CALAMITOUS FIRE AT THE OCTAGON.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 5481, 12 September 1879, Page 7

CALAMITOUS FIRE AT THE OCTAGON.

SERIOUS LOSS OF LIFE,

TWELVE BODIES RECOVERED.

One of the largest and most destructive firea -which has oconrred in Dunedin for the past few year* broke out on Monday morning about halfput two o'olock. When the alarm bell tolled out the signal, the fire had a strong hold of tho largo block of buildings in. the Octagon situated next the Athebseuin, and known as Ross's Buildings. The flames were first seen in that portion-!of the'buildings adjoining the' tsrswbrka, at the corner: of the Octagon and hart street. Thi» was just prevloun to the arrival of the Brigade. The fire is said to kave originated in the Cafe Obantant. Some considerable time elapsed before the* Brigade sot a hose to bear on the back part of the premises, owing chiefly to the difficulty o: access, the only way of leading the hose round from the front being down a narrow right-of-way, and here a stiff fence blacked the way, until an opening could be made through it. When'the hose at last began to play, the great height of the building—for the flames were at this time confined to the higher portion —prevented any effective result being attained ill that direction. Above the noise, and shouting, and clanging of the bell could be heard the pitiful and heart-rending shrieks of women- and men cut off from the only means.of exit—the staircase, and it Tvaa indeed sorrowful to hear these piercix-g cries of, terror, without any efficient means of rendering assistance. The fire brigade scarcely turned put with their usual promptness, and through the fire - escape having been lately removed from the Masonic Hall a large number of the public who, learning that) several lives were in danger rushed round to tha Hall for the fire-escape,: were debarred from tendering assistance for a time. '" ■ ' .',-:•■•.■■■.'. The following graphic account of the above distressing calamity appeared in Tuesday mornings Daily Times : — Yesterday morning we gave a" short and hurried account of the vary deplorable firo which occurred in the Octagon an hour or two before we went to press. " The expectation then formed that a number of lives had been lost has bean only too painfully borne out by the facts discovered during yesterday. Ten dead bodies now lie at the Hospital.' Nine. of these are burnt bo badly «a to ba utterly beyond recognition, and their identity can only be judged from such facts as that they were known to be lathe building, and that they were found ia rooms where they were known to have been sleeping. One iij that of a man who jumped from the building, and died from the injuries he receive! At least another body is believed to remain in tbo ruins, and four persons are also in the Hospital suffering from injuries received in escaping from the flames.;.' Eleven people, therefore, have met death by this terrible catastrophe, and four ate more or leas injured. , ■"'. •"♦ The scene of this heartrending occurrence mi '•; ■ ■;'';' "".;:. '; ' " . . BOSS1 BTJItDHTOS. '.■'■.< These buildings formed a large briok pile fronting^ the OctagoD, btween the corner of Stnart street and the Athemeam. ; . They belonged to and were built by Mr David, Boss, th» well-kEown architect They were of four storeys, including a cellar with a- back en trance only, but of three storeys from the street line. The cellar was mainly used by a Mr Drysdale, who carried on the business of a drynalter. ITrenliog and level with the street were three double shops. One—that nearest Stuart street —was occupied by Mr William Waters as a Cafe Chantaat, otherwise an eating and board-ing-hotue and o concert room. The centre shop was occupied by Mrs Wilson, who was -wife of Mi Bobert Wilson, .editor of the Otsgo Witness, and who carried on a millinery and dressmaking business in conjunction with a registry office. The Bhop at the corneir next the Atttesteum was unoccupied. To tha first floor a staircase, rieing from a main entrance between Mrs Wilson's,: and the unoccupied thesiop, gave bombs; also a staircase risingfrpm the cafe end of the building'; and also by a priTato staircasefrom Mrs W! eon's back premises^ On this first floor were, over the cafe, rooms used by Mr Waters for the purposes of iiis business; over ths other portion of the bulldjng wexe ■ rooms occupied by Tarioua people—one a book-agent, another a mnsic teacher, others by persons who uaed them as Bleeping-rooms, getting their meals about town. ■ A long passage j. divided these rooms back and front, and was so; arranged that a parson ceald. come up from the cafe, traverse the passage, and get down into the main street entrance before spoken of without meeting a'tioor. On the second floor the rooms were mainly; connected with Mr Waters'cafe; three of those next the. Athenseum'.were used las sleeping apartments by the Wilson family ; one was let by them to. two. young men; and' another was used as a spare room for seirvantgirls who were waiting for situations in connection with the registry office. ; ; : This was the main building, At the back, utandine at a kind of angle to the cafe, and approached by a leparate entrance from the street, through an archway on the Stuart street side of the cafe, were Mr. Boss' offices. They' -were unused at present, we believe, Mr Boas being in the Home country. Over the offices were a number of rooms, which were also used by Mr Waters. ■■"' '" '■" .: :'■-..