The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1915-08-10
TOUGH FIRE
IN JELLY MILL
Ancient Flat st. Structure
Sustained Further Dam
age Last Evening
FLAMES FIRST SEEN
IN GASS RAG SHOP

vented Spread of Fire to Main Build
Estimate of Losses Hard to Get
Amusing Incident Pleased Crowd.
The old jelly mill annex on Flat street,
twice threatened by floods within the last !,
month, was the scene of an ugly fire early /,
last evening. The actual damage to
building and contents as a result of
Yesterday blaze probably does not exceed
$4,000, but added to previous damage by
/ floods il leaves the structure in danger
ous condition. The weight of the water
! thrown upon it during the fire was too
much for the weakened undcrpinning in
fthe rear and the sections above have set
| tied badly. The rear wall is bulged and
| split and the entire rear of the building
has apparently sagged since last night
| 1t was $50 O'Clock last evening when
, fire in the ragshop of George Gass in the
middle floor of the three story annex, was
| discovered almost simultaneouslv hy Jason
/ f. Bushnell in his store on Elliot street
and Police Chief George Wilson who was
near the bridge on Main street
Mr. Bushnell telephoned an alarm to
/ fire headquarters and the motor apparatus
:, was just leaving the house as box 36 was
sounded by the chief Chauffeur Charles
Stoclwell Of the motor apparatus went
ont Elliot street and came down on to
! Flat street from Elm street while the
horse drawn apparatus soon followed by
the same route, both answering the direc-
ton of the telephone call instead of the
box alarm, but no time was lost
! The first few minutes were spent by
both pieces of apparatus in stringing lines
of hose and both laid them rapidly Not a
thing went wrong with the fremen. They
got water promptly; men enough of the
department were on hand to take the
lines as fast as the pipes were connected
and to rush them where they would do
the most good.
When the alarm sounded flames were
shooting out of the door leading to the
tGass shop and up the front of the build
ing, but the first line soon quelled that
outbreak although there was plenty of
fire among the piles of baled paper and
rags in the interior.
i Lines were run into the first floor ad-
: ioining the big four-story main building
; occupied entirely by John Dunton as
secondhand store and another up the run
way to the second floor and under the
direction Of Assistant Chief w A. Shum-
way they headed off any chance of the
flames reaching the main building so long
as the streams at work on the blaze itself
could prevent that getting the upper hand
and working up to the roof.
On the other end men worked rapidly
hauling automobiles from the garage of
Frank A. Larrow, owner of the building,
and even rolled out barrels Of gasoline \
: line was carried in there and the pipemen
{ were able to play their stream through a
open door on the flames in the rag shop
and prevent them from getting through
the wooden partition to the oil soaked
wooden floor
Men worked their way into the third
8 floor, dropped a rope out of window
and attached it to a dry line of hose ready
to haul it up in the event Of the fire get
ting into the second floor, but the flood
. of water poured into the building from
! all directions kept the fire on the first
floor. Later in the fight stream was laid
from the hydrant at the corner of Canal
and South Main streets and carried
: through the Ninton mill yard where it
, was possible to bring it to bear on the
q rear of the building.
g The absence of wind, the fortunate dis.
c covcry of the fire at time when firemen
Z were readily available the fact that there
II were no serious handicaps at the start oil
The work when every second counted more
fhan minutes would later, and the willing
ness of the tiremen to face tough, very
smoky fire in a building that was hardly
ISa1e, prevented a IRE worse tnan the one
, on election night when Mosher's garag,
and other buildings on the same stree
were burned
n Close estimates of the loss are difficul
, to obtain So far as the actual fire dam
! age to the building itself is concerned
e probably $500 would cover it, but the re
sultant additional damage to the who'll
= structure by weakening it is also attribut
able to the fire.
The Dewitt Grocery Co. had quantit,
of paper plates in crates and lamp chin
neys in cartons and there is considerable
damage to the first by water and to tn
second by breakage The concern ha,
ve transferred its insurance on the content
of that building yesterday, intending t
remove the goods today
ia On the second floor Mr. Larrow had 4
" tally-ho and numerous carriages store
al and there is water damage to them an
,r- some damage to harness that was throw
Oh out and which would have been undan
bn aged if left in the building
II. VI. Wheelock, who has paint sho
on the second floor, sustained some dan
age, but the principal damage was to tn
stock OF rags and baled paper in the sho
Of Mr. Gass
The third floor of the annex was occl
at pied entirely by John Dunton as a stor
room and the damage there was done b
smoke.
= The crowd had lot Of fun at the stan
n, out of the experience of two men VIII
rs, were aiding in Strengthening out line
hose near the hydrant in front of I'll