The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1916-02-03

then burning, though scarcely three
| minutes had elapsed since the flames
| shot from the cellar into the billiard
| parlor.
| The police, who were arriving
quickly at the scene, had difficulty in
preventing the first outpouring Of
women and children from standing in
| front of the building and blocking the
exit. Policemen Martin J. Kane,
Frank NJ. Holbrook, Bernard G1ennon,
John Barton, Sergeant James Ramsay
and others aided in making the en-
! frances clear.
The manager and operators of the
| theatre showed commendable spirit In
| patroIIing every aisle to make sure
that none had tainted before leaving
| the building, just as the smoke be-
came so dense as to suffocate. The
pianist played rousing airs until the
| last person was out.
Last night it was believed that the
fire originated in the basement of the
Kinder Billiard academy by the cross
ting of electric wires and ignition of a
quantity of rubbish, or gas. 1t was
related by the management of the par
| Ior that electric light linemen had
sought admission to the celler earlier
in the day.
M. E. La Forge, manager of the bill
Hard parlor, living at 1,O52 Broad
Estreet, scarcely had left the building
! to get his supper when the fire broke
out. James Moran, of 1916 Main
street, left in charge of the parlor,
was setting up pool balls in the rear
of the room when he heard a cry of
fire. He looked towards the front of
| the room and saw a sheet of flame
emerge from the cellar stairway It
was silent and somewhat subdued.
The. next moment it again appeared
and flames swept upward, barring
If I1A
Five tables were being used at the
time and a number of men were seat
ed around the walls, about Is. They
fought their way out through the
| flames.
| Arthur Love- 1913 Broad street. said:
'It was one of the quickest fires I
have ever seen. Scarcely three min
utes elapsed from its discovery when
we were in the street and the flames
were envedoping the Arco theatre and
quick lunch were coming into the
street ,aghast at the unexpected sight.
heard a man who came out say,
| Why, I just went through the res
| taurant doorway and there was no
fire."
Moran later said: "As far as
know nobody was in the cellar. 1t
was reported that men were smoking
down there but = know that all were
on the street floor.
Oreger Kelly, of 142 Grand street,
was the first to pull in an alarm, from
Broad, and John streets, at exactly
three minutes to seven, according to
Policeman Simmons, who was on the
beat. He saw him at the box and
asked him what was the matter.
There. is an explosion and fire
over there Kelly is reported to have
said. The next moment flames had
burst through the big plate glass win
n Of he
were shooting skyward. Simmons be-
gan keeping the crowds back to pre-
vent their being hurt by the flying
glass, which continually blew outward
| and fell in small pieces.
As the 1remen fought the blaze,
they penetrated through the broken
windows of the billiard par1ors. Sew
era1 explosions forced them back, the
third Of which tumbIed three into the
| street without apparent injury.
Gas said to have formed between
the metal ceiling and the upper floor
Of the building blew down large sec
lions of the ceiling in the Arco theatre
as well as hampering work in the
billiard hall. These strips fell in the
theatre shortly after the last person
had been removed.
Lieut. Thomas F. Broderick, of the
fire department, detailed for inspec-
ton of theatres and public buildings,
was early OH the scene anu DSSdn an
investi cation, which had not been
complcted-1ast night.
During the fire when thousands
lined the sidewalks and explosions
were throwing embers about the street,
the utmost calmneSs reigned in the
laundry of Lee Quong where five
stolid Chinese continued their opera
tions of washing and ironing shirts.
Fire lines were established by the
police under command of Sergeant
Ramsay, across John street and at the
post office arcade. The west side of
Broad street was so roped that pedes-
TRANS were not blocked in their pro-
gress north and south.
The fire was one-a1arm fire Off
cially, but through the efforts of zeal
Gus citizens, appalled, by the spectacu-
lar nature OF the blaze, four alarms
were turned in. The first was rung
from No. IL box on John street be-
tween Broad and CORTLAND streets, at
7:05 p. M; the second was three min
utes later from box No. "a, Broad and
Cannon streets; the next one minute
a fourth at 7:10 from Fairfield avenue
and Broad street.
AS soon as Chief Johnson had
reached the scene on the first pull he
saw that the 10 companies responding
were not needed and sent back all ex-
cept engine companies /, 8, and
trusks 1 and 2.
The fremen fought the blaze from
above and below, details being or
dered into the smoke filed cellars from