Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1899-02-03
STARTING OF THE FIRE.
II Was Over the Boiler ROOm-Fire
Was Under Great Headway When
Discovered.

The fire was probably first seen by Engi-
neer George w. Bliss. According to his
custom, Mr. Bliss, after the machinery had
been stopped for the noon hour, went into
a small room adjoining the engine room
and began to eat his dinner. From this
room, which was formerly an engine room,
he could look into the boiler room.
At about 1920 o'clock Mr.. Bliss was
startled by seeing burning ember fall to
the floor of the boiler room. He rushed
into the room and directed stream of
water upon it through small hose which
was kept at hand for emergencies. He
then discovered that the ember had fallen
through the ceiling from the dry room, and
he rushed up the stairs to stand pipe
which stood near the entrance to the l. of
the building. Here he was met by Oscar
Orvitt who was employed in the bending
room. Mr.. Orvltt had discovered that
there was a fire in the dry room and he
was Fastening toward the stand pipe with
the intention of turning a stream of water
into the room.
Mr.. Bliss grabbed the hose which was
kept constantly connected with the stand
pipe and started for the dry room. By
this time several employees who had been
eating their dinners in different parts of
the factory were on the scene, and +. W.
Nichols, the bookkeeper, who was in the
Office, also came TO assist in handling the
hose. Mr. Bliss yelled to the men to sound
the fire alarm and then he opened the dry
room door. He was driven back by the
FIRE and smoke, but he stood as near as
possible and played stream on the flames
until he became certain that the fire had
gotten beyond his control.
Mr.. Bliss is not positive as to the origin
of the fire, but he can conceive Of but one
or two ways through which II might have
been caused. The boiler was of the up
right style and 1t was encased by brick and
mortar. Between the brick and the out
side surface of the boiler was a space
called fire chamber. Directly over the
boiler was the bending room and adjoin-
ing the bending room was the dry room,
the latter room being partly over the boil
er room and partly over the engine room.
The feed pipe, that is, the pipe which
carried the steam from the boiler to the
engine, passed from the boiler through the
fire chamber aud under the floor of the dry
room. The boards Of this floor were set a
short distance apart in order that the heat
from the feed pipe and other pipes might
pass up into the room and dry the stock
therein.
The point where the feed pipe left the
| boiler was at least four feet from the point
where 1t entered under the floor of the dry
room. Had there been a defect in the
brick work where the feed pipe passed
through it spark from the fire chamber
might have escaped and passed under the
dry room floor and lodged in the dust
which had fallen down through the iooI
spaces. This dust would ignite almost as
rapidly rs powder, and the room would be
entirely ablaze before 1t would be possible
TO get to it from the boiler room.
On the top of the boiler was heavy
iron cap that had TO be removed occasion
ally in order that the flues might bC
cleaned. Whenever this cap was replaced
1t was cemented on so that no spark:
could escape 1t is possible that there wa'
defect in the mortar and that a spark es
capped near the cap instead of the feeC
pipe.