The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1901-06-21
FIRE IN BASEMENT.
Saulpaugh Hotel Receives a
Searching.
The Guests, Awakened Suddenly, Turn
Out in Scagt Raiment in Some
Cases.

Gnau III was not totally uestrOyeu ls uue
to its solid and safe construction and
the splendid and daring work of the
fire department. AS it is, the service
of Mankato's big hostelry is not even
interrupted, but guests are being cared
for as though nothing had happened.
At the same time. a good deal OF loss
has been inflicted upon the building
and it's furnishings.
1t was about two o'clock when
Mangus Groonquist, a day bell boy,
was awakened from his sleep in the
basement by breath of flame and
smoke that swept dangerously near his
face. He was sleeping in the north
part of the basement, near the Main
street sidewalk, close to an ice box
that had been unused for several
years. This was not his usual place
for sleeping. but he had moved his bed
there because it was cooler. He had
lighted himself to bed with the en-
gineer's torch, which consists of a
wick protruding from an oil can.
When Mangus awakened, the flames
were next to the ice box and the
smoke was becoming denser every min
ute. He FASTENED to notify the night
engineer or Waterman, Thos. Grady,
who had lain down to rest short time
before and had fallen asleep Mangus
awakened him and then ran to the
first floor and notified Night Clerk 81.
B. Tomb, who has been serving in that
capacity for the past two weeks, nav
ing come from st. Paul.
Mr. Tomb Immediately turned on
the electric fire alarm system, which
rings bell in each sleeping room.
When the wire burned off, he and
Clerk Scott went through the halls,
making sure that all of the guests were
awake. F. 81. Snyder, the lessee and
manager, had been awakened at the
first alarm, and he stood in one of the
Railways and directed the guests to the
stairways and fire escapes.
Guests We're Alarmed.
There were sixty three guests in the
house and they were quickly in the
Railways and seeking an exit The
night was warm and the windows
were all up: and the draft carried the
smoke to all of the floors. Some of
the guests were very much frightened
and turned out in scanty clothing,
while others donned all of their clothes
before leaving. Ten went down one of
the new iron fire escapes that have just
been completed. One fire escape had
been put on purposely for the help,
bat in the excitement Of the moment
the girls ran through the Railways to
the stairs, forgetting the fire escape.
Everybody got out without injury and
nobody lost anything.
In the meanwhile, as soon as Mr..
Snyder had been awakened, a still
alarm was sent to the central fire sta
tion. When the fremen arrived and
saw how serious the blaze was, an
attempt was made to turn in an alarm
from the box near the city hall, No.
26, but it would not work. A tele
phone message to the pumping station
caused the whistle to sound the alarm.
A little later an alarm was turned
in from box 30. on the Savings bank
corner. The entire volunteer force re-
sponded and worked with will under
Chief Beach Water was turned on
and chemicals used.
Flames Ran Up.
The flame worked into shaft about
six inches square. running from the
basement to the roof and containing
the wiring for electric lights. They
have never been used, however, as the
insurance rate with that kind of light
ing is greater. A line of hose was run
up and water and chemicals were ap-
piled to the shaft, with the result that
the fire was quickly extinguished
there.
Holes were chopped in the flooring
in the lunch room and the adjacent
part of the lobby, in order to better
reach the fire in the basement, and
floods of water was thrown down until
it stood two or three feet deep in the
basement. The fremen worked until
5 80 a. m, when every vestige of the
fire had disappeared. While the fire
was in progress smoke poured into the
barroom from underneath the side
board, and the heat was so intense that
it was necessary to send stream of
water into that room. Some of the
plastering there and elsewhere has
fallen off.
1t is difficult to estimate the loss,
and the extent of the..damage will not
be known for day or two. but that
it will be about So, 900 seems GER
tain. This includes woodwork burned,
wiring destroyed, plastering that has
fallen, and the damage to carpets, etc. i,
from smoke and water. Mr.. Saul
paugh carries $50, 600 to $40, 900 of insur-
ance on the building, and Mr.. Snyder
carries ST., 500 on the furnishings.
The origin of the fire is not known.
The ice box was entirely empty. and
no rubbish was piled in that vicinity.