The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-11-18

The Delaware and Hudson Canal
| company's No. = breaker at Olyphant
was totally destroyed last evening by
a fire of supposed inCendiary origin.
The flames broke out at about $50
p. m, in what is known as the "an-
nex," small structure adjacent to the
chutes. where culm screening is car
ried on, and in an almost incredible
short space of time the fire had COM
| municated with and enveloped the
main structure The gong was blown
| as soon as the fire was discovered and
| the hose companies of Olyphant, Peck
Vile. Priceburg and Throop hurrledly
responded. BY the time they were pre-
pared for fire-fighting there was moth
ing left for them to do but ply their
streams on a mass of flaming debris.
The most remarkable feature of the
| fire was the rapidity with which the
| flames spread. One of the men en-
| ployed in the .Doiler room said that
when he heard the shouting and looked
| out and saw the flames at the foot of
| the chutes. he hastily clambered up the
! hill to the shaft to give the alarm, but
| before he could reach its summit smoke
and fire were bursting forth from the
| head house.
The fact thst it is new breaker
| makes this all the more remarkable
1t might be said to have been still in
| course of erection. Five months ago
| the old No. breaker which had done
| service for over thirty years. was torn
down and the one destroyed last night
erected in its place. 1t took three
months to build it and it was only six
| hnN eto tAI To-,
after idleness consequent upon the re-
! building.
LARGE, MODERN BREAKER.
1t was one Of the largest, costliest
and possibly the most modern breaker
in this region. The Delaware and
Hudson company regarded it as it's
model breaker. Only the newest and
best machinery was used in it's equip
'ment and many of the ideas which en-
tered into its construction and appur-
| tenances We're unknown to any other
breaker hereabouts. 1t represented in
money nearly $4,000. The Delaware
and Hudson company carries no in
surance, being one of the several large
corporations which do their own insur-
ing, establishing a fund for this pur-
pose with what ordinarily would rep
resent the money paid to an insurance
company in premiums.
| The breaker had a capacity of 200
tons a day and employed $50 men and
boys. 1t was one of the main supports
of the borough of Olyphant and while
| its destruction is an embarrassing loss
to the company it is a calamity to the
people dependant upon it. During the
| SIX weeks that ii was operated the men
| worked full time and We're making
| excellent wages, miners easily earning
| $40 and $50 a month. Owing to the
| long idleness which preceded, the men
| are in poor condition to face the long
shut down that will ensue.
| What caused the fire is a mystery
! but II the testimony of an aged Hun
| garian ash man employed about the
| boiler house is to be believed it was
undoubtedly of incendary origin. He
says that he saw a man with a miners
lamp in his hand emerge from behind
| the annex and run down the tracks.
At about the same instant he saw
flames shooting above the caves of the
Itructure and surmsing at once that
he fgitive with the torch had been
guilty Of incendarism gave chase.
HUNGARIAN GAVE CHASE.
He followed until the fire bug was
lost in the darkness and then returned
| to report what he had seen. Foreman
John Mooney was too busy fighting the
fire to make an investigation into it's
cause. He could offer no explanation
of it's origin and was inclined to share
the general belief that what the Hun
garian ashman had reported was re-
liable.
How soon the breaker will be in op-
Grafton again is merely a matter of
| conjecture. A number of Delaware
and Hudson officials came to the
scene on ~ special engine from Scran-
ton but as far as could be learned the
subject of rebuilding was not discus
sed. The shaft is located $50 feet from
the breaker site and was in no wise in
jured.
The employees have hopes that the
company viii keep the mine in opera
tion, sending the coal through the in
side connections to one or both of its
adjacent breakers, the Eddy Creek and
Grassy Island. Seven years ago when
the old No. breaker was for a time
thrown idle by a fire this plan was
carried out and greatly reduced the
resultant hardships.