■ V'■' •' .';,':'.' » m .«.»- THE OBIGI2J OF THE FIRE. Very little of a circumstancial nature is known of the; origin of the fire. It appears to havo been first seen by Mr Hall, cf the, Dyeworks, which are in Mr Geddes' old building in Stuart street, *nd by a Miss Simpson, servant to Mr Hall. Mr Hall had Men up attending to one of his children, and had lain down again but had not gone to Bleep. He was startled by a sudden glare or shoot of flame in what was known in the cafe as the reading-room, situated just behind the stage in the Iront room. Miss Simpson also saw the . glare, and both state tbat thay, saw a man pulling the window curtains down, and that, the glare dying away, they imagined the curtains had caught fire and been, pat out. Very shortly afterwards, however, the fl,ame3 appeared to break out in the room afresh, and, in no space of time almost, bad obtainsd a powerful: hold. Mr Hall thi? mußt have taken place about .2 o'clock, or certainly, little after it He went outside, and called "IFire !" and picking; up a brick smashed one of the upper windows in order to alarm the inmates. From the foregoing statement, the fire mnst have 'originated in the reading-room of, the cs.it, situated on the floor level with the atrret. ;' ';';■>',',;■',i~', Mr Waters states that he went to bed about midnight, all Ms employes, having gone io bed previoutly. He saw to tho firei in the various zooms btiora going to- bed; and- states that in lib opinion thejr.were perfectly safe. .After lie was in bed a, manservant, named Brodrick, came to him for the key to Ist a boarder in; got the key, let the' boarder in, and returned the key .to him. Then he went to Bleep, and was awoke by loud cries of "IFiret" • This, therefore, 1b all ho can state as to the origin of the fire. He actually knows nothing , about Hit ........ ~..-:. :■..•: ■...■'■ SPREAD OS. THE FIBE. From the time Mr Hall first saw the.'fiames ttntil they ;were shootine. out of the front windows cannot apparently have been-above ten minutes, if indeed it waaso-long_. All this time they 'were mounting up the building, and this th«y appear to'bavi done at a great ratein fact, m they cams the front they were already into the top storey, and along the passagos tho draught carried them right to the Athenceam imd of the building, and it was very little time before they were seen at the windows there. Nothing then could sa?e the buildingAll the inside partitions were wood, the stairways and passages were.like so many flues, and the whole of the inside was a vast roaring man of fira in less than half an hour from tha fire getting a hold. There was a grand pressure of water—something like 1601b to the square isich—owing to the Silveretream supply being in full flow; but it was dashed against the brick outside walls harmlessly, and.the inside got the benefit of the stream only' where a window or doer way gave an advantage. Nothing whatever could be saved. We think hardly an inmate escaped -with anything more valuable, *fter his or her life, than the clothes they were enabled hurriedly to clutch. THE TIKE BBIGADE ■flid not arrive upon the scene until perhaps 20 minutes after the first gleam of fire, or quarter ef an hour after Mr Hall gave the alarm. But this is not to be wondered at, for from some unaccountable reason the bell did not ring out the alarm fjr a very coßaidirable timo. The Brigade could know nothing of the fire ■Mil they heard the belt When they did hear it, we think the majority of them ohowej' great alacrity in getting to the station and running some of the lighter gear around. The heavy gear they conld not get out without horses, and thesa were a long time coming, and when they di.l come the harness was broken and delays occurred from this cause. When the Brigadd did reach the fire, we believe they deserve.. credit for working hard in the way that Beemed to them best. Whether th»t way was best is'net for us hwe to Bay. They did, however, what they did -with energy and opirit, and worked,;as they always do, with thtir whole hearts in the endeavour to atop-the fhmes and save property. The taring of life, however, should have been the primary consideration; it is seen now, at any rate, that it should have been. The Brigade and its officers do not appear to have sufficiently recognised that at the time. ';, tU% jrißE-EaOAHS. . The otatement made yesterday that the fire■scape was discovered down Georgo Btreet with the wheels off, was an entirely incorrect •one. The escape was all r.-atly for action in the ■tatfon. :We have it on good authority that I»ni6n« who went there seeking it, however, «ouldnotget it. It was stated tp them that lorsos wore wanted to draw it. and whtn they »flfar»d to bring any number of men to take it *o the «con«, wore told that it couM not be aunred till tfrhonu cam*, Mwtm* of our

