The daily morning journal and courier., 1895-06-08
FIRE TANNED BY FLAMES
GREAT DESTRUCTION DONE BY
 BIRB IN MIDDLETOWN.

str1ng Easteriy Wind Kept the Firemen
 Very Busy-Mayor Vmal Photographed to
 Hartford for Assistance But it Was Later
 Count, rmnnded-An f the Horses in
 smlth's Stables Were Saved.
 Mlddletown, June 7,-One of the worst
 fires that has ever occurred in this city
 broke out at 9;SO this evening in Smith
 & Harris livery stables, located on
 Court street, in the heart of the busi- ness portion of the city. The stable was
 four stories high, 10Ox40 feet, construct
 ed of brick and frame work. The fire
 was first discovered by hostler em- ployed by Smith & Harris, when he dis covered smoke issuing from the hay
 loft He rushed to ring in an alarm, but before he reached ,the box the flames broke out through the roof and soon a fierce fire was raging. There was a fresh wind blowing ard the flames ran back to the stable of W. O. Carrier on Center street. In this block, bounded by Center, Court and Main streets, are situated a number of small frame build ings, ramshackle in construction. By the time that the fire department arriv- ed on the scene the flames had gained great headway and leaped across mar row passa ageway in the rear of Smith & Harris stable to Carriers place | The strong easterly wind that was blowing at the time brought the flames over the roofs of the small frame build l ings situated in between the stable and | by the time that the four fire companies got to work on the fire fierce fire was raging. From Smith & Harris stable the flames communicated to one and half story frame structure adjoining the west side of the barn and occupied by w. P. Barnes, veterinary surgeon; E, G. Rogers express agent and the Mirror" saloon, owned by August John son. This building was completely de- stroyed. The German restaurant which also occupied one of the stores in the block on Court street was burned out At $40 o'clock the fire was burning so fiercely that the business houses in the vicinity were threatened by the flames
 The flremen were not making much progress towards checking the flames, and as a precautionary measure Mayor lllotli WliO was Oll lllG SNCilCy lSiNEi q Pll- ed to Hartford asking for assistance. This order was. however, countermand- ed later, when the local f1remen succeed ed in getting the fire under control, and 1t was thought that there would be no necessity for the Hartford ffremen's ser vices
 At 1O:8O the front wall of Smith & Harris stable fell into the street and Elijah Metcalf a member of Douglass Hose company, was struck by piece of brick and injured so that he had to be taken home
 Besides the buildings mentioned that were burned were three barns on the Chaffee estate and the barn belonging to R. H. Pease & Son. The old Chaffee | block had narrow escape from the | flames The total loss tonight is plac- ed at $750OO.
 So far as can be learned tonight the | individual losses are as follows: Smith | & Harris, $10,OO0, partly insured on | stock, on building $500: w o. Carrier | & Co.,, s5,0OO; E. G. Rogers, $500; August | Johnson, $500; German restaurant, $500. | Only one of the one hundred or more | horses that were stabled In the several | barns was lost in the flames, and that | belonging to pr. Campbell, who valued the animal at $500
 All of the sixty horses in Smith & Har- ris' sable were taken out in safety. A number of carriages on the second floor were destroyed Carrier & Co. also lost several carriages
 At one time when the fire threatened to move down Main street the mer chants in the neighborhood began work of moving out their goods.