The Columbus dispatch. (Columbus, Miss.) 19??-1922, 1919-03-19
Building Completely
and Equipment Extensive Damago-Firc Burrcd
For Over -Four Heroic is Done by
the X DEPARTMENTS

broke out in the Burlason Barber
shop at $3.50 o'clock Tuesday after
noon and before the flames were ar
rested the three-story Columbus
Clothing Company building was
completely destroyed and the hand
some six-story building of the Co
lumbus National Bank was almost
totally destroyed.
The Alter building Immediately
east of the bank building was COM
pletely wrecked as a result Of fall
ing walls and the building and the
equipment of the Cumberland Tele-
phone building sustained extensive
injury. as did the Princess picture
show.
Following are the estimated losses:
Columbus Clothing Company build
ing. valued at $4,000. and tho large
stock of the company.
Columbus National Bank, valued
at approximately 100000, almost
totally destroyed.
The Alter building, valued OF about
$4, 900, total wreck.
Cumberland Telephone and Tele-
graph Company buildiny, badly dam
aged by falling walls.
Princess Picture show water and
fire damage.
A gasoline explosion in the rear
Of Burlason's barber shop started
the fre at S:S0 o'clock. The flames
gained good headway from tho start.
and a large volume of smoke pre-
vented combating the fire at It's I'M
cipiency. A stream OF water finally
began to play on the flames from
the rear OF the building, but too late
toabe effective. and the flames Ieaped
to the roof Of the building and soon
1t was seething mass of fire. The
center roof Of the building fell with
a terrific crash which accelerated the
flames.
1 From the Columbus Clothing Com
pany's building the flames leaped to
the bank building through the win
dows on the west wall, and soon the
two top stories of the six-story build
/ ing we're a mass Of flames The
fire in the top of this building spent
Its force for lack of sufficient water
pressure, ~despite heroic efforts TO
reach it was stream of water.
In the meantime the fire was gut
ting the corner building and soon
the front walls fell with huge crash
to the street below. carrying with
them telephone and telegraph wires.
In few minutes the west wall fell
with another terrific crash. and then
the entire building was mass of red
flames.
After the fire in the top OF the
bank building had gutted the upper
stories portion of the front wall
fell from the fifth and sixth stories
with laundering crash TO the
street This brought with 1t por-
tion of the east wall, which demol-
ished the Alter building and did ex-
tensive damage TO the telephone
company's building.
BY effective work the rear. of fle
Columbus Clothing Company build
ing was brought partially under con
troll, ard the Princess Theatre i'm
mediately adjoining in the rear was
saved. although damaged. Streams
of water we're played on the picture
show building in order to save it.
At the time the fire broke out the
afternoon show was in progress and
Manager Kuykendall quietly an
nounced that a FIRE had broken out
in an adjoining building and re-
quested the audience to pass out
quietly. The building was evacu-
ated in splendid order
The fire ate it's way to the lower
stories OF the bank building and by
hazardous and heroic work the fire.
men arrested the flames practically
midway of the building Great dam
age was done to the lower floors by
falling timbers>and water.
II was a miracle that the east
wall Of the building did not fail. Il
stands now a meEace to adjoining
buildings. Firemen ascended tele-
phone poles in front Of the building
in the face Of great danger and
played stream of water into the
seething mass Of flames with efiec-
tive results. At e,o'clock last night
practically all of the FIRE had been
extinguished.
when the FIRE arst broke out there
was a rush to save the stocks Of
Hsr.sI5e in the varfone hufIafnVe and