The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1914-05-17
Home
1t Was When Completed and as 1t Appeared Destroyed
. by Inexplicabe Flames the Morning She
Was Going to Move in 1t.

completely DESTROYED. This beautiful
establishment was located at Locust
Valley, few miles to the south OF
the Dawson place. No one knows
now the fire started. although, as Is
usual In such cases. 1. was attributed
TO defective insulation
Inc very same day the country as.
tate OF Raymond e. Baylis, at Hale
site, Huntington, a few miles from
the Cravnth place. was nearly de-
stroyed by another mysterious fire,
and the following day the mansion OF
stephen f. Burgoyne, AT Elm Point,
Great Neck. and the colonial cottage
oil Mrs. Peter +. Collier. at Southamp-
ton, l.. J., were reduced TO ashes
through fires occas!oned no one
knows how.
Add to these disasters the four
hres OF April 9 to 10, which were dis
covered successfully on the place Of
~ K. Chapman, at Great Neck, l.. l..
the fire OF April 3, which completely
Quilted the 100000 mansion of Mrs.
Jessica Taylor. daughter of the late
James X. Keene. at Cedarhurst, the
nre OF February Is, which destroyed
Mrs. w. K. Vanderbilt, IT. esra blish-
ment between Jericho and Westbury,
ana the fire OF January 26, which
started In the Port Washington ship
yards and destroyed 100000 worth
or pleasure yachts owned by million.
aire residents.
In the case OF the Chapman fires.
there Is no doubt at all that the fires
were Of incendiary origin. Four dis.
tinct efforts III two days to burn
down the place were made In two
days, but the identity of the firebug
has not yet been ascertained. Mr..
Chapman is president OF the Hudson
Trust Company.
The theory that an anarchistic con-
spirator is responsible for the fires is
based upon the fact that In every
case the victims We're millionaires
mere have been no fires at all In
the affected area among the homes of
people OF average means.
The possibility that the fires are
the work OF a ''pyronlaniac" Is held
by some persons, but no tangible
evidence has yet been secured to SUD
port this view. The typical pyro-
maniac Is one who IS instigated prin.
cipally by desire to see the fire ap-
paratus and f1remen at work, but In
these out Of the way country places,
which boast of no elaborate fire de.
partments, this motive could hardly
have been present
While the turning out OF q big
array Of fire fighting apparatus is not
characteristic feature of these
country fires, however, they do occa-
sion form of excitement Of their
own, and it Is quite possible that
somo degenerate mind might derive
a peculiar pleasure in starting fires
or this character just for the Ike of
watching the frantic efforts OF the
neighbors put them out.
A more ingenious theory Is that OF
an insurance man who believes the
Long Island fires are the work of
some INSCRIPTIONS builder or ma
terial man, who not having shared In
the previous contracts hopes to profit
by the rebuilding Of the houses
which he destroys.
In the same was some ambitions
architect who had not shared in tho
giving out Of plans might figure that
II the houses had to be rebuilt he
might this time be moro lucky. No
evidence at all has been secured thus
far to support this theory, but the in
vestigators are keeping 1t in mind.
That the fires may be due to vii.
fully careless building on the part of
owners is the suggestion of a we'll.
known technical publication.