THE GEORGE STREET FIRE.

Evening Star, Issue 4008, 30 December 1875, Page 3

THE GEORGE STREET FIRE.

An inquiry was hold at the White Horse Hotel this afternoon before Mr Hcckcn, coroner, and a jury of fifteen, into the cause of the fiie in George street on Chris!mas nnrn ing. _ Mr Mount appeared to watch the proceedings on behalf of Jenkins, in whose place the fire occurred.

The Coroner, in referring to a paragraph which appeared in yesterday’s ‘ Guardian ’ wherein it was state! that at the lire at Fraser’s foundry the police had refused to give certain information to the Press, which it (the paper) considered a form of red-tape! ism, raid that he had for a long time past been of opinion that the police exercised a wise discretion in not giving information to the reporters, and consequently to the public, in a matter which would likely become subject of further inquiry. The reporters could get the pure facta of the case from other persons, and he (the Coroner) thought it a great pity that the police should be asked to give f ets which should only be given at an inquiry. He made the remark not because the police did not know their diry better than he could tell than, but because he sometimes found the jury were in possession of facta which were certainly not given m evidence, and which (ended to bias or mislead lbsm in giving evidence.

The jury having inspected the premises, the following evidence was giveh Robert Redmayne, draughtsman, saw a plan p.s the nice of the recent fire and of the adjoining houses, this morning, which he pro laced

William \. Gibb, insurance clerk in .the National Office, said Mr Jenkins’s premise's in George street, were insured with them on the 1 13th October last for L3OO oo the stock-in-trade. Thefiniurance was for three months. iVlr Jenkins in insming stated that the risk had not been insured before, and that ho w’aa , uot then insu ed elsewhere. Ilia reason for insuring for tluce months only was that the Pa 3 expired in Jammy Jenkins, however, promised to improve the premises if a renewal of the lease were granted, and to insure fra longer period. ’lhj ollice occasionally insured for shorter periods. V\ itne.-s inspected Ids stock on the 12th October. It consisted or palliasses, chairs, rugs, &c., on October 13. The stcck was worth considerably over L3OO at the time. Witness• remarked that the iiiv place was not safe, and Jenkins replied that he had no occasion to use it, and seldom or never did. The hearth bricks v/cre loose, a d tee stock was pretty close to it. By Mr Mount-Jenkins gave no reason for wishing to insure. By the Go. oner —Mr Jenkins, since the lire, has lodged a claim of 1/2 11 Ss Ud. fall particulars of which are annexed, Win re there has been a total loss, as in this instance, a claim for the full amount is almost invariably undo. The appU c ition for payment was made vv.-derday. Philip Bowen, waiter, rod sing at Bavu-’s hutch ry establishment, next do or to Jenkins’* | shop, d posed that he saw Jenkins in the backyard of his premise/, going up the back .stabs, about a quarter of an hour hefoe the tire broke out. He was drc.s.d, but hj id no coat on, and his shirt-sleeves were tucked up. He had then been to the water-closet. Witness was in the hack-yard seven or eight minutes after this ; there were thou no signs of fire. Witness was in the sitting-room when Mrs Davis came in and told him that Jenkins’s place was on firo. On going into the yard he saw Jenkins’s middle room in a blaze, burning very fast By the time he got to the front portion of Davies’s shop the lire had worked its way into this building. Henry Win, Kent had been in Mr Jenkins’s employment four months and a-half. Ho lived on the premises and took his meals there. On Christmas morning Mr Jenkins came over to breakfast at 7.30, which witness had cooked in the fire-place in the middle room. After breakfast, about half-past eight, Mr Jenkins went out. Witness went out about nine o’clock, leaving the key with Mr Savage, opposite. The fire was ihen burnt out, only white ashes being in the grain, which was a Colonial one. The lire consisted of Green Island coal and manuka wood. There were no bricks in the winch was zinc up to the fireplace. He did .not put the fire out when leaving ; it looked sale. When witness re turned" at eleven o’clock the place was burned down. The tiro then p-eared to havo origin..led in the oe’ia:-, to which anyone could gain access from the outside, Mr Jenkins, upholsterer in George street, said he had been'* in the premises since Iho early part of July last. He wasj. insured

In the National for L3OO from October. It was at the recommendation of one of the merchants with whom he was dealing that he consented to iusiue. Between eight ami nine o'clock on Christmas morning he b:oakfast cd on the premises and then went out On returning he told the la. I in tie shop to leave the key at Savage’s in crsi he did not return before ho wont out. About half-past nine witness got tho key there and went to sec if the back door was fastened. Finning it was, he went down to the watercloset for a few minutes, came up and fastened the back-door passed through the shop, locked the front door and went over to Mr Savage’s. ’A lien in the back-yard be saw a young man iu Davis’s yard. After being in this room at .Savage's’ about a quarter of an hour bo was called ami was told bissliop wasouhre. lie wont over and found the whole place on lire. When he pcss. d through the shop the fire appeared lobe quits out. At the time of the tire his stock was worth 1,247, for which amount he had applied to the insurance office. He did not remember the insurance clerk telling him that the fire-place was unsafe. [Left sitting.]