The times., 1899-06-28
A coNEY ISLAND BLOCK BURNS.
The Resort Damaged by Fire to the
Extent of $4,000.

New York, June 27.-A fire broke out in
Coney Island early this morning. which did
about s45, 900 damage to block of build
ings between Jones' walk and the Bowery,
and which at one time bade fair to become
as general as the blaze that swept the
island on May 26. The fire last night
started at 1:30 O'Clock in the dressing
rooms and living apartments in the second
story of the Volks Garden, Herman Kos
ter's pavilion and music hail, in which at
the time twenty-five vaudeville performers
and fifty restaurant walters were sleeping
Policeman Thomas Lynch. whose gallant
conduct in the fire of May 2s had kept him
in the hospital until Saturday last. was
restored TO duty yesterday and began pa
trolling his old beat. AS he was passing
Rosters pavilion at about / 80 O'Clock this
morning he discovered smoke and flames
issuing from the second story windows.
He ran to the nearest fire alarm box and
sent in an alarm, and then rushing back
to the burning building he broke open the
| door and started in to awaken the occu-
pants.
1t was the work of a very few moments
to alarm the sleeping soubrettes. and
though the fire ate its way rapidly through
the building, they all got out alive. As
Lynch, VINO was the last person to leave
the pavilion, was coming downstairs he
found one young woman unconscious upon
the stairway and carried her to the street.
where the fresh air revived her
The fire had spread quickly 10 the build
ings adjoining the Volks Garden in the
! rear. known as Jones cottages. and owned
/ by John J. Jones. Then turning north
to Surf Avenue and Jones walk, the fire
; took hold of the three-story double build
/ ing owned by Henry Grashorn. Spreading
! at the same time westward to the Bowery,
it destroyed the barber shop OF Frank Dot
I tily and partially destroyed an adjoining
/ building owned by William Jacob.
! Here the flames made leap of forty feet
across the Bowery TO the Grand Central
I Concert Hall, owned by George Lawrence.
and from the concert hall the flames
( spread to the hotel and pavilion owned by
/ Daniel Fenton, where at last the progress
of the fire was checked by the fremen
Battalion Chief Kirkpatrick answered
| the first alarm of the fire with three en-
! gines. but seeing that the fire was already
/ serious, sent in an alarm to Deputy Fire
/ Chief Samuel Dun and Battalion Chief
! Tanning At the time Chief Duff received
the alarm he was sleeping quietly in his
house on Eleventh Street. Brooklyn. but
! inside of twenty-seven minutes he reached
/ the scene of the fire and assumed COM
/ mand.
/ All the fire engines in Coney Island,
Sheepshead Bay. Bath Beach. and Graves
end were at work by . o'clock trying to
| quench the flames. and two freboats were
! tied up to the Iron Pier ready 10 fight
with the fire if it should come that way.
a Gordon of engines was formed around
! the block of burning buildings and the fire
was slowly beaten back TO the block S
I centre. Chief Duff said this morning that
had it not been for the wisdom displayed
by Charles FELTON, in surrounding his block
of pavilions on Jones walk with a fifteen
foot brick wall the whole of Coney Island S
lower section would have been wiped out.
Even as it was. he believed that had there
been any wind the consequences OF the
fire might have been serious.
Herman Rosters Volks Garden was burn
ed to the ground, and the proprietor esti-
mated his loss at $4,000. against which
there was no insurance. The soubrettes
and walters employed by him were paid
off last night. and their earnings were
slowed away in sundry trunks and satchels
none of which escaped the fire.
Fire Marshal Brymer, who investigated
the origin of the fire of May 20, decided
that that fire was started by tramps for
the purpose of looting the buildings during
the excitement and that in that iire IS ,00C
worth of property was stolen. thorough
investigation will be made OF last nights
Z