The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1918-03-20
TallahatChie
Compress Shed
andCOttOnBurn
100000 Worth of This is Hnted in
Compress Fire.
lFrSm Thursday,s Daily.l

| iFFDW lnuTSuhy l(hNy.)
Seven hundred thousand dollar,
worth Of cotton was totally destroyed
here Wednesday night, when fire, OF
an unknown origin, burned down tht
shed known MS the "river she'd OF
the Tallehatchic Compress g. Storage
Co and the $500 or 1000 bales Of cot
ton stored therein. Incendiarsm is
strongly limited.
1t is understood that $1,000 worth
| Of cotton, uninsured was destroyed
The greater part Of this belonged tc
Mrs. S. ?. Southworth, while Mr.. /.
S. Hemphill had about 50 bales in the
shed destroyed. Other farmers in The
county had from a single bale to v
half dozen in the burned structure, II
is understood, which was not covered
by insurance.
The fire was discovered Wednesday
night at 7;05 o'clock by the watchman
II, T, Booker, and he Immediately
made an effort to reach officials of the
compress. The alarm was turned in
by resident living near the com.
press. Booker stated that he had just
left the shed and punched the box al
IA o'clock. He noted peculiar all
about the place, which he thought in
dicated fire of some sort. Booker
stated that he made a thorough in.
vestigation Of the southwest corner
Of the river shed, where he had noted
the scent of something burning, but
could find nothing and so he contin.
ded his rounds to the office.
The man came out of the Office i'm.
mediately, after registering there and
then it was that he saw the entire sky
illuminated by the blaze from the cot
ton, He asserted that the fire had
started il by magic. 1t was SO sudden
and the entire shed was in flames so
completely in such a short time. The
fire evidently had its origin at the
southwest corner Of the building and
rapidly found It's way over the entire
,our theusapa he|es Of cotton lined up
in rows, sEaftlhg at the soutll-west
corner and running north for 800 feet.
lhe shed was $50 feet wide. A wind
blowing at a great velocity to the
northeast carried the fire over the
entire five thousand or more square
.eet Of cotton.
Fire Seen for Great Distance.
Within 10 minutes after the fire
started the roof of the shed collapsed
and fell in over the burning cotton.
For a while the blaze was slightly Gx-
.ingushed by the falling of the wood
en- roof but several seconds later this
Jnly served as an impetus to make it
brighter. The fire was seen at Money,
Is miles north Of Greenwood and at
Sdon, several miles south of the city.
The heavy northeast wind carried
sparks from the fallen roof to the
residential section Of the city in the
northeastern part Of Greenwood.
Fire department No. | arrived with
its full crew at 7:l0 o'clock. Two lines
Of hose were rapidly connected and
these played on one or two negro ten
ant houses to the northwest and near
the fire, in order to protect them. Fur
nlture and clothing was removed from
most of these and placed in the streets
by the negro occupants.
Number Two arrived about min
utes later and they were directed to
carry their hose lines to the west
side Of the burning cotton. Three
more lines, belonging to the compress
we're connected on their own plugs a
little later and ii was not long before
a dozen streams under the control Of
thirty or forty men, were playing ef.
fectively on the fire and rapidly en-
tinguishing it on the west, in order to
protect the remainder Of the sheds
located in this direction from the riv-
er shed
A Blazing Field of Fire.
The burning cotton, extinguished
only about the western border Of the
former shed, presented vivid and i'm.
Lressive scene. The cotton stored
along the eastern side Of the shed
fran about the middle to the side
could not be touched with the equip
merit Of the companies and this burn.
ed an, presenting a realistic field oi
fire blazing away on its destructive
path.
Firenen under Chief Lee Bridges
could work their way but few feet
into this mass of flames. They fought
nevertheless, untiringly against the
great odds and managed tO protect
the remainder of the property anc
control the blaze to considerable eX
tent along the western border, in case
of a change of the wind.
A dozen volunteers rendered then
services and during the night eight oi
these remained by the hose nozzlei
and relieved the weary fremen Of thu
burden thrust upon them. The mer
| remained on the scene throughout thu
night. At o'clock a false alarm wai
| turned in. A section Of men was del
! egated 10 this call and went out u
return in few minutes with the re
port that the alarm was false one
Some of Lights Cut OF.
Three circuits Of the city electricit!
! were cut off at $3.50 and remained Of
for about an hour to give the boy
more water power Electric lights Il
tie residential sections were all ou
dun ing this period and in the smai
stores in the southern and easter
part of the city.
The fourth circuit, the uptown gee
tiop, had q supply Of sleetyieity sa'
=, ;j.