The Washington times., 1911-11-17

entire building was enveloped. The
building has a frontage OF more than
l50 feet on Fourteenth street and about
the same on ID street. II was q three
story structure with only wooden par
titions dividing II into different sec.
tons. The building was put up before
the civil war.
Chief Protects Fighters.
with the fatalities of the Washing
ton Tobacco Company fire still fresh
In his memory Chief Wagner issued or
ders to the captains OF all the engillo
companies not to allow any Of Their
men to enter the burning building. The
warning was timely ono. for after
about half an hour the third floor tell
IN, crashirg through the second. car
rying vehicles. burning hay. and great
quantity of debris That would have
crushed any of the men who might
have been in the building.
Realizing that the building and all
its contents would be a total loss. Chief
Wagner directed his efforts toward
saving the adjoining property. For a
time IL looked almost certain that the
Globe Printing CompaDy's establishment
would go. Time ano again the flames
found their wav through the dividing
brick wall, big wooden beams running
from one building to the other being the
means. by which the fire spread, But
each time the firemen MANAGED to check
headWay. he's % Considerable damage % nSsa wss
done by water. however. to the stock
of paper carried by the printing COM
pany.
Worst to Contend With.
DR.. Hollingberger had Just had two
carloads Of baled hay put In on the
third floor. while there was also about
a carload of oats and corn on this floor.
1t was this quantity Of feed that made
1t impossible for the men to put the
fire all out until they had poured water
in the building for, MANY hours.
Althongh @ the walls s were stu standing
the building itself Is total loss. The
actual damage can only be estimated
approximately. The Government, of
course, carried no insurance, and the
actual loss is the amount of rentals
the tenants would have paid until the
building would have been RACED, plus
the amount that would have peen given
for the structure by wrecking COM
pany. Twenty thousand dollars will
cover the Governments loss fully, 1t Is
estimated.
Mr.. Houser estimates that he had
stock, including carriages and harness
valued at $500. Two-thirds of this
insurance. The damage to the harness
shop conducted by Mr.. De La Ver,
is not much more than 800. DIR. Hol-
lingsworth's loss Is $50.
A large portion of the second floor
was USED by Mr.. Houser as a storeroom
for carriages, while a number of vehi-
cles belonging to different persons and
stored in the rear of the first floor
were destroyed.
When the floors fell they carried q
portion of the back wall with them,
while the front and side walls remained
intact. All Of the roof caved In.
Traffic Tied Up.
Traffic on the lie Droit Park line was
tied up for two hours, compelling sew
eral hundred employees of the Bureau
of Engraving and Printing to walk to
work. TIE cars were run as far as
Eleventh and L streets. where they
were switched down h street and vi
Ninth. Government employees en- theiI
way to work were attracted by the
smoke and crowded the streets nearby
Employees Of the White Oak Goa
Company We're just taking out tho
wagons when the fire was discovered
and it Is not believed the firms loss Is
large. Several horses belonging to :ht
Potomac Electric Power Company also
were in the stable, but were taken out
safely.