The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1896-02-03

PHILADELPHIA. Pa. Feb. a.
chestnu. street above Broad street was
visited early this morning by one Of the
fercest Ares this city has known for
years. The large sevOn-story building
OF Charles 9. IIasebtlne, Nos. 14lG and
1913 Chestnut street, and the odjoln-
ing five story structure OF the Amerl-
can Baptist Publication Society, No.
1890. were totally destroyed. The build
ings damaged by fire and water and
falling walls were the four-story dry
goods house OF Homer, LeBortiilIer e
Company, Nos. 1912 and 1914; the dwell
ing house at 1929. owned by the wistar
estate and the Hotel Lafayette, at
Broad and SAMSON streets. On either
side Of the main entrance to the Hasei-
tine building were the plano ware
rooms OF Hallett & Davis, ut lti6, and
OF Stelnway & Company. at 14lS, The
two Baptist societies lost large and val
liable collections OF paintings, books
and curlos. The detailed losses have not
vet been made up. but a conservative
estimate places the aggregate rt close
10 two millions of dollars. II Is thought
that this Is almost fully covered by In
There were about $50 guests In the
Lafayette hotel. which Is In the rear OF
the destroyed buildings. Among those
were Porter King, mayor OF Atlanta,
Ga, and the others OF his party, who
escorted the Liberty bell home, and
reached philadelphia yesterday. They
are Albert Howell. T, D. Neal, W, II.
Block. John T. Ryan, W. J.. Bell. II. L..
culberson, W. A. Hemphlll, 4. D. Adair'
". II. Dumnock, n. i. Tauburt, j..
Daniel and P. H. Harrolson.
Olga Nethersole, the actress, her
brother. Louis F. Nethersole. and
MadCe Meadows and Maud Clayton, OF
her company, were also guests OF tine
Lafayette. While there was consider
able confusion In the hotel. the guests,
barring a few falnting women, kept
cool heads and all were removed IN
,tifcty. The Atlanta party was carried
in n rntrol wagon To the Continental
hotei, flye blocks away and the Meth
ergoie party to the Me,ropole, opposite
the Lafayette. Every other hostelry IN
thc city was thrown open for the re-
rnntIon Of TIM. dIasurbGd guests. sSIIAies
me eighth and hihth iloors Of the hotel
were burned, although the back par.
ot the building from cellar to roof. was
badly damaged by smoke and wneer, It
MAD only recently been opened by
new management, after thorough rem
ovation.
The Fire.
II was shortly before 3 o'clock when
Policemen Rice and Howard, while pa
trolling their beats at Broad and
chestnut street, detected the smell o;
smoke. They strNdGhtway ran to the
lafayette hotel and went from floor to
floor, looking for nre. When they
reachsd the sixth, fierce blaze met
their slrht. II was In the rear OF the
ifaseItIne building. which reached dan.
rerously near TO the back OF the hotei
hniIdfHE, An alarm was struck iinhnc-
dIntcly. bpt before the first engines
could reach the scene, a strong weSt
wind had carried the flames through
the ensire building.
A dozen lines OF hose were turned on
the Chestnut street front, but the iiGht
wood and paper which stocked the beS-
ond third and fourth floors were easy
Sooj for the flames. The upper part OF
The buIldinE was known MS the Hasel-
tine art galleries. Many leading artlsts
mad studios there, and tho art collec-
tons stored under the roof aggregated
In value thousands Of dollars, AZ Z
o'cIock the walls began TO collapse ana
the flames surend on the east to Ho-
NOR. LeBnntillIcr & Co.'s, md on tho
west TO the Baptist Publication society.
A general alarm was turned IN ana inc
flremen directed most OF their energies
10 preventing the destruction OF the en-
LIT. n q.
ened. The upper portion OF the Lntny-
cite hotel was ignited by sparks llylnE
from the burning buildings on Chestnut
street, but the hlaZg' was confined to
the eight and ninth lloOra..
The fire was not controlled until long
after daybrcHk, and lines OF hose are
still playing on II,
Mayor King, OF Atlanta, aroused
from his bod ny the fire, refused to leave
the threatened hotel until he saw that
every member Of his party had escaped
safely. Olga EetherEole was one of the
cnlrnest persons in the building She
gaw most OF her,oifects Bnfeiy removed
before she loft the hotol, with her little
collie dog tucked under her arms, Many
Of the other guests rushed from their
rooms In their night clothes, nnd would
hnve continued into the street had as
EurancV not been given that tho lower
portion Of the building was in no im-
mediate danger.
Among tho guests were Jennie Steele,
ofTorre HRutG; II. ], BRnnon and wife,
OF Chicago; Thomas A. Renhnm, Of Der
trnit; j, N, Campbell, OF Spokane;
Charles C, Bosche and wife, OF Buffalo:
W. NJ. barrett, of Cincinnati; George
II. Doran, OF Chicago; u. a. Patterson.
OF Chicago; John w. Bcllno, OF Salt
Lake city; George H. Clark, Of WASH
inEton, D. c, The following New York.
orE: ], II, Lyman and wlfN, j. II. Engan,
ir., Thomas Paul mud wife, +. a. Ran
ney, John p, HnInos, u. NJ. krrtch-
1lnn, A. q. PukeySea, II, H. Gillespie
aud a, Wilson; II. II, Iamson, Of Bos-
ton; NJ, @. Harrison and w, NJ. H0rrl-
son, " baltimore, and j. u. blythe, OF
st. Louis.
Ths Losses.
Tho HaEeltInO building was valued
at 100000 and was fully insured, II
was erected In 1855, and tho first hoora
were "Arn-proof" The loss on paint
lngs on the second floor In between
1900, 600 aud 100000, uninsured. Among
thnse destroyed were two by g. II,
atlOua, valued Mt $4,000 each: one by
RobCrtg.Fleury, valued nt $4,000.
There were thirty nine offices In tho
building, occupied mainly by artists,
lawyers ana dentists, Drs, Edwards
nnd Curry, dentists, on tho third floor,
lost n collection OF South American cu-
rios valued at $4,000, partly Insured,
other tOnnntg lost sums ranging from
so 10 $1,000. Tho valuable EtoclS Of nlu-
pos In the atorea ON the first 'io0r was