The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-02-08

the flames. and apparently there was
no check to the onward sweep of de-
! structioa.
On Baltimore street the block be-
tween Liberty and Sharp was soon
ablaze. Then came the next block east
| to Hanover, and after that the block on
| the south side to Charles street broke
out into flames, the Consolidated Gas
| company'S building and OehmS Acme
hall burning fercely.
Meanwhile there were stores north
of Baltimore street being similarly con-
sumed Mullins hotel caught and other
| buildings near it. West of Liberty
! street on the south side of Baltimore
! the block was doomed and the big
| Baltimore bargain house also caught.
Down in Hopkins Place where the con-
fiagration started, Hurst's building and
the other wholesale houses on both
| sides of the street crum bled and fell.
The big dry goods houses of Daniel
| Miller & Sons and R. NJ. Sutton & Co.
were soon af1ame, and along German,
| east and west from the Hurst building,
| there were dozen buildings burning
and scores threatened. The spectacle
of ruin and destruction from any point
| IN these doomed blocks was something
| appalling.
Mass & Kemper's big wholesale store
| on Baltimore street quickly succumbed
| to the flames and the walls fell with
crash that was heard for squares. The
| Hurst building was utterly destroyed,
not even a wall ten feet high being left
standing, and was apparently the CEN
| Ter of the cauldrOn, from when thu
| flames radiated over the doomed neigh
| borhood
ATTACKS THE BANKS.
On Hopkins place, the Hopkins Saw
| Ings bank and the National Exchange
bank were destroyed by the flames, the
rev streams of water that the firemen
| were able to turn on them proving ut
terly Intellectual to even halt the de-
struction Here, across the street, were
| the ruins of John H. Hurst & Co., and
next TO 1t 5. Hecht, Jr., & Sons were in
flames. Adjoining was the large build
| ing owned by the William Hoch Import
ing company, which was also quickly
destroyed.
Across the street the Stanley & Brown
Drug company building was quickly in
ruins, fronting on the Baltimore street
side of this block. were the Roxbury
Rye Distilling company, the building
occupied by Silberman & Todes, the
house of Allen Sons & Co, which has
hardly been completed, while next to it
was the establishment of NJ. Moses &
Co. On the corner was the building oc-
| cupied by Messrs. Sugar & Shear, and
several other smaller concerns. All of
these were swallowed up in flame, and.
in fact, the whole block was nothing
but cauldron of fire.
HELP FROM OTHER CITIES.
Though every bit of fire fighting ap-
paratus in the city was called into
requisition as the flames continued to
spread, the fremen realized that they
had task before them which was too
great for them to combat. Te1egrams
for fire engines were sent to Washing
ton and Philadelphia and about l o'clock
six engines arrived from Washington
and four from Philadelphia and joined
in the battle with the flames.
Engines from stations in Baltimore.
Howard, Anne Arundel and Hartford
counties also arrived as soon as possi-
pie, some of the apparatus travelling a
distance of thirty miles and more
Water plugs in every section within
a radius of half a mile from the fire
were in use and it is roughly estimated
that there were $50 hose all PLAYING at
one time upon different part of the con-
f1agration.
Owing to the great congestion of fire
, apparatus, the crowds of people and the
general confusion, many Of the engines
from out of town We're unable to ind
a place where they would be OF any
> service.
With loud roars. wall after wall top
pied into the streets and firemen ran
, for their lives
All kinds of wires had to be cut to
> clear the way for the fire fighters. The
block bounded by German, Liberty,
: Sharp and Baltimore streets were early
found to be doomed and the 4remen
turned their attention to saving the
> buildings on Baltimore street east of
Sharp.
l FIRE BEYOND CONTROL
The fire was beyond their control, and
the flames ran from one building to
another in spite of the fact that the
firemen had done their best to check
the progress of the flames by soaking
the structures with water
Red hot cinders ignited the roof of
; the Front street theater, and for time
it looked as though that structure
would be burned down. The building
; was al least a half mile from the main
l cont1agration and the fact that the
roof caught from falling cinders shows
to what distance the fiery rain fell
The blaze which was on the southwest
corner was extinguished by the fremen
assisted by citizens.
For time considerable alarm was
felt at the CITY hospital when the rain
of cinders was at it's fercest. The
Sisters of Mercy in charge of the insti-
: tuition We're all at their posts and an
effort was made to keep the fact OF
> the conhagration secret from the pa
tients. few cinders fell on the root
of the hospital, but We're extinguished
by the physicians of the house staff
Eighteen women. two babies and seven
> nurses were taken from the Maternity
hospital on West Lombard street, in
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