FIRES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXIX, Issue 9023, 31 October 1892, Page 4

FIRES.

A six • roomed house occupied by Mr,. Walker, Mount Albert, and owned by Mr. Gilmour, was burned down on Saturday night. Mr. and Mrs. Walker left home to come to town on Saturday evening, leaving a lamp burning, but turned down. During their absence the house caught fire, and on their return the house was found burned to the ground. It is not known how the tire arose. At a quarter-past nine o'clock last night an alarm of fire was sounded. The outbreak was found to be in a dilapidated wooden three-roomed house, situated at th€ back of the Pier Hotel block, midway beween Albert and Chapel-streets. This was occupied by Mrs Clyne, and has been used by her as a washing and drying place for clothes of the crews of the Union S.S. Company. The room in which the fire was discovered had evidently not been used for a long time, and contained a lot of bones and rags, old clothes and rubbish, including some old boxes. It was in one of these that the fire originated, and burning down through a quantity of old clothing and rubbish, it reached the floor, through which it burnt a hole about IS inches square. The box with the burning stuff was removed as quickly as possible. The Fire Brigade, under Superintendent Hughes, the Salvage Corps, under Captain Field, and the police, under Inspector Broham, were quickly in attendance, but fortunately there was nothing to do but to investigate the cause of the ignition. Traces of matches were found in the box and on the floor, and the general opinion was that as there were many traces of rats' nests in and around the box, these rodents had originated tha fire on this occasion. Mrs. Clyne arrived soma time after the fire was discovered. She does not reside on the premises, but with her husband in a tobacconist's shop near the Albert Hotel, Queen-street, and she stated that she had not been in the plac< since the previous day, and there had been no fire in that room for at least seven years. There was no insurance on the furniture or effects.