FIRE AT CAMBRIDGE.

Waikato Times, Volume XIX, Issue 1632, 19 December 1882, Page 2

FIRE AT CAMBRIDGE.

TitE jQddfellaws 1 Hall, (Jaiubridge, narrowly escaped being the scene of a somewhat extensive conflagration on Friday morning. About 11.30, some persons who. were passing the building noticed that the roof at the upper end was burning, and that the flames were rapidly spreading. Mr Clarke, traveller for Messrs L, D. Nathan and. Co., who hail some, naqyslWwUSfeWM'w Me liaJl, liad left the plaoo aboufc fifteen minutes previous to the discovery of the fire, and on returning was somewhat surprised to see what had transpired, during his absence, tie immediately proceeded to remove his wares, .which, , fortunately, was not necessary. The alarm had soon spread, and before long a number of people with buckets had gathered <£\'\\s T Hfif!lV>i iM a'sufficieHtTsifppfy oi water being at hand Vue fire "was sdon got ' underway and extinguished. The origin of the occurrence has not positively transpired, but some people are of opinion that the roof iguited through a spark which had been conveyed by the wind from some rubbish , burning in a neighbouring yard. The damage is estimated at about £5, which is bovdred lv 'h-fturi^QG ifl % l|jfr\ y 'Zealand ' Office. This shq'uld a§rve a§ a lesson to parties wlio are, in the habit of burning rubbish in . the centre ' of tlie' ' town, and ' in a neighbourhood in- which there are no : thing but .wooden buildings. Had the fire been permitted to spread the cousequence's''it'would'not be easy to anticipate. Cambridge, H would seem, fcas been e^AtyfeM & && wftlJin.the'past few days, some of 'which. have been of a .somewhat serious nature, v i , Since tiie above has beeu ( m t ,type,- no less^than tta BthsF4iffgr e ni Qm 'hwe occurred in the same town. On Thursday evening last a -'four-roomed cottage in AlphastretStyibelbnging 1 tbtMi?*lMaxwell, ' was burned to the^poiuTd 1 ' under somewhat M^euli^ri ciroumatancea."! A> mai|,inamed Bruno 4ug<*'jbad occupied! the house for ■i«»iii*fff' o H moTCd^umomz'o^KcPfe 1 th'e'ttay and afteWithU jperson 'ss Mfflsp have been neat .tl/4hou>f','A : young man >hen/^ne A 4isM^red^Bn>pEe , . isawng, ,froirfi .the fcfthe -

f'jiScovVjred. Every precaution was 1 to prevent the fire from communigstself to the neighbouring houses jotlage contained four rooms, and mjjrjpf the oldest erectioaa -in the . i^The damage done is estimated at". buHhe insurance only amounts to; f,jftis the general belief that thjs, ; 'fijne?\ra;s the work of au incendiary. The* police are investigating the matter. About 4 o'clock on Sunday morning a Maori restaurant near ' the Natioual JTfiM; the property "of a? Mrs* Murphy, f 1 was also burned to th,e ground. From 'what we can gather, the fire was caused by the negligence of a neighbour. It appears Mr Hoy, who carries on a butchering business next door, left a log fire burning in his back yard over night. {The embers were blown about by -the wind, and'some were blown in the flireotiod of the restaurant which, owing to the flimsy material of which it is- constructed, caught fire. The place was uninsured, and the damage is estimated at £30. We learu it i<3 the intention of the police to pr.oce.ed against Mr Hoy. On the same morning (Sunday) it was discovered that the stables attached to the Masonic Hotel had b<-en on fire during the night, but that the fire had died out before it succeeded in getting a hold upon the building. Some of the boards near the base were badly charred as if some burning material hail been placed beneath. Mr Rose is also of opinion that this was the work of au incendiary, but we thiuk it is more likely that it was the unintentional act of some careless, , inebriated person, who may have thrown down a match after lighting his pipe, and this ignited the dry tussock grass near to vrftere the Extends were kuvned.