Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1898-12-29
FIRE UNCOVERED A GAME.
The Poker Players Ceased Only When the
Burning Roof Fell In.

fIRE UNCOVERED a GAME.
The Poker Players Ceased Only When the
Burning Roof Fell In.
A hitherto unchronicled incident
of the old Pike Opera House fire, III
1866, was told a few days ago by a
man who at that time was mem
Der of the fire department, and who
still does service with the fire lad
dies. The incident was characters.
tic of the times, for in those days,
when the town was wide open and
the stranger could get any old game
at any old place if he had the roll,
the fact that a fire, even of the mag
nitude of that famous blaze, was not
sufficient to interrupt seductive
game Of draw caused no surprise
The like of that Pike fire will
probably never occur, for, with the
poor facilities with which the fire
men were then equipped and the
element of danger which marked
their every step, it has always been
regarded as miracle that no life
was sacrificed in the conquering of
that famous blaze.
| The night was we'll spent and the
efforts of the firemen had been SO
far successful as to practically get
the flames under control when it
was discovered that the fire had
made it's way into the building in
the rear, which faced on Baker
street. Now, this structure was
frame and bore the name of shell
tering from public view some of the
most talked of games of poker
which this town then had in plenty.
All through the night lights had
blazed brightly from within the
place, and the rooms were filled
with its habitues, though at times
it seemed as if the heat and the
proximity of the blaze would COM
pei them to vacate That this was
not the case was proved by the fire.
men few moments after twas OBJ
served that the structure was on
fire.
A half dozen members of the old
hooks No. 2 were sent to the roof
with buckets with which to stay the
progress of the fire. When they
reached the scene of their new la
bors, the roof had been burned
through in several places and clear
view of the interior of the upper
room was to be had.
When the first man looked
through, he stopped in amazement
and then called his companions to
his side. They looked and saw
sight that SO filed them with sur
prise that the fire burned unmolest-
ed for several minutes. There,
gathered around small oak table,
were four men, their faces showing
no traces of fear, even as the fire
brands dropped one by one through
the burning roof to the floor below,
and the cards we're dealt once while
the fremen watched the strange
sight.
The cracking of the flames
brought the fremen to their senses,
and they sprang to their work, and
even as they did SO portion of the
roof fell with resounding crash
Carefully they made their way over
the charred timbers to the spot
where they had watched the game,
but the room was now vacant except
for a colored man who seemed too
much frightened to gather up the
money which lay in profusion about
the floor and table The firemen
clambered through the roof and
helped the colored man gather up
the bills, and then they worked on
until the great Pike fire was tapped
out.
For many a day in the engine
houses that scene was the topic of
much conversation, and to this day
it is talked about by the men who
witnessed it and told to their friends.
who still recount it. That must
have been a poker game which
should have gone down in the an.
nails of that wonderful and much
written of game as the one which
was played under circumstances
that would have made the average
game very small affair-played
within a few feet of Cinoinnati's
most talked of fire and interrupted
only when the flames were so near
as to scoroh the Dealers hands
Cincinnati Commercial Tribune