composing staff, who had gone thither after searching in vain where th»esoape Jwas understood to be kept—at the MaaoDic Hall—were amongst those who thus pressed to bo allowed to .take it by hand. In lieu of it, they took ladders across tho Octagon. Wntn the horses came the escape was not first taken over to the fire, but some of the other gear. In fact, the escape did not reach the building until half an hour after the bell rang. Now wo think there was something wrong here. Certainly some of those early on the scene declare that Any time ten minutes after the bell rang the escape would have done no good service ; but this does not cover the blame that lies in the fact that it wan not therav We think the officers would hare been wise to have so ordered a division of labour as to get the escape up before such a lapse as this. _Tbei excuse that horses could not be got is hardly.a fair one, seeing that, so many willing hands could have b«en got by a hail from the centre of the Octagon-by any of the Brigade men.

! ISOAPINO FBOM IBX BBIIDING. ; The first to escape from the premiaei appear t» have been Mr Waters and his wife. He, hearing a cry of " Fira 1" turned out, and with his wife made his. way out along a.passsga communicating with tha archway on the Stuart street side. On, his way aut he wakened the man-servant, Brodrick, who also got out in this way. Abont this time the alarm appears to hpve become general on the upper floors of the cafe, and judging by the heartrending cries and screams that proceeded from the building, the state of things inside must have been terrible. Those cries could be heard even as faraway as the Daily Times Office. One can imagine what the situation was to a crewd of men, strangers to the place, waking hurriedly out of sleep, finding a raging fire going on below them, being half smothered and stupefied by smoke, if not scorched with heat, and jambed into passages, the otstlets from which they did not know. Mr Waters cannot state exactly the number of the occupants of his house that night He judges that about 25—somewhere between 20 and 30 at any rate—slept in the two upper floors. The kind of thing that happened can bisfc be understood by the recital of few of the incidents attending the escape of those fortunate enough to get out with life. . A man named John Taylor, Who had been boarding in the house a week, and who appears to have occupied a front bedroom on the top floor, jumped from his window-sill on to the footpath. He fell heavily, and when picked up by some who had just made their way out, was evidently much injured. He was conveyed, to the Octagon Hotel, and admittance not beingr obtained at once, was placed on the footpath* for a time. He was then taken into the hotel, where he was attended to by Drs Murphy and Reimer, but 20 minutes afterwards he died. Taylor'was a shoemaker by trade,'and h«d been working for a chart time, with Mr Loft, in the. Arcade, where ha has a brother — Charles—now working also. He has a younger brother, a lad working in a bookbinding establishment, and a married sister living at Christchurchj but whose husband is meantime in Dnnedin. He was identified by hi» brother Charles at the Hospital yesterday morning. Taylor, when he fell, was picked up by a Mr J. M. Brown, .who, with his brother Andrew, had just left the building. The Browns were in a room on the first floor, directly orer Mrs Wilson's shop. They had a quantity of books and pictures- which -Andrew Brown was engaged in selling in Dnnedin.. :.-The two appear to have awoke about the same moment, and hurriedly getting into some'clothing, but forgetting all about their watches and ovary thing else that was valuable, got into-the passage, where they found Mr Metz rcahing out alar and giving the alarm. ..They all got downstairs all right, one carrying hia > pipe in addition to the clothing he had,.and the. other taking nothing in his excitement but a blanket and a pair of sofa pillows. , Just as they got out, John Taylor had jumped from the topj storey, and he was picked upas stated. Mr J. M. Brown is a storekeeper at' Inyarcargill, and proceeded there by yesterday's express. He burned hiß-hand somewhat; severely in getting Taylor away from the front of the cafe windows. - The books and pictures in the place were of- course entirely destroyed, but we believe' they were insured- in the Victoria officeforL2oo. ■•.■:■ ■:.'.' ../''.; •-; ; ■_■ ■•];■ v" , f Joseph Metz, jeweller and watchmaker, who occupied a room in the building, was among the first to escape,.though he returned to endeavour to get some of the other inmates out. He estimates hia loss in toola/stock, and" clothe? at about L7O. : A bundle containing clothes, which';; he left at the foot of the stairs, had disappeared when he returned; but we should bo loth to join in his belief that it was stolen. Ho came out with the Browns. . , ~ - *' ; ■

