The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1902-02-16
DURLAND'S OLD PLACE BURNED
RACK DRAUGHT CATCHES FIRE.
MEN; NINE INJURED.
None Seriously Burned Old riding Acsd-
envy al the circle Was TO he Made over
Into q Hippodrome- Alarm Given by
Negro Boy-IOss Placed At VI 900.

NOUC " tvN"Ny
envy NJ the circle Was 20 he Mad over
into a Hippodrome- Alarm Given by
Negro Boy-Loss Placed At $50. 600.
pirland's old riding academy. bounded
by Broadway. Central Park. West Sixtieth
and Sixty-frst streets was destroyed by
Are Yesterday afternoon, and In fighting
the flames a number OF fremen received
burns and bruises. although none OF them
IL seriously injured.
The fire was discovered about 2 O'Clock.
A small negro boy ran up to Patrick Battle,
a Waterman at the subway excavation at
Sixtieth street, and shouted: Hey. mlstah,
dah's a FIRE In dat building. just Jaw
two white boys come out OF Il. too.
Battle looked and saw smoke coming out
NJ the northeast corner OF the bulIdlng,
and Mt that moment an Eighth avenue car
nassed with a uniformed fireman o the
rear platform. Battle signalled TO him TO
ret of and the fireman turned In an alarm.
Engine 40 was the first to respond,
and when IL arrived the fire bad got a
good Roadway. Capt. Cosgrove turned
In a second and third alarm. and then. with
all the fremen who were subsequently
INJURED. he ran O line Of hose from the
sixty-Arst street end OF the building to
the second floor.
The opening Of the doors to do this created
A bao draught, and before the fremen
we're aware Of Il they found themselves
hemmed In with no nance Of escape but
by way Of the windows.
Capt Cosgrove shouted to the men 10
drop the line and save their lives. Each
Of the windows was protected with an iron
screen, and II was the work OF several mo-
ments before they could be forced from
their fastenings. In the meantime the
flames had spread dan gerously near the
fremen and the smoke enveloped them In
sufocating clouds.
Half suffocated and with burned hands
and faces and singed hair and eyebrows
the fremen dropped to the ground one by
one and Capt. Cosgrove. unmindful OF his
own injuries, did not leave the spot until
his men were all accounted for.
Ambulances were summoned from Roose-
welt and Flower hospitals and these injured
fremen were cared for:
Capt. James Cosgrove. Engine Company
20. burned about the face and injuries to
"Robert Manning. Hook and Ladder Com
pAny 4. burned about face and hands
Thomas Coyle. I'm Rine Company %, burned
about face and hands. and bruises.
Michael Strout. Engine Company rs burns
LIEUT. nugufNs LIlblut NOhhpdhF q VI uN7
Patrick. Clark. Engine company 90. burns
CAPT John MSKsOn Engine Company 90
James Devlin. Engine Company 20, burns
James Carroll. Engine Company 20. face
burned.
In addition to these. W. J, Payton. of .i7ss
burns.
All were able to leave the hospitals after
their wounds had been attended TO, with
the exception Of Capt. Cosgrove and Fire
man Manning. They will probably be
about in n day or two,
The flames spread with great rapidity.
The building, which was unoccupied, was
soon a mass of flames. The fremen were
able 10 reach il on all sides and thus pre-
vented it's spread TO any n~eiglboring build
ings.
Upon the arrival OF Chief Croker he
turned In a fourth alarm.
At one time the roof OF the Poillon apart
ment house in West Sixty-frst street aught
fire, but II was quickly oXtinguished. Some
Of the windows We're broken by the heat,
and a few Of the frightened tenants began
10 throw their belongings out of the win
dows, but they were soon quoted.
The fire burned hercely for about two
hours and nothing remained Of the structure
but a portion Of the walls.
Police arrangements, for sona time
after the fire was under way. were in
sufficient. An immense crowd OF people
focked to the fire, and there was not a
policeman in sight. Capt. S~chmittberger
was riding by on an Eighth avenue car and
he summoned from Central Park the
mounted squad. who held the crowds back
until a squad arrived from the West Sixty
eighth street station.
The burned building was about $50 feet
long with three stories In front and -four
stories In the rear. Ii was built in 1887
and opened first as a bicycle academy.
Mr.. Durland leased the building for some
years until abou. a yea7 ago when he moved
into his new riding academy at Sixty-sixth
street.
The New York Hippodrome Company
recently leased the building and was max
ing preparations TO remodel IL and con-
duct there next winter a permanent circus
and ~hippodrome. The company had an
office on the ground floor. The building
was owned by Frederick B. jennings. John
G. Mccullough and I. l.. Park. 1t was
built at a cost OF about 100000.
Chief Croker estimates the loss at about
$40. 200. insured. The police have no idea
As to the origin Of the fire, but were look-
ing last night for the colored boy who told
Waterman Battle that the building was on
fire.