The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1901-06-25
|,noF THE CIIY'S RECORDS SAVED.
!, E,s Started from a Timers Furnace
:" % the Roof of the Building.
n OVER $4,000; INSURANCE $4,000
I. eio Vault Remains lntact-A Miser-
\ poor Water Pressure---Counoil
= Meet at Corporation Court.

A., bells rang out the requiem Of
,oD,s big market house and city hall.
II MS market place has been pointed
IN pride for years by every citizen
few minutes after the first alarm
gtrep dense volumes of smoke ascend.
ram the very heart of the city. and
hours later nothing but charred and
Nd walls remained to tell the story
,oa Of the fercest fires that has vslteI
A. business portion of the city since the
,snls and Keller CONGREGATIONS.
When ii was known that the market
t,e was on FIRE crowds poured there from
ssr section of the city until market
,,r,re was literally walled in with people.
81 Il, hurried concentration of the fire de
Fl narent at the scene but heightened the
gdtpment
when the flames began TO shoot through
h. roof enyeloping nearly the entire south
I'M Of the structure, people began TO
H r,re that the big market was doomed,
4 relaxation made all the more vivid when
cream after stream Of water turned on
! tsn the FIRE plugs had scarcely pressure
i ,aspgh behind to force the water to the
4 n Of the awning shed surrounding the
bidding
i 4 slr southeastern breeze famed the
\ r. Into small sea OF fury as it reached
1 d main portion of the building, AMI
q harsh the members Of the fire department
sased nobly and with energy worthy of
latsr results, their efforts were futile, and
Horscns boosted market house, which,
rlA its counterpart predecessor, has oc-
cpsi the square since 1874, is for the
pcrd time in ruins.
~
1 twas about twenty minutes to 4 o'clock
yesterday afternoon when the aldermen
rae assembled for a regular meeting of
! AhNty council, the first meeting to have
~ neN in the old council chamber since
has been renovated, that cries of ire on
be outside, with people on the street point.
Big up to the roof of the market building,
4 lls the hrst intimation that the building
4 va Oh 6re
Several Of the aldermen, with a Post re-
i lafter, got out upon the awning shed
through the windows in Secretary Lipper's
4 tite and discovered, a few feet over their
fssts, an inelpient fame in the roof near
1 u cave and close to the tall tower that
= nearing completion. Close by the
tne sat timers furnace that was being
sst IN putting on new corniee and 1t
aignated
\ = needless to say that everything about
w Dnlldlng vas exceedingly dry aAa the
" spread with remarkable rapidlty, soon
nsslg It's way through the new cupoa
~ tlai mas been recently placed upon
~ building IN Its repairs and reconauuc
ga made necessary by the September
pa'n' and which We're nearing completion,
soon became apparent that the build
" was doomed. There was stiT solth-
aN breeze blowing which was from the
fsat direction TO carry the flames across
pe building giving 1t new material to work
pm as It went
wv officials We're hurrying hither and
i'nAer, locking books and valuable papers
plelr safes and vaults and corrying out
Ss'Nflters and other office furniture that
~sa not be gotten into the safes.
- me Performance of this task MIR. 4.
Mspo, the city treasurer. remained In
4, n vulee longer than was prudent and In
, s-epP ilng 10 leave the building was over
~, tue intense heat and dense smoke
@,rd Isu accumulated in the long halls aud
IA u.s. lie was assisted OCT. however,
souss 'u' nome and his condition Is not Sc
v snsner Casualty more serious in it's con.
|Nfsaefs happened to City Attorney Joe
M.li he, with his office force, was
nd faea,, VOTE trying 10 save the papers
mn Nv Of his office. Mr.. Sam was out
III ~ ~ u awning shed on the Travis street
.ne building when r. gave way, pre-
81 NY aim TO the walk below. Mir.
~ ,his not SO badly hurt but that he
tits avg to extricate himself from the
IA ssen amy walk away without assistance
|kma Nmmlhg a carriage proceeded TO his
ia M Is Scared andE bruised, but be-
Thssn Is not seriously hurt.
nonsb we're the only serious casualties,
nlus chny DINERS of a much more Sc
eas aataeter We're reported. In fact,
aaupa Nte many Wild rumors flying
lsers, Vwer and the caving in Of the
nasr walls that tiremen were buried
nenhd,ansl, but these rumors all proved
nnsia though several OF the hremen,
isurssacrnn1lng their work. fearlessly and
haly hrs.s mad their hands and faces
sntsr, 'erned by coming into too close
''s With the intense heat.
. chemical was the FIRST engine put
I'M out the fire was beyond its ca
|,st or doing anything like effective
H.. oalf dozen or more connections
N. ue from adjacent hydrants with
|kna, the lines OF hose run into the
|e,,s. and others doing service on the
|s.ssl., ana Of these none OF them had
en = loFce to carry the water more
hr,., we top Of the awning she'd.
|issl, streams were thrown from the
b. hnn through the windows Of the burn
Ind .Ans, nut the pressure was so slight
81 hremen were forced 10 heh'
1ail unon very close range This heavy
sslltse fb. We mains also appeared 10
.sH VA EfYice of the steamers and it
tAiy X sn1l the FIRE had burned for
3 arsilsh,Y that good water pressure
|ti nm sals saojeet Mr. ]. p. otto. assist
/. Rnorter the department. was asked hg
~ coec. The Post to make q state
|.nA ws lung the lack Of water pressure
9sM M nanlfest to every one who wit
z, ~ fou, and also as 10 the behavior
Y ttadvs steamers that were put under
= 'susfe. Mr.. Otto said he preferred