" lOneof the next persons seen to come out of the building was a girl, who jumped from one of the top-storey windows to the pavement... It is utated that a blanket was held for her, but that she misted it.' She was injured to some' extent, and was taken to the Hospital. She ;was a servantglrl, staying with: Mrs Wilson till she got a situation, and we believe had : arranged to go to one yesterday. ! A young man named Beans, who waa cook at the cafe, and who slept on the centre floor, was instrumental in tffecting a safe way of exit for a number of the cafe boarders. He could l riot: make his way downstairs for the smoke when he waa awakened, but climbed, out through his window on to the spouting, and along this to a window, where he entered. A clothesline was• affixed from this window to an opposite, angle of the building, and it» worked with a pulley in such a way as to enable"clothe 3 to"be.hung out to dry. Deans got hold of this clothes-line and made it fast in some way inside the room, and called the men from the adjoining rooms and passage to come to him. Some eight or nine men and women thus assembled, and got safely down the rope to the back of the building. One woman, we understand, fell some distance, but her fall was bioken by Mr M'Gill, of M'Gill and Thomson, and she was hurt but slightly. ; Margaret Hill, a girl who -was seeking employment through Mrs Wilson's registry office, was sleeping in one of the upper rooms at the back of the building1, with two other girla whose names she does not know. -She waa awakened by the other girls, who were screaming and praying/ They weDt to the window, and one of them jumped right cut Margaret Hill called out to some men below to bring a ladder, and when that was done the two. giris descended, Hill being the last. , She seems to hare behavad with great coolnesß under the circumstances, for the descent was a long one, and she and her room-mats only escapsd in their night-dresses. ' , : One of the most exciting experiences was that of two young men, named Peter Grant (son of Mr Grant, of Gowrie, West' Taieri), and Edward .Tenkinson (son cf Mr J. H.Jenkioson, Port Molyneux), who,' being1 engaged in ' foundry,, 'work in Dunedin, occupied a ropm.belonging to,Mr Witeon, and fronting the street on the third storey, being, that at the corner next the Athenseum. Next to.their room was one occupied by Fred and Robert Wilson; then came a room occupied by. Lily,; Louisa,.,and Sarah Wilson, and the servant.MaggieM'Oarlney; and next to.this room, directly opposite the stairway, was; Mr and Mrs Wilson'a bedroom,- in which their son; Oliphant.aUo. slept On the opposite side of the passage was a long "room looking_ to the back, in which four servant girls, waiting for places at Mra Wilson's'registry office, slept Grant was awoke by aery of "Fire I".and roused Jenkinson. They lit a candle, and. found tbe room full rf smote. ;;/Looking. out \of v the. front" window, they saw the' .flames coming but of the cafa windows! on the ground' floor. At the same moment, two men,_ evidently boarders at the cafe, cams to their door,' attracted by the light, and crying, " For God's sate, show us an "outlet."1 Grant opened the door, and the room filling with smoke and heat, be" Srid' Jenkinson nude for the passage: Neither thought of their watcheß'underneath: their pillows, nor did Jenkioson remember a.! puree with about L 6 iriit on.the.'table. "Grantwag fortunate enough to pickup; a pair of trovers, in which L 2 were; he also, as ne was going out of the door, picked up another pair tf trousers, and bia Volunteer carbine and cutlass. Both tried to explain to the two men to follow them, and to show them the stairs. One of the men tookhold of Jenkin s on and held on till nearly at the top of the stairs, but then let go. As they reached the top of the Btair, a tongue of flame was roaring along the passage. How they reached the bottom floor neither knows, but after getting outside and having a breath of fresh air, the subject of what had become i f tha two men and of the Wilson children waß broached. The two agreed to go -upstairs again, and although they describe the heat as something fearful, especially on the centre floor, they did get up, Grant leading. Juafc on the landing Grant found Louisa Wilson, whom he took in his arm?. It was impossible to go any farther, and another scramble downstairs succeeded. Both state that when they turned to go back they despaired of reaohing the bottom again. However, they did so, both getting burned on the bands and also on the faci slightly, with the addition of a good deal of singeing about the hair. On the way down they met three policjmeu attempting to make their way upstairs, but these were unable to gst beyond the first landing, where they sang out.to attract the attention of those above. Grant took Louisa Wileoa to the Octagon Hotel. In the meantime Lily Wilson had got out of her bedroom window, and had lain down at full length upoj the parapet below the window-ail to escape a tongue of flame coming out Jenkinaon saw her, and a blanket having been got, he caliad out to her to throw herself down. She- did this, but striking an archway over the street door, she gave a rebound outside the blanket and fell on the pivement Jenkinson pirked her np and carrifd her to the Octagon Hotel. She wai quite sensible, and complained of her back. . While Lily was at the windew, someone came out of Fred Wilson's window. He clambered along the parapet till he reached the corner, and when Jenkinson want away with Lily he was hanging to it by the hands. The young men themselves t ßcaped with nothing but ooat and trousers, and Grant handed over the extra pair of trousers he brought down to an unfortunate fellow he found downstair* without any, and who asked for than). ■ The above are a few of the inoidents of escape, and from them it may b« imagined what nceuea

