Arizona republican., 1909-02-06
\ Quartet of Incidents Of a
 Serious Nature A MEXICAN BADLY BURNED
Old Arizona Lodging House Wiped Out, Property to the West Endangered, and
 Two Houses on Captain
 Norton's Place Destroyed.

According to local superstition, founded somewhat on observation. tragedies and fires occur in this town in sets of three. Phoenix has in the last two weeks experienced what might be called a double set' of tragic events, the last being four fires yesterday. two of them being simul- taneous and perhaps of common ori- gin, and one of them accompanied by the very serious and possibly fatal burning of a Mexican named Ramon Contreras.
 This fire occurred yesterday morning about o'clock when building sup posedly untenanted and known as the Arizona" lodging house was burned to the ground The name was acquired some years ago when the building was utilized as a lodging house. The structure was of frame, was built in the early days by s. E. Patton and was then considered quite a dignified residence property. It stood on the southeast corner of Jackson and First streets across First street from the Star lodging house. The origin of the fire is wrapped in mystery and theory
 The building burned like a bonfire and was beyond any hope of salvation before the fire department could get in action. The sparks from the fire flew to the west and fell on the roofs of many houses, most thiclIly on the Star lodging house which more than once seemed in peril and doubtless would have burned only that the fire men at intervals drenched the roof with water
 About the time the firemen arrived Contreras was seen to run out of the burning building and into the Star lodging house. He was in an awful condition but found no relief there ow- ing to the fact that the occupants of that house were each busy getting their personal effects together, expect ing every moment to be driven out. Presently COntreras ran into the street, moaning, attired only in his trousers and shirt, bareheaded and in his stocking feet. He was so black with smoke that he was taken for negro, there were blisters on his face and his hair was singed. while his two hands were frightfully burned, the skin looking like pair of old gryves about half removed, and in places terribly peeled up exposing the fleshy parts of the hand to the air. He said he was freezing and did not know where to go or what to do and there was no one to help him.
 He was directed to the city hall whither he went as fast as he could, a messenger preceding him to apprise the officers of his coming and prepare for his reception as well as possible. Captain Mcdonald summoned pr. H. A Hughes who arrived soon after and administered an opiate to partially re- lieve his suffering. and Dr. Tafel, the county physician was summoned. In the interim an effort was made to se- cure oil and cotton from a drug store for a temporary dressing but no one could be found in any of the stores and the injured man had to await the arrival of Dr. Tafel who took him to the Sisters hospital where there were facilities for dressing his injuries.
 Meantime his pain having been re- lieved in part he was able to talk and said that he believed the house was set on fire. He said that he and his sister were recently discharged from the insane asylum where they had been sent as victims of the drug hab- it, and he was finally recognized by the police as a boy who lad grown up in Phoenix and who had become a morphine fiend. He said he was broke and had no where else to go so he put his blankets in the vacant building where he had been sleeping for night or two. He said that he had a dis tinct recollection of hearing some one enter the building and a moment later everything was in flames and he cosld smell gasoline. Asked if he had not been smoking a cigarette or a pipe and accidentally dropped it or a burning match, he said he had not and called upon all the saints to witness the truthfulness of his story.
 His recital however was somewhat discounted yesterday by a Mexican boy who said that he was one of the first at the fire and that he saw woman run out of the building very thinly clad. If this be so it is likely the woman was the sister of Contreras and it is possible the fire resulted from their indulgence in cigarettes or pos sibly in smoking opium though it is hardly to be supposed they were in financial condition to supply them selves with an opium layout
 Yesterday Dr. Tafel said that he be- lieved the boy. would recover though it might be necessary to amputate a cou- pie of fingers, still a burn is a de- ceitful wound and it is hard to predict the result of an injury of that kind, or to tell how deep the burns are. Con treras being without funds he was yes terday removed to the county hospital.
 The burned building belonged to E. c. Caruthers of Yuma. It was a two story structure and though it was once considered a nice house it had been permitted to fall into a delapidat- ed condition. Mir. Caruthers also own ed the building immediately across the