Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-08-04

THE DTTU NV A CDURl
playing f,ltiley on the great banks Of
flames, was Joined by another an,
then another, and another, and yet on,
more.
The fight was on. Back and forth thu
flames surged. back and forth surget
the f1remen, now driven from within
the zone of the binding, scorchins
heat and then rushing forward as thu
fire fell sullenly back.
And then,-it was all over and thu
vast multitude which mad viewed thu
contest, began slowly to melt away. Tt
be certain, the flames still burned will
no unhealthy vigor, but they were con
quered.
A Sight Of Barbaric spIendor.
1t was, could one lift himself above
the mercenary standpoint, sight o
true barbaric splendor that now me
the vision of the throng which ye
fingered around the scene of the fire
Many streams of water playing ovel
the blazing, glowing, smouldering EN-
bers furnished view of scenic beau
ty which no pyrotechnical spectacle
could ever equal. AS one gazed dowr
the alleys through the smoke an i'm
pressive sight met the eye. There were
the telephone and telegraph poles
with the knot holes burned out OF
burning, and as the round. red glow
reached one through the clouds of mis-
and smoke one could not but believe
he looked upon huge semiphores, {
warning in the lurid night of the dan
ger which might lay dormant in the
wires.
Ennbers Fly.
While the fire was at it's height, the
great clouds of sparks which flew from
the scene of the fire, carried apprehen
sion to the hearts of the many property
holders in the crowds, congregated
around the fire. The most impossible
tales are being told today regarding
the distance which some of these fly
ing embers travelled However, it can
not be viewed as other than a most
buildings we're ignited Great anxiety
was felt for the Tisdale lumber yard
while the fire was at its height.
A Dreary Scene.
With all of the grandeur, which could
not help but inspire the onlool1ers with
awe, the scene Of the fire Is dreary
place today Excepting the Daggett
barn and the Epps property on the cor.
ner of Marion and Second streets,
there is nought left of the buildings
which occupied the half block yester-
day. The carcasses of the eight horses,
which persisted in the flames, add a
pitiful touch to the whole.
Catastrophe Averted.
One of the incidents of the fire which
attracted little more than casual at
tention at the time, but which might
have developed into tragedy Of far
greater Importance than the confagra-
ton itself, took place on Main street
while the fire was at its height. The
hundreds of people thronging the
street little thought that death in all
it's horrid reality lurked, waiting for
them in eighty gallons Of gasoline
stored not many feet from the heart OF
the great blaze. The Iowa Steam Dye
Works use large quantities of this
commodity in their business and sew
eral tanks were stored in their rear
room When the fire was burning
madly in the rear of the Dye works
the thought of this dangerous element
occurred to one of the volunteer help,
ers, and calling number of assis.
tants, the building was entered and the
tanks carried across the street. But
for this timely action, an explosion
might have occurred that would have
paled the burning spectacle to insight
ficance.
Large Crowds Gather.
AS the flames shot up into the air
causing the sky to be lighted with a
lurid glare, thousands of people from
all over the city, attracted by the
blaze, hurried to the scene of the holo
caust and watched the burning build
ings, and the heroic efforts of the fire
men as they labored to save the sur
rounding districts. Happening neal
the closing time of the entertainment
at the chautauqua, the crowds from
the park arrived and helped to swell
the number already at the fire. By
ISLANDERS joined in the work of saving
property from dwellings in the vicinity
that were in danger and volunteers
helped in the work of laying lines Of
hose.
People living in tn neishborhood O
the fire had rushed from their homes
on the first alarm, some of them hav
ing previously retired. and as the fire
endangered their property were busily
engaged, a portion of them half cloth
ed, carrying out their furniture tt
places Of safety.
Horses Turned Loose.
Words can not describe the heroi,
work done by volunteers and the cit,
police, who, while the fire was raging
at it's height, at the risk of their live
engaged in the work of rescuing thu