The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-02-07


also stationed at River and Montgomery
streets, and the fire was fought on that
side. The call for the engines in the
southern section had been sent in imme-
diately after the first alarm and these
were soon on the scene.
When the water was first turned on the
pressure was light, but after three or four
minutes it came with full force and there
after the pressure was all that could be
desired. The pressure maintained at the
works during the fire was sixty-five
pounds and during the greater part of
the time the pumpage was at the rate of
100000 gallons a day.
One of the first moves made by Chief
Mcguire was TO order lines of hose car
ried down the aleyway leading from the
foot of Jefferson street between the brick
buildings, to River street The firemen
proceeded TO fight the fire from River
street, their first attention being given to
the blazing woodwork on the buildings
and next to the cars behind. There was
very little space for the firemen between
the brick walls and the blazing cars, and
with the warehouse fire close behind them
it was about as hot a place as they car
ed to get into. When the fire had been
checked on the buildings attention was
given TO the warehouse.
The fire had already penetrated to the
interior of the buildings, however. These
were handed by the hremen on William
son street, and the work was well done.
With the fire breaking out in three build
ings at once, the firemen had their hands
full. For time they checked the fire in
the Conklin building, but the flames had
secured a good hold on the other
two buildings. Within fifteen min
utes after the fremen arrived stream of
flame was pouring from the doorway
of the stable building of the Savannah
Grocery Company. The building was
Quilted, as was also the Flannery building
adjoining. The latter building is the one
in which the Teeple fire occurred several
weeks ago. Mr.. Teeple had lot of goods
stored In the eastern half of the building,
and Albert Jackson's cotton pickery occu-
pied the western half In the Teeple fire
the Flannery building was but little dam
aged, but in the fire last night every bit
of woodwork, including the timbers sup
porting the floors, was burned out, leav-
ing the building a hollow shell.
Messrs. Dixon, Mitchell & Co. had s. 900
worth of lumber on the wharf right next
to the warehouse which contained the
burning hay. Col. Merritt w. Dixon was
on the scene soon after the fire started.
and as he was somewhat short on insur-
ance,- the saving of the property was a
matter of financial Importance to him.
The fire in the lumber was at the time
confined to a pile valued at about $1,000,
which was right next to the warehouse.
Col. Dixon besought the fremen to put a
stream upon this lumber, but at that time
the little outside woodwork of two or three
buildings across the alleyway from the
Teeple building was on fire, and the flames
were rapidly ealirg their way inside these
structures. They evidently considered this
more important than the lumber, and for
a while Col. Dixon's request was UNDECIDED.
Foreman Culiom told him he would give
him stream within a few minutes and
within a short time 1t was done. Ex-
Firemen Brown, Hogarty, Murphy, Buck
ley Rahilly and O'Lynn went to work on
the lumber with will. In the meantime
the tug Bachelor, in charge of Capt. Boyle,
away from the burning wharf came up,
and Col. Dixon tod them to put on
stream at once which was done. Soon
afterward the tug Forest City came along
side the Bachelor and also put on a stream.
1t was not long before the fire in the
lumber was pretty well out, though Mr..
Dixon said the pile would be a total loss.
The schooner John f. Burgin, which was
to have carried this lumber away. arrived
Saturday, but had not reached the dock.
The lumber on the wharf valued at
about 5000, was insured for 5000 with
Mr. A. c. Harmon in the Continental In
surance Company. It's saving, therefore,
meant a saving to the insured as well as
to the insurance company.
When an incipient blaze was seen in
the rear of the building just across the
aleyway from the Teeple building an I'M
successful effort was made 10 get at it,
because of the fact that wooden shut
ter was in the way. The fire could he
seen then through the cracks. These in
cidents sometimes test the ingenuity of a
fireman. Foreman Kitty" Cullom as he
10 Familiarity known, demonstrated that
fact that ii is not impossible under some
circumstances for a fireman to climb up
the side of a brick wall. With the aid
of nothing but his hands and feet and
piece of four y-four timber that was
attached to the side by the wall, he Skinned
up for a hight of twenty feet or more
and with an inch or two of stone win
dow sill TO hold onto, he got over on a
platform some twenty-five feet or more
above the ground. He pulled the shut
ter to pieces with his hands in few
seconds. a stream was put in and the
fire there put out
When this fire was at its hight the po-
lice found it difficult to keep back many
of the crowd who insisted on getting as
close as the heat would allow, they tried
to scare them off by the report that there
were 400 barrels of kerosene oil stored in a
building right next to the fire, and that it
was liable TO explode at any moment. On
some this had a momentary effect and
they got back to be out of the way of the
expected explosion when it came. 1t did
not come quick enough to suit them and
they crowded around again. A second
time, however, the warning did not have
the same effect, and explosion or no ex-
plosion it seemed they intended to remain
as near the fire as they could get. The
report, it appears, grew out of the fact
that considera bic oil was stored i'm one
of the buildings several doors away from
the fire, and the outside of the building
was slightly on fire at one time. The oil
was all in the basement however, and
the fire was kept far enough away 10
prevent any danger of explosion.
At the end of a full hours hard work the
no N uyftb