The Savannah morning news., 1900-12-03


shnvings 81 between che ioists OF floors
In these days % electric wiring the sup-
poSedly insulated wires pass beneath The
floors. II either the wire o. the shavings
were properly insulated there would be
no trouble. But In one way OF another
the wire Is exposed and communicates q
spark 70 the shavings which may Re ly-
tng near a. The spark may shoulder for
days and then In the dead OF night there
comes cry OF Fire
The houses q the wealthy. even in theso
days OF fre-proof construction are n
more Of are-traps than thu meanest tens-
ments The fues IN the ab de- OF wea n
and luxury are often defective. In m nv
cases only the width OF a brick inte~ven =
between intense heat and highly varnlsl-
ed and inhammable cabiuef work Ri,h
hangings and upholstered fuf niture give
the food upon which conhaE atl'n fe a.
Defective electric wiring has m n sins
20 answer Tor In these days + ectricia >
who are supposed % be compel n. vi
cross wires and violate nearly every Or NJ
cipal OF common sense and o. ectfi Al
science Some % them lcai M nj z
wire through wooden boxes which. tn The
event OF FIRE become rearing fue s m
81 the most destructive fires known IN III B
large cities have been due 20 C rele 3 50
In placing the wires for electric light ng
Mysterious Gas Generated by Large
Fires.
One Of the greatest dangers that IRE
men have 10 face is the sud en- epic i've
burst OF fame in a burning bull ing whcra
no known explosives are present 4 e
theory has been advanced hy expert lu
tire-hghting that these epic q. ar
caused BY a gas generated In 81 d
AL hrF lob A. n "a
exact nature Of this ga they d. not at
tempt 10 define. but they say that u D.
a high explosive, and cNtr me mia u-
mable ia the open air This coy s
borne out IN a remarkable way b 8 Are
In Syracuse several years ago On two
sides Of a large stCrehouse but ding here
was a IRE. The burning b-illi were
both separated from The st~re ouse b.
the width OF the street Streams o. va e
from hose were playing upon {, in tie
hope OF saving Il. The building was
hlled with cloth and her no =
explosive materials. Without e.
limlnary pickering or other wa n
ing. the entire building sudden.y
burst into flames The windows were
violently blown out and ere darted forth
from them and a. the same time great
columns Of fame spurted up from the
roof IL was evident chat the air inside
he tightly closed building had become
suddenly ign.ted on ell sides That Il
mad an explosive quality was equally ap-
parent THIS same gas Il is claimed Is
responsible for the vivid and beautiful
Are balloons" that sail up into the air
ahove large fires.
There Is a mysterious property in dust
which under certain conditions produces
violent explosions. There have been in
stances IN posioffices where the dust from
the mail bags suspended in the air Of 0
close room has exploded with terrific
force Dust explosions are Of frequent
occurrence In -four and drug mile The
precise conditions under which such &C.
-idents occur have never been determin-
Cd II Is che theory OF those who have
made mysterious fires a lifelong study
that the explosions always occur IN
rooms where little air 10 admitted ana
where the temperature y high.
Spontaneous Combustion an over
worked Excuse.
Spontaneous combustion covers a multi
tude OF the sins Of carelessness. The orl-
gin OF many fires IN tailor shops may be
traced 70 the so-called dry-cleaning o.
rlothes. 4 rag dipped In naphtha Is fire.
luenily used In removing grease spots
from garments The rag soaked with
nfammahle fluid Is thrown upon the
door When the shop Is closed mp and the
air is confined the naph;ha soaked maze
-ial will OF Itself generate fire. Bales OF
,otton. placed in the hold Of ship. arr
often the cause OF disastrous hres. Ere
1uently a spark from o CIGAR feeds a
resting place In a cotton bale, where s.
shoulders for weeks.
one OF the most prolific causes OF tene-
nent house fires Is the dark hall. The
law provides that Railways shall be light
ed until ten o'clock at night. Frequent
" persons come in after that hour. and
strike matches in order 20 ind their wa'
Ia many cases their senses are befudde
With drink. and the burning match STICK
are thrown upon the floor. Here the
matches may come In contact with greasy
matting or with bits OF paper, ana start
a IRE which shoulders for hours. and 10
he early hours OF the morning spread
through the house. Rainy days cause
al manner Of fires II Is che custom Of
he housewife 20 hang wet garments In
The kitchen when the weather conditions
will not admit OF tho drying OF the family
wash upon the roof. Frequently she
leaves che damp clothes hanging In tn
Kitchen near a stove. The garments dry
out during the night. and becoming light
or are easily blown against the stove
~ draughts Of air They take fire ana
i.efore many mainutes the whole kitchen
Il In flames
Frequent recommendations have been
made BY the chiefs OF the city FIRE depart
rents that the swinging gas bracket b.
Of ollshed BY law whenever the authori
ties OF the fire department &c, ehanee
srev order such brackets 20 be move
r made stationary Hundreds OF hres
ave been caused by the careiessneSs OF
persons who left these swinging bracket
y such a position that the fame could
come In contact with lace curtains. WHO
a special reference apparently TO causing
As many fires as possible, the Easn'te'
aiways puts q swimming bracket where
Ne knows the housekeeper will wish -
rang lace curtain. The combina'io'
~ curtain and bracket Is often fa'al
me OF the most active causes OF href
q the rnantel decoration. In many horn"
, silken scarf Is hnug from the ~arte
',aelf whenever there g ne IN he grrt
here IL DANCER OF the hiTsv -'rf
4re In tenement houses Fmall otoves re
often plsced before the marte' The man
ri shelves are none tho les du'v dec
Grated with ya.ds Of emb-ol e ed and tn
4e'led cloth; IN many cases this d cora
zion has caught IRE FROM me stove
20 the floor. and ignifed the fat-s0ak q
Garnet or mating In @me house there
are wardrobes and clothes closets near
the ehlmneys The clothing hung behind
the closed doors and subjected n the win
ter time 10 a steady heat from the chin
ney is liable to combustion.
Chemical Combinations Fertile