Fire Inquiry.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXVIII, Issue 3653, 31 May 1906, Page 2

Fire Inquiry.

An inquiry touching the cause of the fire which destroyed the residence of Mr G. A. Simpson on Sunday, May 20th, was held at the Courthouse yesterday, before Alf. Fraser, Esq., J.P., (Coroner), and the following jury:—Messrs P. Hennessy (foreman), C. D. Barnard, Geo. Stiles, F. E. Jeuks, D. W. Bradley and E. Howe. Constable Whitehouse conducted the -case on behalf of the police, while Constable Bree, of Shannon, assisted. The following evidence was taken : ' Mrs Sarah Aim Simpson, wife of George Augustus Simpson, remembered waking up her husband on morning of 20th ; she heard things falling down, and there was*smoke in her bedroom ; her husband then jumped up, after her telling him the place was on fire. Mr Simpson said: “Oh Goodness!” and I got the baby out, and the bag with my jewellery in, also some of my clothes; the fire seemed all over the house when I went out; I am sure the fire was not onl} r in the drawingroom when I got up ; there was only smoke in the room when I took the cradle.out, and the cradle was warm ; Mr Simpson went out of front door in front of me ; Mr Simpson pushed a mattrass through the front window, which was saved, also quilt, &c.; we had notice to leave the place on Thursday before the fire, and witness thought husband was in financial difficulties ; in the letter, I think it said it had yet to be decided whether I could keep the furniture, or make use of it; I have never said since the fire that we could have saved more if Mr Simpson had been sober; Mr Spring and Mr Hunt were at the house the eve before the fire, playing cribbage with ray husband; I could not be sure if they had any drink ; I did not go in till late; my husband went to bed about ii o’clock, and he was sober; I did not remove anything after I got the letter; about a week before that I removed the organ, which I always considered was mine ; after I saw Mr Morgan I anticipated trouble, and as I had paid for it myself twelve years ago, I removed it; my husband seemed a bit upset when I received letter from Devin & Co. ; Mr Simpson did not know that organ _ war removed until after the fire ; if M r Simpson knew it had gone from the house, he said nothing to me ; when she got out, the fire seemed all over the house ; I saved nothing else but what I told you ; I went round to front thinking to save something, but got nothing : T did know the organ was in the bil4-of-sale. and I am sorry I touched it; the organ was absolutely a ! l I removed out of tlm place before the fire ; Mr Hun* was the first outsider I know of to arrive.on the scene ; being with the children I don’t know whetheanv attempt was made by M" Simpson or Mr Hunt; I saw them chopping the gas-house down to save the wash-house '; it was some time after the fire had started ; w<saved the traps; I don’t know who took them out of the shed.

George Augustus Simpson, or being sworn said : I think it wa c about four o’clock in the morning of Sunday, 20th, that the wifb woke me saying there was a smel 1 of fire; after making some remarks as to it being nonsense I got up and on opening' the door found the passage full of black smoke; I then went out of 1 frontdoor, round to children’s windows, opened the boys’ window and got them out; then returned to front of house, and got into ray ow bedroora window ; the smoke was so dense I could not do anything • Mrs Simpson was standing out on lawn, and sang out to me to com' out as quickly as I could ; then went round to side of house ; ,'bv this time the place was a mass of flames; rav lungs were full o r smoke, and I was much dazed ; hardly remember any more ; the first one I remember seeing was Mr Hunt, and I then went round to the kitchen door; someone must have pulled me back ; T think it was Mr Hunt; then some one suggested pulling down tlw gas-house; we did that; I don’t really know who was there ■ there were several spoke to me r we saved the wash-house as well as we could ; I turned the taps on in the wash-house so as to saturate the floor. Cross-examined: I don’t reummber turning on the big taps to saturate the bricks; I may have C'u so; the cistern held 2000 •mbons and big tanks rooo gal--1• they would be pretty well full at this time ; the tans from cistern were laid on to hot and

coM water baths and sink in rh r now-" ; he thought it wa c Mr Speirs who suggested pulling down the gas-house; could not , say whether it was before the fire--1 bell rang ; it could not have been

