The Rice belt journal. (Welsh, Calcasieu Parish, La.) 1900-19??, 1910-04-01

San Francisco was builded upon the
ruins of the greatest calamity OF its
history, and a new and better and
bigger Welsh has already been start
ed upon the ruins left by the terrible
conhagration of Sunday morning.
This is the belief OF Il body OF deter
mined American citizens and business
men, and such a hope in the hearts of
such people, has never yet been known
to yield the fruits of failure.
The great fire that swept our pro-
gressive little city Sunday morning,
was unexpected only in point OF time,
as it has long been forseen that such
a calamity must come sooner or later.
under existing circumstances.
The fire had its origin about 1:30 q.
h., in the Signal Hotel, supposedly in
one of the sleeping rooms, or in ball
over the pool hail. The cause is also
problematic, but is supposed to have
been caused by an exploding lamp, as
there had been no fire in that section
of the building for days. When dis.
covered, the flames had gained con-
siderable Roadway, and owing to the
inhamability of the material, spread
with great rapidly, SO that it was
barely possible to arouse the fifty or
more sleepers in the hotel in time for
| them to escape, even in their night
clothes, as some of them had to do.
An alarm was sounded and within
an incredible short time, hundreds of
men and women we're present, lending
their assistance toward checking the
spread of the flames. The night was
calm, with but the slightest possible
breeze blowing from the southwest.
In an incredibly short time the fire
had enveloped the entire structure of
the Signal Hotel, and jumped across
tie intervening space to the Southern
Mercantile company's buildings TO the
east. which were soon mass OF flames
At about the same time the large dry
| goods store of Martin Bros. i Co.,
across the street to the west OF the no.
tel, caught fire and was rapidly con.
verted into q seething mass Or hames.
Strenuous efforts had been exersed to
save each of these buildings, but to
no avail, as the intensity of the heat
coupterbalanced anything that could
be done to arrest the progress OF the
fire. Meanwhile the utmost efforts
we're being put forth to keep the fire
from spreading to the south half OF
the block in which it had originated,
and by almost superhuman endurance
on the part of the fighters, who fought
with wet blankets and with bucket
line, the fire was kept from Jones
Brothers feed store, which was just
south of the point of origin, and was
also key to the business buildings,
both on the north aud south side OF
i South street. This point had no more
than been made secure, when the
flames, gradually eating their way
south through Martins store and the
Welsh Jewelrv store, which adjoined
it on the south, and Barbee's grocerv
which was on the west, two more plac.
es became points OF vital interest In
the saving of remnant of the town
| the Welsh Furniture Store on the
south, which was the kew to all the
buildings in the south half OF that
block, and also those in the block In
which the Journal Office is situated,
and the Crescent Drug Store on the
west, which was the key to everything
in the west part of the business section.
! including the Imperial hotel and the
i Morse hardware store. By the great.
est heroism these two places were
saved, and with them the territory Of
which they were the KEYS.
i The water supply In these cases was
better than in the previous ones, as
hose attached to a hydrant in front Of
the VanNess machine Shop, gave 9
good pressure of water, without which
The remainder Of the town could not
have been saved. Similar assistanc,
was furnished by q hose running from
a hydrant at the Imperial Hotel
J which, although furnishing but 9
small stream, was of inestimable val
ne in saving the situation.
While the work of saving the south
side was occupying the minds OF thu
people, but little thought was given tt
the north side, which was supposed to
be safe, as there was q distance O
about three hundred feet intervening
between the burning buildings ant
the nearest exposure on the north
Despite this, and the fact that ther'
was scarcely a perceptable breez
blowing, the flames leaped this dist
ance from the Martin building to tn
old Newman building, occupied b.
the Lavne & Bowler 20. offices, ane
before the necessary assistance ar
rived, the fire on the north side OF tn
track, was beyond any chance OF con-
troll.
The buildings in this block were al
frame structures, most OF them beinl
two stories, and we're like finder il
inf
y Little effort was made to save thi
section of the city, as there was nj
water available aud this entire block
with the single exception of the A. E
Bourgeois residence on the northwes
corner of the block, was reduced tx
ashes. This one house was saved, al
was the depot, by the heroic efforts o
the railroad employees, who attached
hose and pipe to the S. P. pump ant
secured good supply ofwater, From
this block the fire spread to the Eu
reka Hotel, on the next block north
which wrs soon consumed, togethe