The daily morning journal and courier., 1895-06-28
ANoTHE FER BIG FIRE.
One of the Worst Fires in Many Year
 Visited San Francisco.

One of the Worst Fires in Many Year
 Visited San Francisco.
 San Francisco, June 27.-The worst fire San Francisco has had in over thirty years started shortly before o'clock tonight dn the rear of the Sar { Francisco box factory, located at Fiftf and Harrison streets. Before the de- partment reached the ground the flames were sweeping through a num- Der of frame buildings on Fourth street which backed into the box factory and has leaped across the street to the Southern Pacific hay barns. The sec ond alarm was turned in only to be followed by aethird and fourth in rapid succession. Chief Sullivan was one of the first to reach the scene and he real ized the danger at a glance.
 Before one-half of the department had connected their lines it was seen the fire was entirely beyond control. Word was telegraphed across the bay to Oakland and Alameda for assistance. The sister cities quickly responded with two engines each. These were located along the water front and used as pumps to supply water from the bay. The Southern Pacific pumps had lines of hose connected, and did good service in bringing salt water to supply the fast weakening fresh water mains A strong wind was blowing from the west and famed the flames across the broad streets, sweeping everything in it's path.
 Shortly after the second alarm was turned in heavy explosion shook the city and it was said that four kegs of powder stored in one of the big ware houses of the Southern Pacific had blown up. Heavy tfmbers were whirled through the air for blocks. These land eed on light frame buildings further east and in short time the firemen were practically hemmed in. For time 1t looked as though the fire would be gotten under control The wind gradually died down, but the suction of the now roaring acres of infiammable material continued to carry embers of- ten four feet long through the air
 Shortly after o'clock the wind sud- denly changed to the west and drove the flames back over the burned district.
 At 9:45 the fire was gotten under con trol. The high brick wall of the de- serted Southern Pacific offices at Fourth and Townsend streets acted as barrier over which the flames could not pass. The water furnished from the bay by the Oakland engines and Southern Pa |cific pumps soon had the outer cage Of the fire under control.
 During the progress of the fire all bsorts of rumors were current Et was reported that when the powder exploded 'severaI persons had been killed, but this Is hardly true. At o'clock it vas re- ported that several tramps who had been seen to enter the big lumber yards early in the evening had been cremated when the fire swept through the piles bf lumber
 I Several firemen were injured by fall Ing timbers, but none are reported kill ed Three firemen were overcome by I he heat and taken to the hospital In addition to the destruction of the hills, factories, foundries and hotels, bver fifty dwellings were destroyed. Three hundred families are homeless, hose some of them managed to save a | portion of their goods. Thus far no au- Ehentic account of loss of life has been kiven out. Rumors are plenty, but it is Impossible to penetrate the burned dis l I 'rict to ascertain whether any bodies | Ire in the ruins or not. One fireman | Eas slightly injured by the fall of a | loor. and at first it was reported he | lad been killed. One of the buildings | so go down before the flames was St. l Nose church, a new structure upon | Which thousands of dollars have been l appended.
 N A conservative estimate of the loss \ one million and half. There is &bout $S00,000 insurance