long after I got outside, the whole thing could not have lasted more than half-an-hour ; seeing Constable fire; was not sure whether gashouse was pulled down before I spoke to him; Mr Hunt and myself threw water on the washhouse ; if he was told that a man went to fire, then went home and had breakfast, and afterwards rang the firebell, which woke Constable Whitehouse, and he went to fire and arrived there before tanks and gas-house were down, he would say “ that man was a liar ! ” At the time of my own knowledge, I thought I saved nothing at all, though since then my wife told me I shoved mattrass and quilt through the window; I have no recollection of this ; my daughter had the portmanteau of a dressing case away with her ; at the time of fire I was not sure of my financial position, and could not say until my affairs with partnership of deceased Dr Reid were liquidated ; Devin and Co. held a lien over the house, they held the insurances, and value of furniture ; did not think the organ was included; he had notice from Devin and Co. to leave the place, probably a week or ten days before the fire; it was a fact that his office in Bulls was burnt down, and his books destroyed ; I had an interest in Westwood’s grocery establishment some three years ago ; he believed that place was insured ; the wife saved some of the jewellery from the recent fire ; Mr Hunt, Mr Spring and myself were having a game of crib, and when I went to bed, certainly left a little fire in the smoke room about n o’clock, but very little; I was perfectly sober • when I got outside at first the fire appeared to be running through the centre of the building ; he would say it was untrue that the drawing room only was on fire when the first person arrived on the scene; he was indebted to Devin and Co for over and urobably owed £4O or hi private debts ; my financial position was perfectly sound when m) r office was burned at Bulls ; that fire at Bulls was the worst for me- - the fire at Westwoods affected me on the wrong side,; again the fire in the present cajfo ~ame out on the wrong sidefj lJd*could have had worth 61 furniture which he did not get; I did not know in whose name the proposals re furniture were I signed; outside my own people, T did not see anyone before I saw Mr Hunt; I saw Frederick Robin'on there, who did not suggest getting things out of the house. By Foreman: The wife, myself, •Free boys, and three girls were at home at time of fire; the renewal of +he insurance policy was •ought from me; I did not approach anyone. By the Coroner: I certainly 'elt indignant when Devin and Co. gave me notice to quit the o'ace; it could not be a fact Fat I told Robinson Ilhad nd buckets to put out fire, as they had buckets using putting out the vash-house. Here the Coroner wished to ’mow whether the transfer of the insurance policy signed by Mr Simpson would give Mr Simpson any further interest on the Frniture than he had before. The '-oroner explained that it would not.

Frederick Robinson, farmer, residing in Foxton, remembered *-he morning of 20th May, seeing ■eflection of fire on roof of another house opposite our -place ; I was out of bed, going milking; I went •■o -the front door and saw the hre through the trees; I then vent to the fire, and it was in a room on the left hand corner; then went along to side of house; did not try to rouse anyone, I opened door at side of house and -aw some furniture; I could have got in room and did not think it was impossible to remove a little o f the furniture ; then went round the back to other side of the house ; I saw Mr Simpson stand* ing there and I believe he was smoking a pipe, filled from a tin he had ; he seemed a bit upset; he had his trousers, shirt and shoes on ; there was no one there hut Mr Simpson at that time ; Mr Hunt then came ; the water from tanks was running at the time; I looked about for buckets and found none; made no remarks re buckets to Mr Simpson : when he got there, the fire, which may have been burning inside, did hot appear in back part of the house ; when he got there, "o attempt was being made remove things from the house ; I went home first, made a cup o£, tea, caught mvponv, saddled him, a.id rode up and rang the bell ; I ‘■'hould say the bell was rano r i: rtle after five o’clock; I aske I Mr Simpson if there were any hoses about, and he said no; have not been to scene of fire since; when I told Constable Whitehouse and Detective Quirk®

a bucket, must have meant a

hose; I also remarked it was a

pityJthere was not a fire brigade appliance to put a fire but I cannot remember what Mr Simpson said in reply ; think Mr Simpson got a few things, out of a back shed. By Foreman: At the time Detective Quirk e and Sergeant Whitehouse consulted me, Detective Quirke took my statement in writing.

