the northwest
and the clouds of smoke were rolling over
Viewers building and against the tall brick
walls of All, MS publishing house.
Still no water. The hydrants between
Market square and Bridge street could n It
be opened.
twas bit erly cold. The thermometers
were registering below zero and the strong
wind was icy and penetrating.
But before this time what narrowly missed
being Il tragedy was being enacted in the
boiler room Of Hotel North. 1t was in this
place that the fire caught-no one seems to
know just how.
Martin Tobin, the slslwart porter of the
hotel going into the boiler room saw a flame
dart from among some kinding wood not
far from the boiler. He rushed to extio-
guish it when whole sheet of flames flashed
up and seemed to fill all the breathing space.
1t was then between Tobin and bis avenue
of escape. A moment of hesitation and he
never in all probability coull have been
taken out alive. He made daring plunge
forward through the flames and barely es-
capped but his face and hands were badly
burned, being blistered in several PLACES.
II. was the one who gave the alarm.
To get water line of hose was laid to
Bridge street. Another alarm was rung in
and line after line Of hose was lai out uu-
til about 1000 feet had been laid. The fir,
men were attacking the blaze from front
and rear. Entering the annex store-room
of Hill \ Locke's grocery they cut through
the floor and played on the fire underneath.
Ia few minutes it became evident that the
threatened conf ,gration would be averted.
But had the fire occurred during the night
before there would very likely have been
another story TO tell.
The damsge probably falls most heavily
on Mr.. Wight lie hal but $1,000 insur-
snce. OF his original amount. 3 $500, $500
had run out v it'll n few days. The worst
feature is that two years ago he was burned
out in the same place and in much the same
manner. When he won. into the newly
fitted store he put in elegant fixtures.
These were badly damaged, by smoke and
water principally 1t is difficult to estimate
his entire loss. Some articles, gold pens
and cases for instance, ere badly dam 'ged.
Mr. Wight was Insured 10 Macomber
agency.
E. =. Smart, dru ggist, suffered con-
siderable loss from smoke. Not only were
his fixtures badly stain, I'd but many Of his
drug, were entirely ruined by the smoke.
He was insured in both Macomber's agency
and Chicks, $500 in all. Hill & Locke
were quite we'll irsurci. Their l,ss was by
smoke, principally on the goo's their an
mex storeroom. The floor there was quite
badly wet and smoked somewhat.
c. w. Berry of Hotel North was well in
su'ed. about $4,000 in all. OF this amount
Mobiles agency carried $4,000. While
good deal of damage was done in the bAse-
ment and especially in the boiler room there
was co tamsge in the hotel proper save
from smoke which stained in several placed
the walls in the handsome anil newly fur
nished dining room. The smoke penetrated