the spectators below had to witness while they rtood helpless.- The mass of-peopl* was excitadto the utmost degree, and there are many who will remember the night as a night of horror while they live. '• ■ ! T&B HVES LOST. ." '':'. ■■ I The premise! having been pretty completely gutted by daylight, steps were taken to discover what, if any, bodies remained in the building. There was the greatest uncertainty on this point. It was over and over again stated that Mr, and Mrs Wilson had been seen walking in the Octagon—a ieport } however, many were only too sorry to disbelieve, for i alive they must have made some effort to get knowledge of their children. It was about 7 o'olock when it became known that the bodies of Mr and Mm Wilson had been seen. It is difficult now to ascertain from the firemen who found the. bodies, and who were no doubt working under great excitement, in what order they were found. It appears pretty certain that they were found all in their owa bedroom*. It. was about .8 o'clock in the mornior when the bodies of Mr and Mrs Wilson and the little four-your-old were recovered, and jiist about the same timejhe bodies of thsir daughter S«ah. and the maidservant, Maggie M'Cartney, were found. Between the room which the (last-named had occupied "and the AtheniEum corner of the building the floor had given way and fallen down to the next storey. .Bight at the bottom of the sloping fleor, and underneath: tha remains, of a bedstead, were found two bodies. One is evidently that of Ired Wilson* and the other is believed to be that of a man named Swan, of .whom the pelice can gain no particulars, although we have heard fee was a bootmaker, and an employe of Messrs Reynolds, Clark, and Co. Probably he was one of the cafe lodgers who had found his way to this end of the building, and had been overpowered by the smoke. Swan was a passenger by the Cape Clear from Glasgow. The3e bodies— those of the Wilson, family, their servant, and the man Swan—were all found in the comer of the building farthest from where the fire broke out. Bobby Wilson, who slept in the same room with his brother Fred, has'not yet been found. His body will probably be discovered in the same corner. », ■ -,• ■ ■■- ■On the cafe side of the building, at about 1 p.m., another body.was got. This is, judged to >o that of George,' Augustus Martin, aged 23, son of Mr G. A. Martin, the well-known musical conductor. Martin will.be remembered in consequence of his connection with the Athenmum arson case, in which he figured as a principal witness for the Crown against Cummock. . . , . ~,•...;. . [Shortly before 3 p.m. a tenth body was recovered. He had evidently been an elderly man, and wore a trues, which may aid in leading to his identification. Mo one has as yet turned up who knows anything of him. These, then, are the whole of the bodies taken from, the ruins up till dusk last night. They are- 1Bobert Wilson : Surah Ann Wilson Frederick Wilson Sarah Wilson Lawrence Oliphant Wilson « ; Margaret M'Cartney ;•, George Augustus Martin 1 . ,—Swan . , A man unknown. The body of Bobert Wilson, jun., ia known to remain still in the ruins. And besides the above, there also lies at the -Hospital the body ■ '.., •: John Taylor, ... .■•.-.,.,:- .w > ■,:■ *~. -.=,: who died after jumping from the upper stony, as above stated. '•' ■■'■''' '■"' '"■ ■■'>-="••■ ■ Last night a person called upon the police, stating that up till 11 p.m. he was playing draughts ia the cafe with an elderly man, a shepherd, who he-believed slept in No. 6, and of whom he had yesterday been able to learn nothing. It is possible this shepherd is-the man described as.unknown,-while again he may havo got out In-Bafety.'l ■•■' ;i ■ .S'v.TOKPKBBbNS.niJUBED.' ■-' .-■.■ f. .;:;■'.:'.;.. i The parsons now in the Hospital suffering from injuries received in escaping are^-f ■' '; , Lily Wilson, who has a wound on the arm, a ; scalp wound, and'superficial burns on i both legs. Louisa Wilaon, who suffers only from burnt i i .hands. ■"' *r: *''-- -,■;■•■"- • ''.-■■■■" Annie M'Fadyen, who has-Buffered injuries to - i her back.- ■ ■.„,,. David Thomson, who islbmiaed, on the left;, hip, ' ' ■"'"andribs.'■.".'-.."'..y~-\'.'' "■'. :..V; : '■'.'..'., ',''•■' The latter isa young man who has for the last few days been working for Mr VezeyJ; but(jher,i Princes street senth. • He' was previbusljr: working for Mr Hellyer, butcher, In \Valker street; —His account of how he got hurt ia that he jumped from^'a high window, somewhere. Fxobably he waa one of those who dropped from the parapet into the right-of-way. : j The,, whole„ of, the .above are getting on famously,: and are ■ wonderfully little injared considering the falls they all, except Louisa, received. ■~;.