Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-12-04
MAKE BUNCLE
SETTING FIRE
FIREMEN ARRIVE IN TIME TO
FIND LIGHTED CANDLE, KIND Il
LING WOOD AND OIL
IN THE BURTLOW HOME

Owner Of House Says He Believes En-
emies Tried to Burn the Place-Fire
Is Set in Two Places-Sofa Saturat-
ed With Oil.
From Mondays Daily.
lighted candle to the end Of which
was attached wad of cotton saturated
with oil. a bundle of kindling, literal
ly fioating In kerosene and evidences
of the same inflammable material on
the kitchen floor and household goods
stamp the fire which broke out Satur-
day evening in the house owned by A.
F. Burtlow. at 106 North Davis street,
as one of undoubted incendiary origin
The attempt to fire this building was
one Of the most daring and complete
ever conceived. The identity Of the
culprit is still mystery.
The fire; was extinguished with water
after considerably damage had been
done. Hardly was the work Of the de-
partment completed when 1t was called
to the elevator of the old Ottumwa
starch works, where spectacular
blaze had broken out The damage to
the Burtlow property was about $500.
At 6:30 O'Clock Saturday evening the
fire department was called out to the
house on North Davis street. The fire
seemed to be between the second floor
and the roof, or confined to the sec
ond story. One Of the f1remen stated
to Chief Livingston that there was
fire in the basement This seemed
strange to the chief, that there should
be fire in the basement when there
was no fire on the first floor.
Arouses Suspicion.
The strange circumstance of two
fires in the house at the same time,
which could have no possible connec-
| tion, aroused the chiefs suspicious and
he went to investigate the basement
| fire. He found that while there was no
basement, properly speaking, under the
house, there was a space Of about three
feet between the ground and the bot
tom of the floor.
In a pile of kindling and rubbish
which had been laid in this space,
Chief Livingston saw candle burn
Ing. A small fire had started in the
rubbish from the flame of the candle,
but a short distance away from It,
This was soon extinguished and the
candle was secured. 1t was common
red wax candle to the end Of which
was attached a wad of cotton saturated
4 with coal oil. 1t was plant" pure
and simple. The candle had not yet
burned down to the cotton, and the lit
tie fire which had started must have
been caused by some rubbish being
blown through the flame.
| Other Evidence is Found.
Developments came thick and fast.
In the kitchen was found evidence that
coal oil had been scattered about the
floor in generous profusion. A sofa in
another room was literally saturated
with the oil. Between the second floor
and the ceiling of the first was found
a pile of oil soaked kindling. This
had been placed between the ceiling
and the floor by means of small hole,
freshly chopped through the floor
Where the fire had gained headway
before the arrival of the department,
the destruction of all evidences Of In
cendia-y origin, If there were any, was
complete. But the plant" in the cell
lar, the oil soaked first floor and the
pile Of kindling had not been con-
sumed.
According to statement made this
morning by Mr.. Burtlow to represen-
tative of the Courier, he and Mrs Burt
low left their home some time after S
O'Clock Saturday afternoon. They
went to Ottumwa junction to meet a
friend, whom they expected to arrive
on a freight at about that time Later
they returned to the city, when they
heard the news of the fire. They went
to their home and found it in no con
dition to stay in. They then went to
the home of relatives in Central ad-
dition.
Thinks Fire Result Of Grudge.
Mr.. Burtlow in answer to inquiries
made the following statement:
Il think some one who had 1t In for
me set that house on fire. have my
suspicious, but cannot say anything as
yet. / found one window on the west
side of the house which had no catch
on 1t and could have been opened from
outside. When my wife and left, both
the coal oil can and the jug containing
oil, which were found empty by the fire
department, were full
"The Ratchet which was found by
the west door of the house, was, when
we left, in the tool chest under the cup
| DOaru. presume Ln1S hdtChet was
used to chap the hole in the second
floor"
Mr.. Burtlow estimates his loss on
the building at about 5000, as the sec.
lond story of the house was more or less
gutted, the roof badly damaged and
much damage done the household
goods by both fire and water. The
house and contents were insured for
$1,100.
| Think Elevator Fire Part OF Plot.
Chief Livingston stated last even
| ing that he was inclined to believe the
origin of the fire at the elevator of the