The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-09-19

next door ana returned 10 the bank Ine
watchman and janitor were outside. and
she would not leave. yauIce Saunders, the
colored janitor, came in and told Mrs Mil
Ter to get out as soon as possible. she be-
came frightened by this, and Saunders had
to carry her forth. As they were leaving
a portion of the Pettis wall fell through
the skylight Of the bank, and one of the
flying bricks struck Saunders on the head.
He was not seriously injured, but had Mrs.
Miller remained In the bank Office she
would have been buried under the fall
ing wall. Already the fire had commenced
to creep along the walls of the bank build
ing. A twenty -three-inch fire wall separa-
ted the two buildings. and 1t was thought
sufficient to keep fire from spread
ing from one to the other
But the heat soon ruined the
reputation of this wall. and at O'Clock.
one hour after the fire was discovered at
Eastman. Schleicher & Lees, the bank
building was ablaze from top to bottom.
smoke came from the four floors and
from the top. the flames springing east
ward, Joining those from the adjoining
building. 1t looked extremely bad for the
property east of the same square. All the
time the wind was blowing, and the fire
seemed to be creeping rapidly and surely
toward other buildings. The old buildings
belonging to the johnson heirs, of Phil
adelphia, directly east of the bank build
ing, seemed to be in the direct line of de-
struction, and across the alley from them
was the five-story building of the New
York store.
Thousands of persons were attracted to
the scene by the smoke. Many of them
were strangers. who came to the city on
the early trains to attend the State fair.
Thousands OF persons were on the way to
work All street-car traffic was, of course,
stopped. and at safe distance the work
Of the destructive flames was watched by
all. From the Eastman, Schleicher & Lee
building could be heard the sound of
breaking china and glassware as the re-
suit of the heat The women in the crowd
groaned as they realized that so many
pretty and costly pieces of bric-a-brac
were being ruined, and had it not been
for the policemen and ropes some men, no
doubt. would have risked the fire for the
sake of recovering few choice pieces.
The men were more interested, however,
in the bank, and many speculations were
heard regarding the durability of the
vaults and their power to Withstand the
heat. The rear portion of the bank was
cOiStTuCteu 60 dS 10 DC liIepTOOl. IL was
but story high, with a dome-shaped,
stained-glass roof, supported by steel grid
ers. In this part were the four vaults.
The hot bricks from the wall fell around
them. ana the fire from the adjoining
building came in, wrapping them in
flames. The upper floors of the bank
adding to the heat TO which the vaults
were exposed. The second floor fell with
a crash. A man in the crowd who knew
the meaning of the sound remarked:
"Ad Harris Is the only man to make
deposit in that bank to-day
MIR. Harris had his law Office directly
above the bank, and it was his heavy safe
that fell through and caused the crash.
1t will be some time before Mr. Harris
can remove this deposit from the bank.
OTHER BUILDINGS THREATENED.
The two buildings east of the bank are
old. and constructed of brick. with great
deal of wood about them. One is four
stories high and the other of three
stories, and they stand as land
marks in the business portion of the city.
1t was not thought that they could be
saved, for. unlike other buildings in the
block, they have pine s1ingle roofs. But
their lack of height probably saved them
from destruction. for the flames passed
over them, as they were protected by the
higher walls of the bank buildings. New
ertheless, 1t was necessary to throw much
water upon the two old buildings, and the
occupants suffered greatly from water and
smoke. Several times flames appeared on
the easements of the windows of the New
York store building but by vigilance no
disastrous loss from fire occurred.
The building occupied by Eastman,
Schleicher g. Lee extended from Washing
ton to Pearl street, and the Condit build
ing, on South Meridian street, is very near
it. The excitement in the Condit building
was intense all during. the progress of the
fire. A blaze would appear in half doz-
en- places at once, and many times the
building was thought to be doomed. The
Condit building is six stories high, and in
it are many offices, which were deserted
The Office furniture was carried to places
of safety and water was thrown on freely
Streams poured down the stairway, maxi
ing cascades. The fire crept along the cor
nice work making fight to secure hold,
and the firemen worked heroically to keep
it under control. On the top floor, in the
rooms of the Western Union Telegraph
Company, are five thousand batteries,
surrounded by a network Of wires, many
of which were torn down. 1t was feared
that the weight of the batteries and the
water would cause the building to collapse,
but 1t stood up well and secure. Long
after the Eastman, Schleicher & Lee
building had burned to the ground and the
fire at the bank building was extinguished,
and all danger from fire to buildings at
the cast was passed, the Condit building
continued in peril. At 1890 O'Clock all evil
dence Of fire was gone and all fears fer
the destruction of the entire block were
dissipated.
The Claypool building, at the southeast
corner of Washington and Meridian streets,
was damaged by water, hut was saved
from destruction by the wind. which blew
the flames away from 1t. Many of the
offices in the building were ruined, as was
the stock In two stores on the ground floor.
A STRANGERS ACTIONS.
Demanded Money OF Mr.. Eastman a
Short Time Ago.