Evening star., 1911-08-20

way. and soon the entire building was in
flames, and In a little less than an hour
the whole interior Was destroyed Tho
wind was blowing and il WAS very cold
and the house or Col. Seaton OPPOSITE
Hendley's Tavern at the corner, aud
other nearby buildings We're I'm great dan
ger from the heat From the Louisville
Courier and Inquirer the Intelligence
copies. on the 10Th of December. an a.
count said To have been sent bv Amos
Kendall. the Postmaster General. IN
which he says lie WAS awakened AZ a.:a
CLOCK by an Ind ncrent sort of alarm
tar one bell gave out "A few sleepy
strokes and few voices cried fire. that
he went to the office and finally discover
ed smoke issuing from the basement
wincow when there were only twenty az.
thlrty persons present, and IL was "A long
time before either engine or water wa
used 10 arrest the prorress OF the flames
The Few clerks seemed to he paralyzed
and fhree-quarters OF an hour after n.
reached the spot. scarcely a move having
been made to save the building etc an
engine arrived and made a feeble attenpt
TO play, but there was no sympathy ia
the crowd, the mass of whom stood look
ing on with the feeling apparently akin
to qualification. But the work o.
preservation at length commenced Mr.
Rives of the Congressional Globe was
seen carrying out encyclopedias of docu-
ments and his example was followed hy
others. There were two engines in at
fffort to save the building and played on
the adjacent buildings.
Other Property Endangered.
While these events were passing he
says, the wind was breezing gently from
the westward Of mort: this blew the
embers and fragments over against the
opposite house of W. W. Seaton, esq
and threatened its destruction. The hen,
became so intense that you could not bear
your hand on the glass windows: the zinc
composing the pipes down the wall began
to melt and II was no longer possible foi
the firemen to stand between the two
buildings. The friends of Mr.. Seaton
clustered about him and the house was
soon stripped of all its moveables and it's
destruction seemed inevitable; but at the
very moment when even the hope Of its
preservation seemed to have been aban-
doned. the wind clapped suddenly around
to the southwest and the house was
saved. When you speak hereafter OF the
malevolence of the wind remember that
il has once, at least, done generous
act, for had IL not been for this capri
cious change whole blocks from thence to
Pennsylvania avenue must have laid
PROSTATE"
A fire in the roof of Rev DR.. q. Il.
Browns residence on the south side OF
T. street between Sth and cth was dis
covered December 10. and il was for
tunately extinguished by persons on the
roof and with the aid OF an engine.
In this year Congress made an appro-
priation Of 5000, by which an acre OF
land with the fine spring belonging 10
John A. Smith, situated in what is now
the reservoir at the filtration plant was
purchased, and water was conducted
therefrom and supplied the water al the
Capitol till a few years ago. The spring
was preserved after the reservoir was To-
Gated by the erection of masonry which
extended above the level of the water In
the reservoir. Owing to failure or
Congress to make an appropriation to
keep the pipes in repair this spring wate,
the Introduction of Potomac water this
was the main supply relied on Tor hsn
ponds and fountains at the Capitoi anu
from 1887 1t also supplied the Treasury
Post ONCE and other buildings: An APP
propriation of $1,000 was nearly all ex-
pended for the latter purpose.