The Topeka state journal., 1897-11-20
GREATEST IN
CENTURIES.
LOndOn's Fire of Yesterday Has
Not Been EqualIed
Since the Historic COnfiagratiOn
of 1865.
LOSS is 25 MILLIONS
More Than a Hundred Ware
houses Were Destroyed.
Many Were Filled With Stocks
of Christmas Goods.

was one of the most disastrous in Lon
don history, since the great fire of 1866
1t broke out in a large block OF pulld-
ings lying eastward of Aldersgate
Stand between that thOroughfare and
Red Cross street just after 1 O'Clock
in the afternoon. The flames were
famed by a strong wind and were fed
by highly infiammable stocks of Christ
mas fancy goods and fiimsy dress ma
terials of all descriptions, that filled
every floor of the six-StOry building in
the old street. Consequently the con-
hagration gained headway with sur
prising rapidity, and was soon far be-
yond the possibility of being checked
by the few engines which We're early
on the spot. For four hours ana a
half the flames had their own way, and
it was only after more than hundred
engines had worked an hour thau the
chief of the fire brigade sent out the
signal that the fire was under control.
At IL o'clock last night the fire was
still the scene of great excitement
Fifty engines were playing upon a3 In9
ruins, wagons were hurrying up coal
/ and tons of water were pouring into
the fiery debris.
Thousands of people were trying to
penetrate the Gordon maintained by a
thousand policemen, reinforcementS Tor
whom were hurried up when, soon at
ter o'clock, an increase in the out
break led Commander Wells to make
reQuiSitiOn for more engines upon the
outlying stations.
The scene must occupy the fire bri-
gade for several days, especially in
view of the grave danger OF the col
lapse of shells of buildings which fall
now and again with a loud report
The historic church of St. Giles has
been much damaged the principal
damage being to the roof, the old win
dows, the baptismal font and Milton's
statue. HamseH street was the scene
of the outbreak of the fire which was
due to the explosion in connection with
a gas engine on the premises of Walter
Brown & Co, mantel manufacturers
at No 80, on that thoroughfare. Their
third story was crowded with girls
when the fire broke out and 1t was in
stantly the scene of a semi-panic, the
frightened operatives rushing to the
roof of the building and thence across
to other buildings and so effecting their
escape while the flames were pouring
out of the basement. In less than a
quarter of an hour the flames had en-
veloped the adjoining warehouse and
| thence they leaped across the street to
an enormous paper warehouse which
was fully alght in less than ten min
uteS.
BY this time it was evident to the
fremen that they were face to face
with a great disaster, and a general
alarm was sent out. Then, from all
the fire stations, even those quite five
miles from the scene of the disaster
engines We're hurried to the spot and
the police gathered about the neigh
bOrhOOd in great force. This display
of strength on the part of the police
was required, as the crowd, swelling in
size every moment, soon attained to
tens of thousands of people and the
fremen required every possible free
dom of action, as their fight was one
of the greatest difficulty, owing to the
narrOwness of the old, crooked streets,
which are the feature of that part of
London, combined with the height of
the warehouses, which cut off the fire
men from all fair chance of cOnfining
the outbreak. The excitement among
the OnlOOkerS who crowded every pos
sible point of view was very great as
may be judged from the fact that fire
men had to be repeatedly rescued by
their comrades, by the aid of fire es-
capes, from buildings which had caught
fire after the fremen had mounted to
their roofs to fight the flames in ad-
joining structures.
The rescue of operatives by the fire
men; the hurrying of hosts of clerks,
who were trying to save books and val
liable papers from the fre and the
rushing here and there of many en-
DlOyeS who were attempting to carry
to places of safety, costly merchan-
disc or other Valuables added to the
confusion, The heat was so intense
that several firemen were obliged to
direct their operations under showers
of water poured opOn them.
But, in spite of the eXertions of the
fremen, the fire crept on very steadily
until Nicholas square, which is situat-
ed at the far end of HamseH street
was reached.
At little after 2 O'Clock, a dozen
hose pipes, each with a II foot spread,
poured water into the blaze from an
opposite roof, from the street below
and from the burning premises them
selves, but it did not seem to have any
effect. The water rushed out of the
windows and from the ground floor like
a water fall while the flames leaped
higher and higher and as the floors fell
in the place still blazed, a gigantic dis
play of fire and smoke, till the building
was completely gutted, and the walls
BeeIed over. The confusion in the streets
increased as the fire spread. Suddenly
there was an explosion of gas meters.
sounding like the reports of field guns,
followed by a momentary hush. After
that the wild rushing here and there
was resumed with increased energy.
Men ris1ed their lives in desperate eff
forts to save day books, ledgers, feath-
ers, jeWelry, valua bic chinaWare, etc.
One man actually hazarded his life to
fetch his hat and cane, 200 feet of
stOnework and glass falling at his heels
as he emerged from the building.
Several firemen were almost buried
in the burning ruins, as front after front
of the flaming warehouses fell in, hurI-
ing tons of bricks and masonry in the
streets, bursting and cutting the fire
hose in all directions, while tons Of fiery
matter were falling in every direction,
making it impossible to foresee where
the conf1agration would stop, as roof
after roof caught fire and window
frames all about the scene began to
smoke.
crowds were still further enlarged, un-
til it was estimated that hany hundreds
of thousands of people surrounded the
big fire. These excited masses of hu-
back by the police, as the area of the
fire swept spot increased in size, an op-
Grafton which became more and more
difficult as the owners and employees Of