The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-09-30
Cotton Burns at Sellers
& Drum Warehouse.
BLAZE PUT UNDER CONTROL
For Time Flame Threatened to De-
stroy Entire Plant.
Department Does Good work-Bnild-
ing And Contents Are Fully Cover
cd by Insurance--Firm's Basi-
ness uninterrupted.

Spreading from one single bale of
burning cotton. fire, discovered by
the Night Waterman, ]. A. Booth
about 1925 o'clock lastS>night. COM
pletely Quilted the southeast compart-
ment of Sellers & Drums cotton ware
house at Coosa and Tallapoosa streets
The alarm was turned In by the night
Waterman and all the fire companies
in the city made record breaking runs
Nj. Booth had just made a round of
the warehouse and had been in the Of
flee about twenty minutes when he
noticed the fire. 1t broke out in one
bale in the center of a compartment.
The flames quickly spread and the
whole wing was soon a mass of
flames
The flames and sparks jumped
across the inside court of the ware
house. distance of sixty-seven feet,
cotton stored In the southwestern
compartment. The flames here were
extinguished with but little loss to the
cotton stored in that section.
The firemen confined the fire to the
southeast compartment. About 500
bales of the fleecy staple were stored
in this section. After the flames were
controlled. bale after bale of the smok
ing cotton was rolled out into the
hONAtt anu tdCA tdICtdAly OA6hiAhCu.
J. A Sellers president of the firm,
estimated the loss to the cotton last
night at between $4,000 and $4,000.
1t is fully covered by insurance. He
said his firm always insures It's cotton
for full value.
The building is owned by Mrs. john
9. o'ConneH, of 203 Mouiton Street
1t is also covered by insurance.
Not q Spectacle.
The fire was the first of many
months to fight which every engine
of the department was needed. From
every plug within the radius of a
block, hose was stretched, and at every
plug an engine was stationed. shoot
ing up sparks that glimmered In the
wet streets. 1t was the biggest down :
town fire since the destruction of the
Western freight depot in the summer
of 1907 y I4 ~ w
The fire offered little attraction 10
the great crowd which was lined up
outside OF the long. low wall of the
warehouse, but within the walls. where
few ventured, the fightswas spectacular,
The flames were soon reduced by the
. water directed by the firemen, and the
cotton smouldered with thick. isuf-
locating smoke. In this the firemen
worked. After the first big blaze was
subdued, the firemen's efforts We're
the outside of the warehouse
The Sellers & Drum warehouse Is
built in the form of hollow square.
with a court inside. II was on the
east side of the court that the cotton
burned.
Within fifteen minutes after their
arrival, the firemen had the blaze
under control. At first 1t threatened
the entire warehouse. with probable
la - ax.Wrnatndtno nrnnarfV hItt
the highest flames were subdued with
In a few minutes. and the hose pulled
through the gate into the warehouse
and played upon the bales stacked
there.
About 1900 bales OF cotton were
stored in all the compartments of the
warehouse. The cotton in the two
northern compartments was practical
" uninjured Mr.. Sellers stated that
his firm would not suspend business
as 1t had plenty OF cotton In two COM
partments and in their other ware
house. and that they would be really
to carry on business this morning as
usual.
The Sellers & Drum Warehouse Com
pany is stock company composed of
]. A. Sellers. president, w. ]. Drum.
vice president; w. ]. Sellers. secre-
tary and treasurer: J. A. Wiley and J.
G. Swanson are the other stockholders.
This is the first fire the firm has had
at a warehouse during its twenty
years In the cotton business.
j. A. Sellers, w. ]. Sellers and J. G.
Swanson, of the firm. were notified of
the fire by telephone. They came to
the burning warehouse Immediately
ana aided the firemen in placing the
cotton in the court.
After the fir's was completely sub
dued. SO far as further damage was
concerned, the cotton smouldered
throughout the night.