The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1909-11-12
WAS PRIDE OF TOWN
Building Was Owned by Lieu
tenant Governor Fitzgerald.
Owners of Stock ReOrganize and
Will Start Over Again.

fire which destroyed the building and
stock last week. Since then the ad-
| justers have met and it can now be
| announced that the building will De
constructed as rapidly as men ana
money can do it, giving the big mer-
camille company new home as soon
as possible. In the meantime the com
pany will be reorganized and will get
m shape to occupy it's new building as
| soon as possible.
City Rejoices at Announcement.
All Dodge City is glad that the store
is to be rebuilt and the company to
resume business. AS the greatest de.
| / artment store in the western half OF
Kansas, the Dodge City Mercantile
company developed the fact that
Dodge City is a splendid trading point
Ii drew trade for fifty miles around
| Farmers came in automobiles and by
wagon from great distances and car
| lied home large loads of merchandise
Not all of it was purchased from Inc
| J ig department store, but other Dooge
City concerns likewise received patron
see after the buyers had been attracted
| by the bargains offered by the mer-
camille company
| Fire Heavy Blow to Company.
| The fire was a great blow to the
members of the company, but not so
great as to put them out of business.
| Lieutenant Governor Fitzgerald's loss
| ir relatively small. He was principal
owner of the building, but on the
| building the insurance was within
| few thousand dollars of enough to
cover the loss. He had reduced his
| holding in the mercantile company at
the time it was organized to go into
the building specially erected for it
Until he held only $4,000 in the con-
cern. His total personal loss is in the
neighborhood of $4,000, after the in
| surance money is paid, which is not at
all severe blow to the governor, who
has a large ranch and many other
properties of various kinds. His ranch
alone has yielded him a net income of
| $4,000 a year for the last several
years so that he can stand jolt of
| this kind without it affecting him seri-
| ously.
Governor Fitzgerald Watched Fire..
Incidentally, the fire gave another
| illustration of the gameness and
| equanimity that are so large a part of
Governor F'itzgeralds personality. The
story told by his friends of his conduct
| at the time of the fire furnishes the
lustration. AS an officer of the COM
| any and one of the owners of the
| building, he had a private Office on the
| second floor of the building to the rear,
looking out on another building one
rtory lower, occupied also by the mer-
camille company for hardware imp1e-
ments. Incidentally. this building did
rot burn, thanks to the efficiency of
/
| A very few minutes after the fire
broke out an employe rushed into the
governors Office and told him the
building was in flames. He left his Of
flee and went to the lower floor. to the
| stairway leading to the basement. AL
ready the fire was under such head
way that he saw the building was
| doomed. He hastily returned, told
the cashier to get his money, checks,
etc, from the safe, lock it and make
his escape. The order was complied
with so far as possible. but so fierce
were the flames and SO rapid their
progress that the cashier did not have
time even to close the doors tightly
and they were left slightly ajar and
| were not yet fully closed when the
safe was dug out of the debris. But
the safe happened to fall face upward
and went through the flames with
| contents practically unchanged. the
silver blackened but a roll of bills in
| tact.
| Left Burning Building by Window.
| Leaving the cashier. Mr.. Fitzgerald
returned to his private Office where
his safe, containing his individual
papers, bonds, notes. stock certificates,
| Insurance policies. etc, were kept.
He commanded his stenographer to
hasten from the building but himself
set about gathering up the valuable
papers with which they had at the
moment been working. These he took
| drawers got what cash there was and
put into his pocket, pushed the va
rious drawers in, closed the inner
| doors and locked them with a key,
threw the large outer doors to and
turned the combination. Before he
| had completed the task the flames
| were all around the room he was
occupying and peeking in at the win
dows.
An employee came rushing through
from an office adjoining and literally
plunged through a window on to the
roof of the adjoining building ten
feet below. taking the screen with
him. needless of the advice of the
governor to wait a moment, SO as not
to create a draft by throwing up an
outer window. His work completed
Gov Fitzgerald proceeded to the
same window but not at the mad rate
of speed at which the emp1oye
Travelled. He went to the side window
opposite from where the flames
/ seemed worst let himself through and
swung around to that side OF the
window as far as possible, before al
lowing himself to drop.
FftzgeraId's Hair Was Singed.
He reached the roof safely and
the rest of it was easy, but he bears
several burns on his ear lobe. singed
hair on one side of his head and a
singed eyebrow for his delay.
It was an exhibition of nerve.
presence of mind and will power
rarely exhibited. A different sort of
gameness and fortitude. but no less
admirable, is displayed in his declara-
ton Immediately after the fire.
II Eyes. it's too bad. but we shall
simply have to get busy. erect a new
building and begin over again
i And that's what is to be done. The
fire practically wiped out financially
some of the members of the big mer-
camille company, but they are as game
as the governor and as eager to get