Albuquerque daily citizen. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1895-1903, 1900-08-14
A DESTRUCTIVE FIRE,
Store Of the Santa Fe Mercantile
Company Burned Out.
LOSS MAY FOOT UP $4,000.


about 1850 O'Clock. Vivian Padilla,
night walter at Conway's restaurant.
was the first TO give the alarm. He was
in front Of Conway's. when, booking
across the street, he saw through the
glass doors In the mercantile com-
pany's establishment a small blaze.
well toward the rear of the main room.
He shouted as he ran to the hose house
ana set or the fire bell. The fire de-
partment appeared In full force and In
al. hour had the fames under control. u
was thought. Most OF the iremen then
left the place, but II seems that the fire
was only partially smOthered and kept
burning beneath the ceiling and the up
per floor, breaking out afresh later In
several different parts Of the big build
ing. The entire building was filed with
a dense smoke. making II impossible to
get into II on either the first or second
floors. The tin rOUf and the veneering
| OF tin which encased the econd story
rendered the deluge Of water from two
n~ozzles. practically ineffective and al
most before anybody seemed to realize
1t the whole interior d the building
was in flames again. The hrcmen and
the whole crowd Of workers then APP
poared IN become panic-stricken The
mayor, city marshal and policemen APP
peared on the scene and berated the
hremen for lot holding the flames In
check when they at first had them m
der control. Most Of the firemen quit
work. the chemical engine crew. with
one or two exceptions resigned In a
body and quit the service and for a time
there was confusion. II vas then too
late to save much OF the building and
It's contents. hut citizens buckled In and
worked for Ave hours with a view 10
prevent the spreading Of the flames to
Walker a. Co.'S double story brick adj
Joining and other adjacent property.
Many times It seemed that the flames
would certainly communicate to other
buildings. but by dlnt OF hard work this
was prevented.
Alderman J. w. Akers was one OF the
first on the scene after the alarm Vas
given, and gave directions to the fire.
fighters TO confne their efforts 10 cav
Ing the abutting buildings. He had TAX
en- the keys from Mr.. Gusdorf and de-
clined TO open the front doors for fear
Of creating a draft through the build
ing. At that time the fire, he explains.
was confined to one "A room. where
there appeared to be nothing burning
on the floor, bu the fire was dropping
from the ceiling. Mr.. Gusdorf says al
that time. after the flames had been
got under control. as II was thought
the total damage TO the premises would
MT have exceeded $1,000. There was a
large amount Of water poured In upon
the flames both from above and below
but the sitting smoke. the tin casing
and the adobe walls made II impossible
to reach the main c~oniiagration. ano
!. so II burned on despite the water. u
was early discovered that the flames
were spread all along beneath the sec
ond floor. Eight rooms on this foo
n were occupied by Hon. Luis NJ. Ortiz
!, territorial auditor, and his family, VIII
, had locked the premises securely an
had gone to their l. ID LucerOs ranch
Several persons made an effort to breal
=, down the doors with a view to savinl
some Of Mr.. Ortiz effects, but say tn
hremen stopped them, as 1t was though
, the fioors In all these rooms were un
dermlned, and likely to go down az an!
n | mOlltnls InuS u HdDBtllfh INV W.
. Ortiz lost all his effects, consisting o
. household goods, Ave trunks of cloth
ing and considerable jewelry, some o
which had been In his family for owe
r 100 years, and was very highly priced
also a small thirty-day clock, brough
a from Europe by his father-in-law u
e lS4S, and which had a remarkable rec
e ord. having run constantly for forty
two years and never needed repair. MI
d ORTIZ estimates his total loss, ne had n
insurance, at 81, 500. "a Knodt's moa
" market was damaged, he states, to IN
Il extent Of about $500. He carried $500 In
surance in $. Il. Lankard's agency
J. Felix Griego, the barber occupying
II room adjoining the meat market, wa
J. ncminally damaged, most of his effect
ID being saved.
The santa Fe Mercantile company, a
e. above stated, estimates the value Of 4,
II stock at about $4,000. The o an
1t accounts we're saved. and from the wa
sr ter soaked and smoked wreck may /
saved a few hundred dollars worth ,
DR. blankets, clothing and notions. tt
Insurance on the stock figures up abol
$4,000. the bulk Of II being In $. }
Lankard's agency, the remainder wit
70 Wunschmann a 20. = agency, and 500
81 in The Continental company, now rel
9. resented locally by A. NJ. Dettelbach.
q There was no insurance on Il
y building. This was Of adobe. veneers
70 with brick and tin. two stories
ID height, about l5O fest on san FNancis'
. street and extending back ON Gasp
- .- aa~ r.. nh. l..lLlAnur and l.
IL on which Il stood were valued at SO
600. Miguel Ohaves, OF Rio Arriba coui
= ~, has for several years held a NOR
e' gage on the property. the principal b
ne ing $4,000, but with accrued interes
X this now 10 nearer $1,000, al
ne Hon. II. ID. Burns also had $1,000 loan
on the same property. Until a ye
ago, Miguel Chaves kept the proper
Insured at $4,000, but he and the owne
ey became involved In litigation out Of !
efforts TO fOreclose the mortgage a
he refused to further pay the insuran'
h. lie has a suit to fOreclOse now pendir
r. As 10 the origin Of the fire. that IL
pr, complete mystery, Mr., Gusdorf "a
II The electric lights had failed TO wo
for a short time early In the evenir
wv necessltating the lighting Of LAMPS
'er tle store. These, however, We're all 4
II. tinguished probably nearly an hour |
fore he and his clerks departed at abe
$3.50. In the rear, roDm. in the milline
ats department, "a single electric light "
left Ia burn all night as usual, wh
de' they locked the front doors for I
night. He thinks the fire originated
Tor The hrst floor near the ceiling, but h
.hs he could not venture a guess.
sit -
m Hunger Is the Hest sauce"
$ a Yet some people are never hung
on Whatever they eat has 10 be forS
IGN down. There Is, Of course. somethi
slg - 80 80 - n. go