The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1906-04-23
mint WAS SAVED
BY DEVOTED BAND
Employees Stood Their Ground
for Seven Hours in Midst
of a Sea of Flame.
CALAMITY RISKED LIVES
OLD LANDMARK FINALLY PRE-
SERVED.

San Francisco. April "a landmark Of
San Francisco that escaped destruction
though every building surrounding it was
destroyed, is the United States mint at
the morner Of Fifth and Mission streets
Harold French, AN employee of the mint
gave a graphic account of how the flames
were successfully fought He said:
Nearly two hundred million dollars in
com and bullion are stored in the vaults
or the mint, and for the preservation of
ms fls5 prize a devoted band Of employees. re
enforced by regular soldiers, fought until
the baffled flames fled to the CONQUEST
OF stately blocks of so-ca1ed fireproof
buildings.
Flames on All Sides.
For seven hours a sea of fire surged
around this grand old federal edifice at
lacking IT on all sides with waves of
Ilerce neat It's little garrison was cut off
rom retreat Tor hours at a time, had such
a course been thought of by those on
guard. The United States mint was con-
SSIIuGted IN 1874, OF granite and sandstone
DOCKS, massive monoliths well calculated
10 resist fire from without Within. how
tVer, were enough inflammable materials
10 reed lively conflagration. Iron shut
ters shielded the lower floors. but the
windows of the upper story, on which are
located the refinery and assay office were
exposed, Also a tarred roof over the re-
ilhery constituted a weak spot in the de-
IenSe- Tanks of wood and other inflam-
MAPLE material scattered about the roof
ana upper story were serious menace
Worked With a Will.
After the fire had swept past the Mis-
sion street side, and the certainty of its
returning from the north became aDDar-
ent. Captain of the Watch HaWs ordered
everything on the roof that would burn
thrown into the yard. Soldiers and mint
employees worked with utmost haste
throwing great timbers and tank slaves
into the court. Here are located some
thirty tanks of blue vitriOl. the surfaces
INTO Whlch showers OF cinders fell. For
tunately the mint possesses a good well
and Engineer Brady. at his prst. pumped
the roof. OF these. forty were mint en-
ployes, and they were aided by a com
panY of coast artillery.
As tho fire swept up Fifth street the
neat increased To a dangerous degree as
one by one. the METROPOLITAN hall and the
historic Lincoln school. burst into flames
reinforced by the roaring furnace of the
Emporium. On the west the block bound
north, gave the grave concern for from
TINS quarter the fire WIS certain to rage
IN its fury Famed by roaring north
erly wind, the flames rioted through
structures stretchinE from the Windsor
sheets of fire 200 feet high licked up the
intervening houses on Mint avenue Aug
mented by these finder boxes, the blast Of
fire burst on the northwest cornc~ Of the
mint ike the breath of second Pe!ee.
Made Desperate Fight.
"A few desperate fighters under ex-
chief Kennedy of Oakland were driven
from between the lettering chimneys un..
~ Ger VT use twin terrors they had struggled
10 the last throwing buckets of water
Upon the blazing roof over the refinery
II Is largely due to the experience of for
mer Chief Kennedy that this tar-covered
roof the weakest spot of all. was satu-
rated with sufficient water to stay the
when the fire leaped Mint avenue in
solid masses of flame the refinery men
stuck to their windows as long as the
glass remained in the frames Seventy
five feet of an inch hose played a sIen-
der stream upon the blazing window siIls,
sulphurlc acid Ankle deep in this, the
soldiers and employees stuck to the floor
until the windows smashed. With a roar
lhe tongues or IRE licked greedily the in
ner walls. Binding and suffOcating smoke
necessitated the abandonment of the hose
and the fighters retreated to the floor he
low. The roar of falling walls the tbun-
der of bursting blocks of stone. the din
OF crashing glass, swelled to an unearthIy
diapasOn. If thirteen-inch shells we re
crashing against the mint walls the deaf
enlng detonations of their impact would
scarcely have exceeded the fury of the.
attack. Down in the deeps, where untold
wealth is so well safe-guarded. artillery
men, ringed with blanket rolls and lean
ing on their rifles, cOughed in the strang-
ling smoke.
Made a Last Effort.
Then came a IuH; the walls Of brick
buildings across the street had all fallen
there was fighting chance, so back to
led by Superintendent Leach who nv ex-
ample and words encouraged his men to
eXtlnguish the blazing inner woodwork
of the refinery.
The roof was next swept by a hose
cooling the copper sheet head surface
until 1t became passable for wet acid
soaked feet. An army officer AK in hand
tore up sections OF blazing tar roof be-
meath which a stream OF water was d.
rected. At length as 4 o'clock drew near
the mint was pronounced out of danger
and a handful OF exhausted but exuItant
employees stumbled out on the hot coli
blestone TO learn the fate Of some OF
their homes
The mint presents a scorcbed and
glassless front on the north and west and
the towering smOkestacks are to he toro
down, but the building is intact and IT,
plant is unframed and ready for a re-
sumption Of work
There were sensational rumOrs of ,
attack Of thieves upon the mint i'm which
fourteen we're killed in the attempt but il
is needless to say that the garrison of
the mint is equal to any emergency thar
may arise