The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-12-05
FIRE SWEEPS
CLINTON,
Continued from Page One.)

smoke made his position untenable.
He then went to the boiler room,
where he looked at the fires before he
went to the water tap, where the hose
pipe was connected. While in the rear,
| the theatre doors We're shut, and in
the dense smoke he entered the coal
room instead of getting up into the
main corridor of the theatre, and
| hardly realizing where he was he had
| assembled the coal pile.
He finally made his way out almost
overcome by smoke. Officer Michael
f. Smith of the local force saw the
smoke, and running to box 46 he pulled
in the alarm. On the arrival of the
department, Chief Engineer F. E. Bah
cock saw that the department had
what might be disastrous fire on it's
hands, and he ordered a second alarm
pulled Immediately. The second
alarm was turned in at 4.10 o'clock,
and in a short time the entire depart
ment was at the theatre building fight
ing the fire.
The first line was laid by the steam
er company, and the water was turned
into the basement windows of the the
| atre building on the High street side.
From all appearances it seemed that
the fire was heaviest at this point, and
the smoke rolled out of the windows in
great volume.
In the rear of the building the Tor
rent hose company made a stand
against the fire by order of Chief Bah
cock, and here the fire had succeeded
in making good Roadway up through
| the elevator shaft. The company made
a decided fight, but the fire had gained
the second story before they could get
water and the blaze continued on it's
way uninterrupted.
The attack on the fire was continued
| from the rear for time, and it looked
as though the men of the Torrent COM
pany had succeeded in drowning the
blaze, when 1t broke through the hall
with a wild roar and gained Roadway
| in q vacant store on the east side of
| the block in Pond court 1t completely
| covered this store, and then attacked
| F. W. Simard's drug store almost in an
instant. Two streams were directed on
| the front of the block near the windows
of Mr.. Simards drug store, but the
terrible volume of smoke drove the fire
| fighters away in a short time. Fifteen
minutes after the alarm was turned
| in the big glass windows in front of
| Mr.. Cannon's grocery store smashed
with a loud report, and in three min
utes the entire front of the building
| was mass Of flame.
| The firemen made an attempt then to
| fight the fire from the front entirely,
| but had been at the work about 10 min
utes when the front wall Of the build
! ing fell with crash, which was sue
ceeded by the loud reports Of windows
blown out by the gases. The wall
nearest the Wheeler building began to
| topple shortly afterward and a warn
ing cry which was given none to soon
served as a signal to escape.
The wires of the Worcester and Clin-
| ton and the Leominster street railways
run in front of the building, and some
one in the crowd, remembering that
there were live wires overhead, made
known his discovery. and the crowd got
out of the way. The wires were cut
shortly afterward and the electric light
wires were also cut, leaving the place
| to be lit up only by the lurid light
which the flames gave as they rose
and fell at the tanning of the wind
The second alarm was a signal for
many members of Company K of the
Ninth regiment to assemble at the
armory, and shortly afterward the
militia call was turned in. About so
members of the company, under COM
mand of Capt Cannon and Lieuts.
Healy and Boyle, were at the armory,
and, after DOMINIC their army over
coats, cartridge belts With ten rounds
of cartridges and armed with Spring.
field rifles, they were marched to the
scene of the fire. Guard details, in
charge of nom commissioned officers,
were placed to protect property The
boys of Company K did good work in
conjunction with the police in handling
| the crowds and were highly praised.
The flames had spread with such
rapidity, that Chief Engineer Babcock
decided to call on surrounding towns
| for assistance, and as a result Chief
Edwin L. Vaughn of the Worcester fire
department was the first called.
Chief Vaughn drove to box 81, at
Lincoln square, Worcester, and turned
in an alarm. In the meantime arrange
ments had been made with the Boston
and Maine railroad, and a special train
of two fiat cars and one box car had
been made up and was waiting for
the Worcester apparatus when they
arrived at Lincoln square. Deputy
Chief George f. Coleman was placed
in charge, and Chief Vaughn detailed
Engine and Engine 4 hose carriage
TO go to the fire. Capt. Avery, Lieut..
| jeremiah Sullivan, E. o. Comay. o, T.
Aldrich, A. D. Robinson, Patrick Cox,
all of Engine 4, and Call Men Sweeney
! Of Ladder and Bert Thomas of Ladder
were ordered to go with Engine 4.
and Engineer c, f. Noyes, Driver A. l..
Cleveland and Stoker A. c. Tougas.
with Engine g.
At 5.15 o'clock the Worcester con-
| tingent was on it's way and arrived at
the scene of the fire in less than one
hour and half after the alarm was
turned in. When the Worcester com
panies arrived they were put to work
on the north end of the blaze and
| worked at that point until after 8. 20
o'clock, when the blaze was entirely
under control and it was only a matter
OF how long it would take for the de-
prls TO burn up. Fitchburg also sent
assistance as did Leominster.
After the walls of the theatre fell
the hremen turned their attention to
saving surrounding property, but this
shortly turned to a desire to check the
onward progress of the flame, as thew
mad by this time spread to all the sur
rounding buildings.
The Wind blowing a miniature gale
mad driven the sparks south TO the
Wheeler building, occupied by Holland
err the tailor and Hansen, the baker.
on the first floor, and let out in ten
ements on the upper stories. In a short
time, this was on fire beyond control
1t also spread to the north, when the
WIND changed and the Lathe block now
the property of Representative elect f.
II. Bates of Sterling, was badly on
nre and was totally destroyed before
the fremen could get in any effective
work.
With all the buildings burning. it was
next to impossible for Chief Babcoclr
to decide at which point an attack on
the flames would be most effective, but
ne finally decided that the Associates
block should be protected at any cost
and here he succeeded in keeping the
| names from further progress on that
side. Next to this building is the old
skating rink, frame structure and
this gave the f1remen much concern for
time.
The residents on the west side of
POND court were warned out of their
houses by the fremen, as it was feared