The daily morning journal and courier., 1898-12-20
BIG FIRE IN TERRE HAUTE
THE TOTAL LOSS ESTIMATED AT
 OYER $2,OOO,OOO.
Supposed to Have Been Started by 1.-Two Electric Wire in Q Window of Large Dry Goods Building Wrapped tn Flames in an Instant Some Daring Escapes.
some Daring Escapes.

Terre Haute, Ind, Dec. 19.-The worst fire in the history of Terre Haute took place tonight, causing loss of nearly $2,000,00O The blaze started in the big show window of the Havens &5 Geddes Co.,, wholesale and retail deal- CTS in dry goods and notions. The cause is not definitely known, but it is supposed that a live electric wire set fire to the cotton with which one of the windows was decorated The fire spread to the decorations of evergreens in the store and the building was wrapped in flames in an instant. The following firms are the chief losers: Ravens & Geddes, $S00,00O; Breinig & Miller, furniture, $25OOOO; Pixley & Co.,, $1OO,O00; Terre Haute Shoe company, wholesale, $150,O0O; Albrecht & Co.,. re- tail dry goods, $75OOOO; United States Baking company, $S0,O00; Thorman So Schloss, clothiers, $50.O00.
 number of small concerns were an- initiated in the fall of the rear wall of t1avens & Geddes wholesale house and the losses in their case will bring the total loss up to more than $2,00O,00O. The fire started at 5:30 o'clock, when half the employees of the, Havens 6 Geddes Co. were at supper. There was force of 300 or more in the retail department of the establishment and had they been there the loss of life would have been frightful. Kate Ma lOnPV 9 in, fbo sprang from a window in the second story, and received injuries from which she will probably die. Miss Lucia Fer- guson' clerk in the same department, jumped just before Miss Maloney, but was caught by some men who were watching for her. She is internally in- Jured, but will recover Louis Kramer, the trimmer, who was in the show win dow when the fire started, was fright fully burned about the head and arms. l When rescued from the burning build- Ing he was insane from the pain and begged to be killed Firemen Austerlin. | Walsh and Shay were badly injured m the railing of the floor in the AL | brecht building and are now in the citv hospital.
 The firemen worked admirably, and l eiAeiC were Hldny narrow eSCapea among them. Several of the firemen are in precarious condition from burns
 and ther effects of the stifing smoke.
 but it is thought tonight that all Will
 recover. At il o'clock tonight the fire
 was still burning fiercely in the rear of ' the United States Baking company, but the firemen had the fire under control. A heroic act on the part of man nam
 ed Peters, a travelling salesman from
 Chicago for the Baldwin Music house. 1 called forth cheers from the crowd
 watching the flames. When the fire first started Peters was standing in the
 crowd and saw the Maloney and Fer l guson girls appear at the second story
 windows. The girls were panic -strick-
 en and were in momentary danger of
 going with the floor. Peters sprang
 through the door with his coat oyer his
 head, dashed through the flames and reached the window at which the girls had appeared, and after talking with
 them swung out from the ledge and
 dropped. His example was followed by 1 the two girls.