THE GREAT FIRE IN DUNEDIN.

Grey River Argus, Volume III, Issue 194, 11 April 1867, Page 3

THE GREAT FIRE IN DUNEDIN.

The Daily Tunes of the 3rd inst. gives p- long account of the recent terrible fire in Duiieclin, from which wo condense the following particulars. :-— The alarm was given about 20 minutes to eleven o'clock in tlie evening, the fire i having been first discovered in the shop I of Mr Wilson j ironmonger, near tlie I Octagon Hotel, and. in an liour all the line I of buildings from the Octagon to the CriI terion Hotel, including the Theatre Royal, I Mr G. R. West's music shop, Messrs I Herbert ancl Hay nes' drapery and clothing I establishment, Messrs Paterson and MacI leod's gi-ocery and tea shop, and several I other places of business— was in flames ; I and spoeclily tlie fire spread- across tlie ■ street, destroying the block of premises I between and including Begg's music shop B and Moray place.' Almost, immediately ■ after the alarm was given. Mr Wilson's ■ shop was pouring out great tongues of I ilame. Very sxieedily the place was veritI a^b r glowing like a furnace ; the flames B being at an intense white heat. Next on Hthc lower side was the Octagon Hotel. ■The hofcdl and Mr Wilson's shop are the ■property of Mr W. Meluish ; and the Htcnaut of the hotel has for a few months Hi>;tst been Mr Joseph Harding, formerly H>f the Union, Stafford street. That the Hotel should have escaped was a impossibility. Its destruction was effected more rapidly, by the fact the timber yard of Messrs Jago ancl Octagon, extended at the back of Mr shop and the hotel, and that in y.ird there were piles of deal and other timber, which very speedily ignited, so made a fierce bonfire close to the It was when the Octagon Hotel tlu>rn\iglily ablaze, that the danger to Sou tli Australian was greatest. By )s time, too, Hie flames had gone in the direction to the premises of Messrs Hayi:es, antl Co., ancl Paterson M'Leod. The fire could scarcely have by any possibility, more intense and raging than it now Avas. The lieat everyone back ; and goods that had tlu-OAvn close to the South Australian 1 fov safety, blazed freely, and were difficulty prevented from helping to that building. Of course, the Royal— empty and diy as it was — into one huge pyroteclmism as as the fire reached it. And now, roof oLtlifijMßHMMif

side of the street. Between the two walls of flame, none could stay. The goods with which the road and the footpaths, were strewed smoked everywhere, and blazed in several places. The breeze, which had been at the worst but light ancl fitful, freshened. The flames were being blown directly towards Messrs Parke and Curie's shop, on the side of Moray place opposite the Criterion, and against the towering gable of the three-storey wooden pile known as Belgrave Chambers. The Glasgow Arms Hotel, on the opposite side of Princes street, was imminent, though "comparatively less, danger. The limits of the fire are stated to be as follows : — The line from the Octagon to the Criterion Hotel ; into Moray place, as far as the house occupied by Mr D. CarSJii; along the Octagon, as far sis tho higher portion of Messrs Garret ancl Co.'s coach-factory. Within the irregular triangle thus indicated, several small cottages were burned ; but the Criterion stables which were occupied by Mr Carson escaped the flames, as did his house. On the opposite side of the street, there -was continuous destruction from (and including) Mr Begg's premises to the shop and cottage of Mr G. Matthews, in Moray place, which became ignited, but were not much damaged by lire. There were, we believe, no cottages destroyed at the back, on this side of Princes street. The Fire Brigade were as. prompt and as active as possible ; but they could really do little, or nothing except try to keep the flames from crossing Moray place. They did try to save the easterly side of the street ; but the heat was so overpowering, ancl the spread of the fire through tho dry wood building so startingly rapid, that the London Brigade, if fully supplied with water, could scarcely have hoped to do much good. It is or no use speculating what might have resulted, if there had been a tire plug anywhere between Moray place aud the Octagon, from wliich a powerful stream of water could almost instantly have been played into Mr AVilson's shop. It is an unfortunate fact that as yet, though there may be pipes and plugs laid down, the- Water Company has not been able to give any kiud of snppfy. During the latter part of the fierce burn-, ing of the tire, great iialcus wore floated over tho city, causing much daugwr. One flake travelled as far as a yard at the rear of Messrs lloss and Glunclinning's warehouse, in Stafford street, and there ignited some paper ancl other refuse. There was speedily a blaze ; but it was discovered from the Provincial Hotel ; ancl Mr Court and others, with the ready- filled buckets kept in the hotel, at once put an end to the danger. Mr Wilson states that he locked his place up at 8 o'clock, when all was right, ancl no lire had been lighted during all that clay, and he carefu^-^trt^Wrt^ie^ lamps. It wasj^jpeHrTwas much disfißaSSS^SSSeS^mpossiblo for tho lire to gain so great a hold of Mr Wilson's shop, without the progress of the flames being smellecl, seen, or heard, by some one iv Harcling's Hotel, or on the premises of Herbert, Haynes and Co. The billiard room of the hotel adjoined the shop, with nothing but slightly covered avooc! between them ; ancl just the same was the case with regard to Herbert, Haynes ancl Co.'s upper rooms, whore some ■ of the assistants were sitting Ox* in bed. They, as we hear, knew nothing of the fire until it was seen almost entering their room ; and Mr Herbert, who was writing in another room, got no longer or less startling warning. As to the hotel, the first inmate who was alarmed appears to have been one of the waiters, He was in the billiard room, when a man ran in and asked " Does anybody live in tho next shop? It seems to be on lire." The waiter, knowing that no one lived there, ran out and pepped between the shutters, and saw a strong light. His account of what followed is substantially this : — Ho pulled down some of the shutters, smashed thu window, and got through. Somewhere near the back of the shop he saw a clear smokeless Jiamc rising from some vessel a couple of feet high ; around that vessel being ranged wood tubs or buckets. What fed the flame, the waiter does not pretend to suggest; but, acting on his first impulse, he dashed at the central vessel and upset it. Thou (he says) flame floated over a great portion of tins floor of the shop ; and the whole place was blazing, aud could not again bo entered. Tho insurances upon buildings burned down or much damaged, and the stocks of goods or the furniture in them, amount to about L 22,000 ; and we are assured that, taking that sum as a basis, it is a low estimate to assume that the value of property actually 'destroyed — apart from salvage- is from L 35,000 to L 40,000. There are many direct losses not represented in this calculation, which considerably swell the total stated ; ancl there still remain the great pecuniary damages consequent upon the stoppage of trade.