-.,-...i ~.,-.:., A very painful ciroumstance in connection with the two girls Wilton is that they know nothingofthtir parents'.fate., They .wonder why they do not come to see them, and the younger especially.1-calls' -plaintively for ■' mamma," and thinks every soft foot approaching is hers. No one' has yet been' courageous enough to break the »ad_.newa to them, that they alone are the survivors of the family circle.: Poor things, ,they will learn it all too soon. "*■'■ ussxiis* ■'•"•'•"■'■' \lt would be impossible.to.deecribe the sensation thia event has created in Dunedin. We imagine the city-has not been such a sorrowful frame of feeling since the Pride of the Yarra calamity, when the Campbell' family met watery graves together, oooped up in the email cabin of a harbour steamer, and within hail cf the "promised land "of their adoption. The oaso of the Wilson family has excited a like commiseration as then existed. In spite of the wretchedly wet weather which prevailed in the, city yesterday, a constantly coming and going crowd of people, numbering a couple or ; three hundred, was gathered about the scene of the fire, and the slightest scrap of information was eagerly listened to and canvassed. . The building came in for a large share of disapproval. It was a kind of rabbit-warren on a large Ecala on the upper floors, built without a brick partition'throughout to stay the flames; and BBveral-of"the occupants' of'the"building-hsd' often entertained fears for their safety in the event of a fire breaking out. Mr Wilson, to our own knowledge, had often expressed an opinion tbat a fire in Boss' Buildings would result in loss of life. He was but too true a prophet. , ■■••'■, In the excited state of affairs yesterday we were not able to give much attention to the securing of details of the actual losses sustained by occupants of the premises; but," as we said' before, nqthingjwhateyer was. saved.;.; None of those who escaped saved anything but the clothes they stood up in when they got out, except as in such cases as that of the young Volunteer who carried his carbine and cutlass to safety with him, only to fling them from him in disgust when ho became conscious that he had them. None had time to do anything but think of dear life. ~; ■ , : The insurances, so far. as we have been able to get them, are ■as follow :-^-TTnion, LIOOO ;■ StandardrLUOO-j-National, L 1450 ;- Norwich Union, L 1400; Victoria, L 20 0; Hanseatic, L 40 0; United, LSOO ; Hamburg and ;Magdeburg, L7OQ: total, L 6800.. The distribution 1b somewhat in the following order :— National. LI3OO on building ard Ll5O on contents ; Union, LIOOO on building; Standard, LlOOOon building, LIOO on Mr Litoli'B (musio teacher) effects; Norwich JJnion, LI3OO on building, LIOO on Mr Drysdale's good; Victoria, L2OO on Mr Brown's goods-; Haneeatic,' L4OO on Mr Waters' stock and furniture ; . Hamburg aild ' Magdeburg,.L7oo bn-Mr' Max?1 well Bury's (architect) effects. Mr B. Wilson had.an. insurance, of L2OO over his stock and effects in.the New Zealand office, .~. .;. i The following further, particulars "mr Wednesday mornihg's'Dftfly Times':— 1 ' TWO MOKB BODIES FOTJND. Puring yesterday some half-dozen' Corpora tiou workmen were'engaged in searching the buildings for human remains. Two more bodies were found, neither of which has been identified. One was gotiahortly after 9 a.m., in the portion of the premises .above Boss' offices, close to where the remains of George A. Martin were recovered the previous day. There waa nothing but a small collection ot bones picked up here, which could be put into a small bag, and the remains are in a thoroughly unrecognisable state. One or two suppositions have been bruited as to their identity, but in the meantime nothing ia certain. At about 4 p.m. another body was discovered. This was found at the cafe end of the second floor, lying partly underneath a fallen ceiling. It thus may have coma from the third fl»i/r. It is believed to be the remains of a fuil-grown man, but is perfectly unrecognisable. The burnt bodies recovered, therefore, to date.number.il. Mr Wilson's son Bobert is not among them; for it is hardly possible to suppose that his was the body found' yeßterday morning, as thin was got altogether at the other end of the building, and on a different floor to that on which youug Wilson slept. Three < £ the bodies now in tne Hospital remain unidentified. The man Swan, found along with Fred Wilson, and regarding, whom no particulars could be given yesterday morning, is now, wo understand, known to have been a stonemason, who arrived in the Colony about 10 days ago by the ship Nelson (not the Cape .Clear) from Glasgow. He bad taken up his abode in the premiies only two days previous to the fire1, aud had arraoged to go to work at Mr Mumo's on Monday morning. His full name was John W. Swan. : The shepherd reported to have been playing draughts in the cafe the night before the fire, and not to have been seen since, hai turned up all right. His name was John M'Conley, of Greenfield Station, and he slept in one of the rooms, but got out safely. He lost three LlO--notes by the fire. - : ; . , The tenants of the first floor Were as follow :—A. Brown, IT. A. Little, M. Bury, -r-latolf, J. Metz, — Boddi, — Jackson, G. A. Martin, W. Moule, and Joseph Mackay.; Of these Brown, Metz, Martin, and powibly Doddo (or iJodson) slept on the promisee.' Brown and M»tz are among the tscapMs. Mr Bury, the

