The Portland daily press., 1900-07-03
CAMPS DESTROYED.
Fire at Peaks Breaks
Gut Again.
Help Summoned From the City at
Noon.
Effective Fighting Of the
Flames.
Fire Threatened to Spread Over
Hills at Times.

After working valiantly all day Satur-
day and Sunday on the fire at Peaks
island the tiremen thought yesterday tnat
everything would be all right. But an
other fierce blaze again broke out on the
southern part of the island during the
forenoon yesterday and as the aspect had
assumed a most dangerous condition by
noon help was summoned from the city
and Engine z at once went to the scene.
The water boat Fannie g. also went along
by orders of Chief Engineer Eldridge and
all of yesterday afternoon and evening,
save for short time when the Fannie G.
was obliged to return to the city to repair
her broken pump, the fremen were busily
engaged in staying the progress of the
flames.
Chief Engineer Eldr1dge superintendent
the work during the first part of the af-
ternoon and then left the fire in charge
of Assistants Hodgdon and Paine. Some
60 men were brought into service and
these with about dozen of the Peaks
island fremen composed the force. The
section in which the fire did the most
/
! by the WEIGH and Hilton estate, James
| W. Bracket and the Torington estate.
AS on Saturday the fire of yesterday was
in the dense lot of woods. 1t spread over
three or four hundred acres The loss
was confined to the burning of three
camps These were the Monarch owned
/ by Miss S. M. Davies and occupied by Mr..
/ Frank Pollard; Massebesslc owned by the
Thompson brothers and the Mortimer
owned by James Robinson, Zach was
worth about $500 and nearly all of the
furnishings were burned.
Many times it seemed as If the fire
would spread up over the hill and
threaten the cottages in that Vicinity, but
thanks to the excellent work OF the fire
department these fears were not realized.
On arriving at the island Engine tied
up at the southerly end of the Casco Bay
wharf and sent out a line of hose over the
hill and to the woods. This stream was
played with good effect for a couple of
hours and then the nreboat shifted her
position to the cove off the east end of the
island as near as possible to the shore and
directly opposite the Fifth Maine Regi-
ment building. This was the site that the
Fannie q. had been occupying and for
some time both boats sent out lines of
hose which proved to be very effective.
After being taken around to the cove,
three lines of hose were thrown out by
the fire boat Late in the afternoon there
were no more big blazes raging and the
flames were well under control. There
were, however, many places which were
smOuldering and on account OF these the
fire men We're obliged to keep pegging
away at their work. Up to a late hour
last night the treboat was still stationed
opposite the eastern end of the island and
it was the intention of Chief Eldridge
that she should remain there until all
danger had passed.
About the section where the fire was
doing it's worst the department confined
it's efforts to thoroughly soaking the lots.
Stream after stream was poured onto
these lots so that there would not be the
least bit of show for any sparks getting a
hold and making progress. The lines
were pulled back and forth, shifted in all
directions and by 2 o clock in the after
moo there was never any likelihood of
the fire spreading. BY that hour all of
the big masses of flames had disappe AIRED
although clouds of smoke were issuin Q
from all of the lower ends of the island so
that the confagration at that time seemed
to be fully as great as it had been atgan.
Camps o. M. 0. B. and Lookout had
narrow escapes and their occupants be-
came so alarmed that they hustled to
move out all of the furnishings Mrs.
Thomas Ball who owns a camp near by
| appeared on the scene and kindly offered
her camp to all parties who had been
burned out in the three camps. A num-
Der of the cottag ers in that part of the
island also took precaution to remove
their goods out of doors in order to be
ready if by any means the fire should
spread to their section. AS it happily
happened, however, the flames were
stayed in proper time.
During the day large numbers of people
visited the island as the news spread
rapidly in the city that the fire was far
worse than it had been Saturday. Men.
women and children covered the hill and
eagerly watched the firemen in their
work The firemen did not have to work
under the great disadvantage they were
obliged to on Saturday as it was not
necessary to stretch the long line of hose
through the dense thickets.
The city Of Portland Will be Obliged to
pay at the rate of 500 an hour for the
forest fires on Peaks island Up to mid
night these fires cost enough to buy a
pretty good sized lot of land IN the back