Connecticut western news., 1902-03-20
BIG FIRE IN HOBOKEN
Phoenix Line Piers and a Steam
 ship Burned.
TWO LIVES ARE PROBABLY LOST.

Other Fatalities May Re Heard of Later-severaI Lighters and Large Amount of Cotton Destroyed-Dan-
 ger to Holland-American Liner. New York, March 19-A swift and in many of its details picturesque fire last night destroyed the pier of the Phoenix Steamship line on the Hoboken (N. J) river front, with many bales of cotton and hay, burned that company's vessel, the British Queen, to a hulk, consumed several lighters and their cargoes, dam aged a dock belonging to the Barber Steamship line and for time threaten | ed the property of the Holland-Amer- lea line and the huge Campbell stores. Whether any lives were lost is most difficult to learn. While the confiagra- ton was at its height and after 1t had been reduced by the tiremen and fire boats rumors were. rife that several men perished. It Is tolerably certain that Chief Engineer Scott of the Brit ish Queen was burned to death on her | and that a sailor named Jansen met the same fate. One of the men who escaped the rapidity of the flames says that he saw several men leap into the water when the steamer became envel- | oped in fire, and he saw few If any of | these rescued.
 The Quartermaster of the ruined ship said that the crew were in her fore castle, and he surmised that if all es- capped they did so with difficulty. Nev- ertheless some of the British Queens | officers said that they were quite as- sured that all were safe save Engineer Scott, who, they said, was missing. It | is not unlikely that some of the long shoremen and stevedores who swarmed about the vessel may still have to be | accounted for
 The loss by the fire is variously esti- mated, but a conservative computation places 1t at from $9O0,OO0 to q, ,0O0, 900. | The scene of the fire was Seventh and River streets, Hoboken. Together there are the docks and basins of the l Phoenix line, the Holland-America line and the Barber line. The Phoenix line pier was a wooden structure 300 feet 1 long, covered with a frame shed. On this pier were many bales of hay and | cotton, which were burned with the ut- most rapidty.
 Cause of Fire Unknown.
 How the fire started is not known. Some narratives are that it started in the British Queen, which lay in the basin between the Phoenix line dock and the Holland-American dock, others that it had it's origin at the end of the pier. At all events, with but the barest | warning the flames burst out, quickly I licking up the pier and the cotton upon 1t and driving the stevedores and sail ors to the street, for the vessel was be- ing unloaded. having arrived here Fri day from Antwerp, cotton laden Flames hared up from the steamer with as great suddenness as they had upon the pier, and since she was made fast to the pier and could not be back ed out, lighters and other water craft which lay alongside of her, some of them holding such inflammable stun as oil cake. quickly caught fire too.
 The captain of the lighter Tonawan- da saved himself his wife and his child by pushing a cotton bale into the water, placing his family and himself upon 1t and padding his strange life raft into the river.
 The stiff wind which had blown all day gave impetus to the fire, whose glare reddened the North river for a long distance. Cattle pens upon the up- per decks of the British Queen were the first part of her consumed, but presently her hull was afiame.
 tho Dhoop{w Hno rfox ho No oa spread to the pier of the Barber line and then to the steamer Heathburn of the company, newly arrived from Hongkong, with cargo of tea
 Chinese Crew Arrested
 Among the crew of the steamer Heathburn were thirty-two Chinamen. When the flames began to run over the vessel, they all scampered to the pier for safety and began to make their way to the streets of Hoboken. There was a large force of customs officials on hand guarding property. As soon as these officials saw the frightened Chi namen they became alarmed that the aliens would make an illegal entry into the country, so with drawn pistols they ordered the Chinese to halt. The con- mand, enforced by the show oE revolv- CTS, was needed, and then, surrounded by guards. the foreigners were march ed to a pier some distance away and there locked up, under surveillance, for the night.
 The Holland-America line docks are below those of the Barber line. They caught fire, but were only slightly dam aged. The company's big steamer, the Maasdam, was lowed out into the river as soon as the danger became apparent.
 The fire was fought by Hoboken and Jersey City fire engines and from the water side by tugs and New York fire department boats. Employees of the Holland-America and Bremen Steamship lines assisted these forces, as did the crew of the United States ship Portsmouth lying at the pier next above the Phoenix line. This vessel is in use by the New Jersey naval reserve as training ship.
 - The fire started about S:35 o'clock, and by II: 80 it was we'll under control The British Queen, still ablaZe, was lowed out into the river. Three light CTS, all afire, were directed down the river by tugs, but owing to the wind and current they once or twice came near setting fire to property on the New York side. Two of them finally drifted to the east shore of Governors island
 setting fire to the new landing pier there.
 New Spanish Cabinet.
 The comDosition of the new Span