THE LATE FIRE IN DUNEDIN.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 4196, 1 September 1874, Page 3

THE LATE FIRE IN DUNEDIN.

The"fire which occurred in. Princes Street on Saturday (says the Daily Times) was.one of the largest and most destructive that'has taken place in Dunedin for many years. There is no doubt that the fire originated from the furnace on Messrs. Guthrie and Larnach's premises, and from the inflammable nature of the stuff stored there, soon, obtained a hold of the whole premises. The firemen-arrived promptly after the alarm was- sounded, at about 4 a.m., and worked well, and to their exertions may be attributed the saving of the old Immigration Barracks and,- perhaps, the Prince of Wales Hotel and other wooden buildings on the opposite side of the road. .With suprising rapidity the flames spread, over the whole of the premises used a 3 a saw mill, and when the fire-bell >ang there was one mass of fire from thePrinces Street frontage back to Bond Street. The dense volume of flame rising from Messrs. Guthrie and Larnach's, aided by the direction in which the wind was blowing, soon set fire to the Spanish Restaurant, an old three-storied building of galvanised iron and wood. The place, when once it caught, burnt like matchwood, and great fears were entertained for the safety of the lodgers, of whom there were fiftyfour on the premises. They all got out unharmed, however, some of them escaping by means of ropes from the front windows. We are informed that there were escape ropes in all the rooms in case of such an emergency. Very few of the boarders in the, Spanish' Restaurant managed to save anything, and their efforts to do so were retarded by some of the number, who, in tho confusion and rush, blocked up the narrow staircases and passages with boxes and other moveables. Before the restaurant was reached, ; Messrs. Howorth's iron and spouting store was destroyed. The old Immigration Barracks, fully occupied at the time, were in imminent danger, and the inmates rushed out at once, throwing bedding and furniture of all kinds out of the doors' and windows. The women had not time even to dress themselves or their children, but came, into the street almost in their nightclothe's, and huddled together amongst the cases and furniture that had been piled on the footpaths. Happily the Barracks were saved, so that after a few hours' sliivering these poor creatures were able to go back to ihelter. The paint on the houses on the opposite side of the road was blistered, and the heat was so intense that one could not stand at the corner of Walker Street without inconvenience. The inmates of the .Imperial Hotel—a laige wooden buildingwere of course alarmed, and preparations were made to'remove the property in case the fire should threaten that building. From Bond Street a good view of the fire could be obtained, and from there we saw one of the greatest masses of flame that has been in this city for years. • The stacks of pine boards and logs burned furiously, and the portions of the 'brick wall at the-Bond Street end of the building occasionally fell hi with a tremendous crash. The two-storey building owned by Messrs.- Guthrie and Larnach; south of the saw mills, appeared likely to take fire at one time, but the thickness of the wall and the exertions of the Brigade saved it. The only thing left standing in the saw-mill is the large brick chimney, which, however, appears to have suffered from the heat. The engine, saw and plaining benches, and other machinery, is of course destroyed, and even the huge flywheel has been bent by the fire. : The Spanish Restaurant is levelled to the ground. The destruction of Messrs. Guthrie and Larnach's saw-mill will, of course, throw a large number of men out of employment, but from what we can ascertain this will only be for a short time. We understand that duplicates of most of the machinery that was destroyed are stored in the two-storeyed brick building next the premises •that were burned, and that it.will not be more than a fortnight or three weeks before they will again be in working order. • '