architect, had his property damaged to a leas -extent than any of the others. —M»ny-of-his-drawers containing plans, "wera almost uninjured by fire,1 although, of course, more or lees drench«a- by "water. — Mr - Joseph Maekay h»», we understand, loftt a good deal of bis "almana.? plant, such an , stereotype platea, a quantity of type, books, &c Mr lion it a heavy loser. His furniture and effects were insured-for L2OO, but the plans and papers destroyed are of much mote value. Mr E. M, Koacb, who carried on Mr Bow' bueinms, U also a heavy loser. He lost the whole of his papers and appliances, but h« can scarcely ai jes judge the real extent of his loss. : •' ■ i • ■

'The total insurances upon the building, pure and simple, amount to L 4600, divided as follows:—L1300 in" the Norwich Union, LIOO9 in the Standard, LI3OO in the National, and LIOOB in the TJnion. .

Mr Drysdale.drysalter, was in the Norwich Union for LSOO, instead of LIOO as stated. .

There was no foundation whatever for tha report which was put about" yesterday, that an arrest had been made in connection with a suspicion of incendiaritm. We believe there ia no luspieion of the kind entertained ; by the police, and certainly no arreat was contemplated or made. . at has been stated that the police had given notice to Mr Waters that hia concert room in connection with the cafe would have to be closed.: A notice somewhat to this effect had been given, but Mr Waters had sent a reply-to the authorities' -which- in-all probability would have opened the thing up afresh. From what we can learn, Mr Waters tried fairly enough to keep the affair respectable and orderly, only occasionally—and especially on Saturday nights—" rowdies" would get in. The concert was a paying concern, and was a valuable adjunct to bis business; and it was to Mr Waters' interest to keep it orderly, and so secure a continuance of the license to it. With this view ho had offered to meet the authorities in every possible way, being willing even to pay a fee to* secure the nightly attendance and supervision of a constable, as at the theatres. These are facts that will probably come out at the inquiry,' but it' is only justice to Mr Waters to let them become known as soon as possible.*-1- —"•' ■'■"•" " Little of any value in the shape of property has been, recovered from the ruins. L 6 in sovereigns was found,, and is in possession of the police, and some studs have also been got But the police know'nothing regarding the finding of watches, of which rep«rta were current yesterday. The building inside was by no means of, so inflammable a oatura as we were.previously led to suppose. The partitions were not of wood at all: the three main partitions from front, to back were of solid brick, and all the intervening partitions and the ceilings were of lath and plaster. The two staircases and the passages running through the whole length of the building werejJ probably enough, designed with the view of, affording easy egress in case of fire; but the long postages, with open entrances at either end, seem to. cave-caused a draught that no doubt greatly accelerated-the progress of the ■ i We have been requested to contradict the statement that has been made to the effect that an insurance company declined a further risk of ;LIOOO on the building recently. We are assured by the agents oE-MrUoss—Messrs Eeid and Duncans — that the insurances stand exactly as they,,were, when Mr Boss left for Home, and that no attempt has been made to increase them. ■■•■-n\:.' ; r->.i' n-.1; . With regard to the patients from the fire at the Hospital, the attendants do not now speak qtoite so favourably, except as regards, Louisa -Wilson complains more than'previdusly of pain, and in more restless, and David. Thomson also has intervals of pretty severe pain. The girl M'Fadyen does not show' any marked' improve- • taent. None of ,th« three cases, however, is regarded »3 dangerous, and there is every hope that .the snfferers will recover.,., The, Wilsons ..have -not -yet- been-made aware- of -the fate of their parents and brothers and sisters. . : Operations in the way of, -seirching amongst theruins were entirely suspended on Wednesday. The City Surveyor has given it 'as his opinion that nothing further can be done, and that it is nsxt to impossible that*anymore bodies can remain in the building.—So far, three of the bodies in the Hospital are nnid»ntiS«d—indeed they are unidferitlfiable:'": One' can ecarcely be called a body; it compriees merely a small collection of bones, which are'believed to be those of a young,person.. It iffeuggested, therefore, these remains may bethose of Mr Wilion's eon - Robert. As they weref found 1 in the' opposite end of the building to that occupied by the Wilsons, and on a different floor, this belief is tenable only on the supposition that the lad had wandered all this distance in an endeavour to get out, and this, as he would be going the . whole way right in the face of the advancing flames, seems;the'reverse"of~pobable". "The' only other conclusion, however, would be that ha is Btill in < the building, and against that we have the above-Btated opinion of ths City Surveyor. — The bailiff Dodson has turned up all safe. We, elsewhere, state the supposition that this Dodson and "Dodds," marked as one of the tenants of a room on-the agents' plan, were identical, but Meaaiß Reid and Duucano state that Dodds was the correct; name of their tenant. He was a young man, and occupied a room on the second floor. , Whether he was in the building on the night of the firo is a mystery; indeed, no one appears to know or have heard anything about him. -.;.v.'."v; ! We heard .last night alia that a girl named Kate Moore, who had stated that aha''hid put" herself .down on . Mrs Wilson's registry books as seeking a situation, has cot been seen since the fire. 'The.l»6t time she;was.seen was,on Saturdaymorning, and her relatives and acquaintances are concerned about her safety, thinking she might have been sleeping in the building. She left her carpetbag at the rooms,,of t,he Dunedin Young Women's Christian Association, and hai not since called for it.

