The Waxahachie daily light. [volume] (Waxahachie, Tex.) 1894-current, 1911-11-13
CITY SWEPT BY
DISASTROUS FIRE
Property Loss VIII Reach Near
ly Hundred and Seventy
Five Thousand.
Fifteen HOUSES BURNED
Rogers Hotel and Odd Fellows Build
ing Among Number-Hotel
Guests Have Narrow
Escape.


the northwest, with the temperature
below the freezing point and with ice
forming as water dripped from the
nozzles of the hose the firemen OF
Waxahachie worked heroically lit
tie more than two hours SUNDAY
morning to conquer a conflagration
which threatened to sweep an en-
tire section of the business district
out of existence. The flames were
finally subdued after they hao
wrought one of the most serious de-
vastations to property that has oc-
CURED in Waxahachie in many years.
When daylight dawned fourteen
houses were mass Of ruins and
these were covered by tangled web
of telephone wires and cables and
electric light wires. The streets In
the vicinity OF the fire swept area
were blocked all day Sunday by de-
bris and by ropes which had been
stretched around the ruins by Fire
Marshal Davenport. The ropes wers
used az a precaution to keep people
away from the standing walls SO a.
to prevent the possibility of an acci
dent
The fire was discovered between
3 and 4 O'Clock Sunday morning BY
Night Waterman Bass. While mak-
ing his regular rounds he detected a
blaze In the tailor shop of Levi Adafr,
which was situated in the hotel block
and under the north wing of rooms,
He Immediately turned in an alarm
and few minutes later there was an
explosion Of gasoline in this part OF
the building. In the mean time the
guests in the hotel had been aroused
and these were making hurried prep
arations to escape. Every room in the
hotel was occupied and many of the
guests had narrow escape from the
encroaching flames. Mr.. and Mrs. F
l. Perry, who occupied a room di-
rectly over the tailor shop, we're
awakened by long tongues of flames
leaping up in front of their window.
A hole had also been burned In the
floor and the room was beginning to
fill with smoke. Mr. Perry grabbed
his coat and pants, threw kimona
On his wife and pulled her out of the
room. They then made their way to
the street, leaving all their personal
effects behind Mr.. Perry is proprie-
tor of the Waxahachie Livery and
Transfer company. He and Mrs. Per-
ry were permanent boarders at the
hotel. man and woman, members
of a theatrical company, made their
escape by climbing down telephone
pole from the awning to the street.
Their feet we're badly cut and lacer-
ated. They secured accommodations
at a private boarding house and
physician was called in to attend
their injuries. The Lockhart Sisters,
who played at the Majestic the lat
ter part of the week, escaped with
only one change of clothing. Other
guests escaped in only their night
clothing and suffered severely from
the cold until they could find accom-
modations in boarding houses. Some
OF the roomers we're crowded so
closely by the flames that they had
to resort to the fire escapes to get
out Practically all the guests lost
their entire personal effects, one
drummer losing a valuable diamond
with his clothing.
The fire department made a
prompt response to the alarm and In
few minutes the entire equipment
of the station was engaged in the
work of fighting the hungry flames.
Fed by strong wind the entire hotel
block was soon roaring furnace
with the flames eating their way into
adjacent buildings on the east. All
these, five or six In number, were
burned out to Jackson street. The
wind sent great volumes OF flames
hurting across Main street and in a
few minutes the three-story building
of the Odd Fellows, the pride OF
every member OF the local lodge,
melted before their onward sweep.
The block of two-story bulldog stu
ated just east of the Odd Fellows
building was totally destroyed. In
this block was the Hotel Annex and
these rooms were filled With guests
Who narrowly escaped The heaviest
losers in the annex we're Robert
Watson of Joiesch & Chaska and