Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1904-02-10
FIXING THE LOSS.
Highest Estimate of Baltimore
Fire Is 100000.
Not One Life Sacrificed in the Grea1
CoLAagration.
Reported Fatalities FaIse-Militia on
Guard.

begun its resurrection. With tie dawn
of clear winter day whose bright.
ness was in itself an inspiration, the
apathy of yesterday gave way to the
energy OF aroused effort and from the
governor of the State to the least pri-
vate citizen the people OF this Distress
led city pulled themselves together to
meet the appalling conditions that
confront them.
1t was Il day of conferences The
governor the mayor and various mu-
micipal officials met and threshed out
the problems that are theirs by virtue
of public office. From this conference
came Il decision that Baltimore for The
present needs no outside help. but will
cndeavor With her own resources and
those of the state to meet the emer-
Eency. At this conference also were
developed the machinery for an advi-
sorry legislative commission to act in
conjunction with the Legislature
The military officials also had I'M
usual problems to decide and solved
them in Il military manner, for tonight
every PASS that had been issued giving
entrance to the fire lines was revoked
No civilian may pass the Gordon Of
citizen soldicry which after IS hours
of continuous duty tonight stretches
around the tire-sWept desert where lay
safes ana vaults containing untold
| treasure. These We're the chief events
of a governmental character.
| With equal promptness the Chamber
| of Commerce held Il general meeting
| and issued Il formal announcement that
| reflected the prevailing hopefufness,
| declaring there are already such evil
| dences of rccuperation thai encourage
all in the hope of the early restoration
1 of every branch of trade
| The Stock Exchange members, keyed
to the same pitch of energy. met and
| decided TO rebuild as soon as possible.
i The same story can he tod OF rracti-
i cally every commercial body, while OF
every hand is evidence OF private effort
/ toward rehabilitation.
Old buildings long unused, private
] residences near the business section.
+, in fact every available structure be-
, crudely lettered signs on board or cloth
announcing that within is the tempo
rary office of firm. The names on
some of these signs are those that rank
high in the financial and commercial
circles Of the world and i'll these tenn
porary offices men who for years have
known only mahogany desks work on
deal tables and plain boards.
Labor is in demand and the news
papers already contain display adver-
tiscmcnts for men to begin the work
of clearing the ruins.
| All things considered. the public
stock taking that cEgrosscd the bust
ness world of Baltimore, today, was
satisfactory. But this does not mean
that the great fire WAS i lesser calam-
ity than has been pictured in these dis
patches The bold fact is that 40
acres of business buildings, represent
ing property to the approximate value
of $l25. 900 900. was destroyed within
the journey of ! clocks nand
A great cloud was lifted. this after
noon when it was discovered that prdc-
| tically all of III" vaults and Stron5
rooms and safes of the financial con-
Germs are unhurt. \ tremendous loss
IL securities had been anticipatcd and
when vault after vault yielded W is
treasur unframed. tho JOY OF the
guardians was boundlcsS.
| From one trust company'S safes
alone Papers to the amount of more
than 200C0O0o0 were recovered. The
news cheered the whole city and en-
couraged thorough investigation. Mer-
chants and their assistants worked like
laborers in the smoking ruins to uncov-
er their safes. and in nearly every in
! stance they were rewarded by intact
contents.
Another surprise was the discovery
that three financial concerns whose
~
| of the flames were practically unharm-
. | ed These were the Continental Trust
Co. Brown Bros. Bank and the Mer-
camille Trust Co. No one ventures 70
!. offer an explanation Of the remarkable
? escape of these buildings in the center
. of a heat so intense that metal trim
a mings of the skylights melted and drip
1 ped through on the desks. In the Ne
. +, chanics' Bank the time locks on tn"
0 vaults are still running.
6 As vet no figures on loss and instr
l Iancc that can be regarded as official
. are ohtainabl \ careful canvass of
| insurance experts. builders and bust
ness men place the loss in round fig
ures at 1925 100000 and the insurance
at from sSO.O00. GOO to ss0.0G3,O0o. Much
valuable property that lay in Mon
days fire path was saved b. the
prompt efforts of merchants.
In declining aid proffcred the city
officials have taken pains to define
their position. The blow that has be-
fallen Baltimore has aroused an in
, tense civic pride in an effort to fight
out its salvation. but as Mayor McLane
expressed it, 1.-THE city will not hest
tate three minutes to ask for assist
ance if it becomes necessary"
Today gave opportunity for care
, full investigation as to the cause of the
origin of the fire in the Hurst build
: ing. 1t was first reported that the
blaze started from the explosion of a
gasolene engine in the cellar, but this
a tonight is given an emphatic denial.
Henry s. Hurst of John e. Hurst &
Co.. said there was no gasolene in the
. building and that the fire did not have
!. Continued on page %