By Coroner : I made no attempt

to save anything ; there was no attempt made at all ; he did not see anyone else but Mr Simpson about at first.

S. IT. Ift her, firmer, residing in Foxton, said : Remember Sunday morning, 20th, noticing fire at Mr Simpson’s house, between four and five o’clock; I went across ; all the front part of house was burnt flown, and the latter part was just about caving in when I got there ; I noticed two of the taps running; young Webb and the two Simpson boys were the only ones I saw when I arrived ; a Itttle later I seen Mr Simpson ; made no remarks to him about the taps ; I turned the laps off, and was amongst those who helped to remove the gas-house; the first tking I asked when I got to fire was with reference to lives, and the reply was that no lives were lost the place was too far gone to save anything when I got there. B. D. Webb, farmer, residing at Foxton, remembered 20th May, morning of fire ; I went there and seen Mr Simpson and Mr Hunt at fire ; the fire was then in the froth part of the house, about four or a qaarter past four o’clock; there was then no fire in the back part of the house; I think things could have been saved from the back rooms at that time; did not see anyone trying to save anything ; the taps were on, and water running away ; I stayed a good while; Messrs Simpson, Hunt, and Robinson were the only ones I saw when I first arrived; Mr Simpson was in his, shirt sleeves, without coat or waistcoat ; Mr Simpson did not seem to trouble much.

Mr G. W. Morgan, sworn, said he was the representative of Levin and Co., at Foxton. My firm held a bill-of-sale over Mr Simp•/Sfel’s house, furniture and effects ; Mir Simpson’s financial state, if the estate realised well, was good ; if the estate sold badly, Mr Simpson would be to the bad ; my firm hold insurance on the building; but the policy on the furniture is really in Mr Simpson’s name; Mr Simpson’s private debts would have nothing at all to do with us ; Mr Simpson’s present indehetedness to Levin and Co., was between ,£2OOO and /,'2,500 ; did not think, in fact he was certain, Mr Simpson did not try within two months prior, to fire to obtain a further advance ; notice had been given on Wednesday preceeding fire to Mr Simpson to leave the house the following Wednesday; he was allowed to take furniture for present use up to value of according to conditions; the organ spoken of was included in the bill-of-fare held by my.firm; It was possible the organ may have been included in the bill-of-sale without Mrs Simpson’s knowledge ; though he presumed Mr Simpson should know of ij:s inclusion.

By Foreman : Levin and Co. Would get the benefit of insurance oB furniture, though the policy was really in Mr Simpson's name ; it would be paid to Levin and Co. By Constable Whitehouse : The insurance money on furniture would naturally release Mr Simpson from that much indebtedness, Chas. A. W. Hunt, sworn, said he was manager tor Mr Bert Austin ; remembered night of 19th May, I was in Mr Simpson’s .house having a game of crib; I left there close on 11 o’clock; somewhere about half-past four I was aroused by one of Mr Simpson’s boys who informed me their house was on fire ; I dressed and went over to fire, which was very near all through the building when I got there ; I saw Mr Simpson first, who was then pulling phaeton, etc. out of shed, Mrs Simpson being on the lawn; it was impossible to save anything at that time ; I myself tried to get in kitchen, but could not ; did not see anyone else there when I came : Robinson may have been there previously, but I did not know ; I did not leave the scene of the fire after I first came until after nine o’clock in the morning ; the taps were not running when I got there; Mr Simpson turned them on to keep the place damp so as to prevent the tire 'spreading to the jyash-house: he did not notice whether vci?r was running towards wash- house or not.

By Fo-'c He thought the fire wow'd he go.ng 15 to 20 minutes when he got there.

By Coroner: He had a drop of whisky, two little drops, during the evening ; Mr Spring touched

none, and he thought Mr Simpson had the same as himself; he also had a taste of cocoa or coffee during the evening, Fred. Robinson, recalled, said, he thought the first he saw of the fire was at about five minutes past four; It would be about threequarters of an hour after that that he rang the bell.

The Court was then cleared while the jury considered their verdict. A verdict was found to the effect that there was no evidence to show how the lire originated.