; The sufferers at the Hospital are reported to ie much in the same condition as on Tuesday, 'he yourig man Thomson complains greatly of ainat intervals. .., , ; : Early on Wednesdaymbrning SirGeorgeGrey slegraphed a» follows to the surviving memera of the Wilson family :— - " Christahurch,- September 10th, ' Misses Wilson, Hospital, North Dunedin. "I feel so much for the misfortune which has illen on your family that I cannot refrain rom intruding to express my deep sympathyin our sorrows and Bufferings, I '• ■ "G. Gret." Tfce 'telegSm.wM rwiived! by Mrs Walter, rho has been tinremittißg in her attentions to be Misses Wilson, and was replied to as fol>ws by the Mayor:— ■■ L-'- -; I ,;:-.;■" Donedin, September 10th. 'Sir Qeorge" Grey, Chrißtohiirbh.;-t : ~1-- ■" The Misses Wilson are not yet acquainted litli their lobj. --Accept thanks on their behalf i>t kind sympathy. Progressing favoorably. => ! ...... . ( . 1; ,;:!;,r:;:,;'-^:\"H.; J.: WAKrBB."; i The business before the City Council oa Tuesay'having concluded, the councillors were on he point of leaving, when. Cr"; Webb entered he Chamber, arid asked the Mayor if he would itndly resume his seat, bs he had a communicalon torakKe-totho-meeting;...- •.'-;:■:- " The Council b»ving ; rtsum«i3,i.-v -* ; ;r iCr Webb said: The commtirilcation I have 0 make.Ts* "aHout".tbeTfir«i* in,;the. pctagon.. _ I lave just come from a meeiiiij'of the Kre Tnderwriters' Association, and they would, f time had permitted it, have made a commaricatioa.to this Council to-day on the subject >f the reorganisation of the Fire Brigade.—Cr Fisat "That's premature;" and Other Oookoillobs : " Not at all.") The matter is dot at all ,prem>turer^{hear, iear),—and I Lhink it is "not in proper place for a rentark of that kind to be made under existing circumstances. I may sny that a very carefully-pre-pared mVmorial will some to you;'and perhaps ft will ,not be amisß for me to, express my opinion that it will be our duty to hold a meeting of this Council before the ne^t ordinary meeting.—(Hear, hear.) I don't think it is premature.—(Hear, hear.) ■'! ' : The Matob: I may mention that since the fire I have heard so many statements in connection with the Fire Brigade that 1 took some little trouble in ascertaining the correctness or otherwise of tha statements that have been made.—(Hear, hfar.) With that view, yesterday morning I invited the editor of the Daily Timts to accompany me to the Fire Brigade station. It was said outside that the fire escape was not at the Firo Brigade station—that it was down. George street somewhere, and that the wheels were off, I made inquiries in connection with that, after showing Mr Ashcroft the facilities that were given to the Fire Brigade. The captain of the Brigade and a number of the members were there, and they showed us" the tarpaulins that were taken off the very morning, and that the. escape had beenlthere.all the - time.—(Cr Gobe: In good order!) In working order. Other statements have been made, and I have made inquiries about them in order to arrive at some satisfactory conclusions about them, because I know that at a time when an unfortunate accident like this happens, many persons allow their feelings to be carried away to such an extent that they frequently make statements that in coolermoments they regret. Ihave hot been idle. I am'just anxious to see the Brigads as efficient as possible. I may say, before I ait down, that a statement has boon.made about the horses, that if the horses had been there this oasa would not have happened. Well, as » matter of opinion, I say—and I express it fearlessly—that the absence of the horses in that case could not have made .any material difference, because in a case of that kind, when tha fire was so near tha station, and the fall of tha strest was from the station towards the fire, th«re was no difficulty at all in drawing the gear there. I merely mention this in order to disabuse the minds of a good mapy who referred more especially to the horses not being there. Of souise, on receiving any letter from the Underwriters' Association, as you hare mentioned, Or.Wobb.you may depend that it is necessary to call a spacial meeting. I shall only be too bappy to do so. ~ .;„ -_, Or Fjbh : I think it is a pily that Cr Webb did not stop aw*y for just thne minutes more,

for then;we should have all gone away, , I en-, -tirely- deprecate any discussion oa.thia.matter, afc the present tims—a most unseasonable and improper time. In a very short time the evidence will be given on oath, and then we shall be in a ■ better way, possibly, to judge as to the rights and wrongs of this case than what we can be at the present time. And I object to this attempt to excite public feeling unnecessarily on this painful catastrophe. In making these remarks I do not undervalue one whit the seriousness of the subject, which, however, to a great extent ia sub judke, and will very soon be before a proper tribunal on oath. Then we shall be able to say in what direction improvement is necessary and how it can be effected. If the investigation establishes a fault chargeable against any person under the control of the Corporation, I would be an advocate for a swift and speedy punishment, and adopting any measures that might be shown to be necessary. But it is quite possible for people to meddle with things somewhat out,of place and somewhat too soon to be effective. Cr Webb : One word of explanation. There is certainly no desire on the part of myself— who have been so long a friend of the Fire Brigade— to cast any reflection on them. In fact the question is one that was brought before the Council Borne time ago, and will have to be brought forward now. I should be very sorry to have it appear, through the Press, that I came here for the purpose of reflecting on the Fire Brigade in respect of deing their duty; but I desire to bring the. Council to a newitsue.

Cr Ibaao : I perfectly agree with what Cr Fish has said in deprecating any discussion on this matter, but I think we should place ourselves in a position to prevent these things occurring again, because there might be another fire to night. But I think it is the duty of this Council, now in committee, to devise rneann to prevent another1 accident of the kind. Under the .circumstances,'l think Cr Webb is quite right in bringing the matter before the Council.'1 Tha Match : I have omitted to mention also. that the captain of the Fire Brigade stated to Mr Ashorof t and myself that within five minutes of the bell ringing they were on the spot, and took their ladders with them. ■' '

Or Caeeoll: I intend to move in this matter at a future meeting. The matter then diopped.