The record-union., 1898-04-09
4 COSTLY FIRE LAST NIGHT.
ALL THE RAILROAD CONPANY'S
PATTERNS DESTROYED.
About 100000 Loss in Money
Value, but Work VIII be
Greatly Delayed.

Gre2C1y delayed
About s o'clock last night fire broke
out in the large three-story pattern
warehouse of the Southern Pacific
Company on 1 street, between Front
ana Second, and at midnight nothing
was left except the black and broken
walls
The loss, figured in dollars and cents,
lis said to be practically incalculabie.
and is placed by persons who shoIld
know at anywhere from $lSeoO0 to
100000
Shortly after s O'Clock City Attorney
DeLigne and Officer Higgins left the
police station and when opposite the
big building saw smoke issuing from
the windows. They Immediately
turned in an alarm, and in a lew min
utes the engines We're on the ground.
officer Higgins entered he build
ing. and together with Watchman
Hunt, who had charge Of the structure
1t night, attempted To get al the start
ns point of the fire Thcy had gone
but a short distance, however. before
the smoke became suffocating, and in
t.ying to find their way on. they be-
came bewildered and wandered about for
some time before they could find the
point of exit.
The building was fre-proof from the
outside, the windows being guarded by
strong iron shutters, which were keI t
closed the year round, in order that
the temperature might be kept at
uniform point to keep the patterns,
many of which We're frail pieces OF
nd 10
had great difficulty in forcing an en-
trance.
The roof of the building was of heavy
sheet-iron. and before the flames broke
through it the building on the inside
was as hot as a furnace. Several at
tcmpts were made by the 1remen 20
throw streams of water from the
ground to the top of the Building. but
without result y front window on the
second story was finally forced open
and a string of hose run in, and in
short time four or five streams were
playing into the burning building from
the top of Dingley's coffee store just
across the alley.
Hosemen Thomas Rowe, w. Cook
and Chris. Rankin scaled a ladder
raised against the building from the
line of hose They soon had a stream
playing over the top of the wall direct
" into the fire below. For ten min
utes their stream showed signs Of
gaining on the flames, and then their
ladder commenced to shake and large
portion of the VIII fell inward.
Rowe was on the top of the ladder,
and when the wall toppled in he clung
.
OF flames. He was fully fifty feet from
the ground, and Cook was just below
him, while Rankin was more than half
way down.
Rowe held to his nozzle until he was
hauled from over the fire, and then let
it drop. In it's descent it struck Ran
kin on the head, knocking him from
the ladder to the ground below. Ran
kin was considerably bruised, but not
seriously injured. Kowe's right arm.
hand and wrist were badly burned.
His injuries were treated at the Re
ceiving Hospital
While the origin of the fire is not
known it is believed to have started
from the heating pipes used to keep
the patterns at an even temperature
1t is estimated that twenty expert
DafT6T0-f1ldkeGS,
twenty-five years. could not replace the
patterns destroyed.
Probably 10000 patterns were de-
stroyed last night, and this means that
nCne of the parts of castings and
holdings for making which they were
designed can be turned out until
new set or new sets of patterns nave
been made by the mechanics.
The chemical engine did good work
last night. but the work cut out for 1T
was too heavy. The building was
nearly 2GG feet in length, and after
the first thirty minutes the flames had
complete possession of its entire
length.
The dry pine patterns, covered with
naint and sheIac. burned as freely as
kindling wood. and while for a time
it was hoped that by confining the
flames to the interior of the building
they might be smothered. the COM
bustfble nature of the material rem
dered that effort futile. Many persons
regard last nights fire as a calamity
that will be felt not only in this city,
but in adjoining towns and counties.
Probably 10000 or more persons as
sembled about the place-on car-tops,
house-tops. the Yolo bridge and all
possible places to which people could
climb-and stood for hours watching
the fire.
There was no insurance on the build
ing. nor its contents.
VALUABLE PROPERTY.
From an article on the pattern de-
partment of the Southern Pacific Com
pany. published some time ago in the
Record Union are taken the follow
ing facts concerning the patterns
stored in the building:
To tell the ordinary reader that there
have been made since the shop was
first located here 23949 patterns of
as many varieties would give him very
little knowledge of the actual amount
of work turned out. and in order to get
a correct idea of the work which has
been done, it viii be necessary for him
to take a look at the patterns them
selves
ION the north side of I street. be-
tween Front and Second, stands large
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