The Portland daily press., 1900-12-28
Flames Spread Rapidly to Other
Parts of the Block.
Waldo Hotel at One Time i'm Danger
Fire Under Control at "a.

and who also lives in the building, Mr..
building; the Columbia Musical club,
and many other people and organiza-
tions who occupy rooms and offices.
The fire alarm was sounded long after
the most of these people were in bed and
fora time there was great excitement on
the upper floors of the building. But
Deputy Mar shall Firth and a corps OF
officers occupied themselves as soon as
they reached the scene In quieting the
fears of these people and in inducing
them to leave the building. They
were told and 1t was then believed that
the tire would be stopped in the base
msnt or on the first floor anyway and
that their goods were In no danger OF
being destroyed.
After time most of the people were
removed from the building, but every
oncs in while there would be great ex-
citsment In the large crowd on the street
when some person would begin to hunt
around In the crowd for some missing
friend whom 1t was feared had not been
able to get out OF the building before the
corridors and rooms became so filled with
smoke that 1t was impossible TO remain
up stairs for a minute.
In the meantime the flremen were hav-
ing their hands full with the fire In the
basement. Blaoker and blaoker
GREW THE CLOUDS OF SMOKE
which rolled out into the street and as
| tho trnp stdawaIk orotin0a xvara tnru axvav
ore after another TO give the flremen
bstter opportunities for getting at the
basement It could be seen that ths entire
cellar was one mass OF seething flames.
Chief Eldredge made every effort to get
at the back part or the basement with his
streams. but this was impossible to do
owing TO the construction and location
of the building. Cellar pipes were used
and eight big streams OF water were
pouring into the cellar from the Congress
strset front, but none of these seemed TO
check the fire which was burning in the
rear OF the basement. A stream had
besn used with great effect through
skyliRht window, on tat roof In the
rearsof the building. but after time the
smoke became so dense ON the upper floor
and upon this Hat roof that the iiremen
were forced to give up their posts there
and return to the street. Th y came out
of the building in such hastt that they
were not able to get their line out and
had to pull it down stairs after them af-
ter they reached the street.
In the basement was wooden Darti-
tion which divided the basement Of WOOL
worth's store into two sections. The tire
seemed at first to be on the Oak street
side of this partition but 1t quickly got
through and then through the wooden
partition which senarated the Woolworth
store room that of Simon Rosenberg tho
clothier. Hotter and hotter rev the tire,
and it was feared that the Dow block
must also go. In this block as has been
said Is located X. NJ Lewsen's store, Miss
Anna Abbott store and the Waldo hotel.
ana the police sent for the propristors Of
these stores aud warned the people in the
Waldo house to be ready to get out at a
nom ants notice. At twenty minutes
past one O'Clock the fire burst out in livid
sheets of flame in the Woolworth store
having worked its way through the floor.
Ab tne bainc tiiho SPaAAs NA1 "'AA
tongues OF fame could be seen coming
from the roof of tha Rines block ana the
cellar which had before been as black as
midnight with only here and there red
spot to show where the fire was hotteat
suddenly became as red as furnace door
and the flames bnrst through the cellar
windows on the street and drove the fire.
II mas, s,.ek aoroea the eidayyaik
Ii was then that Chief Eldridgs saw
that he headed mors help and that with
the apparatus &C hand he was not in a
position TO cope with what was threat