GREAT FIRE IN WELLINGTON

Otago Witness, Issue 2805, 18 December 1907, Page 31

GREAT FIRE IN WELLINGTON

PARLIAMENTARY BUILDINGS DESTROYED. BOTH HOUSES IN RUINS.

WELLINGTON, December 11. \ Parliament Buildings were destroyed by" a fire which broke out about 2 a.m. Only ' the library was saved. It will probably cost £150,000 to replace the loss. Amos Wilby, night watchman in the buildings, states that he went round tho offices about 2 o'clock. He passed the office of the Native interpreters upstairs near the corner of the Legislative Council, and all was well. About 10 minutes past 2 again • he went past, and there was no sign of fire, j He finished his round and went to boil a J cup of coffee. Then he went to the door again and heard a noise like a shower of rain or water falling somewhere. He ran up the steps, and found flames in the interpreters' room, and immediately gave the ' alarm. This room is in the old portion formerly used as the library, and was shortly to be pulled down. This part faced Sydney street. On that side, on the south and part , of the north front, the building was all wood; the rest k brick. j HOW THE FIRE SPREAD. ) A light breeze was blowing from the north-west, away from the front of the ■ building and towards the Legislative Council , section. -.The fire brigade got four leads at once upon the burning rooms, but despite the fact that they were all plastered and that this kept back the progress of the flames, the firemen could make little impression. The fire- mounted upwards, and chiefly through the ceilings and roofs spread to the Lower House Chamber, which became a huge furnace. As soon as that happened ! there was little chance of saving the wooden' portion, the volume of flame being too , great. ■ In the centre pile is the lobby, 100 ft long, with brick walls and a timber roof, and for a long time the firemen maintained a stand 1 in it, hoping to force the fire back from ! the brick sections. The smoke and heat were most exhausting, but the firemen I stuck to it manfully, even when the roof caught and began to fall in bit by bit. Before 4 o'clock the fire had worked south and seized the aroof of the Legislative Council building. This also became hope- ! lessly involved, despite volumes of water I poured on it. Besides hydrants, a fire ! steamer was also used for a long time. The brigade succeeded in cutting off the fire from Bellamy's building, where the division lfcell insisted on ringing the whole time, but it was evident that the brick sections of the edifice, which were believed to be fireproof, were not securely isolated from the older structures. After levelling both Chambers, the fire raged through the handsome wooden frontage in Molesworth street, where the Soeaker' has his, quarters, so long a conspicuous object in the oity.This is a toll, three-storey erection dominating the central brick portion erected a few years ago, in which is the main entrance staircase and the Cabinet rooms. t Into the roof the fire crept, and genuine ' alarm was felt for the library. This * better out off than the other brick portions, and has an iron door, but there was danger that the roof would catch and the fire break through some windows on one side which projected a little. The men were sent up on the root, and after hours of hard -work made it safe ( from, that side. , | ! At first nothing was done to remove the books, hut when it looked unsafe gangs of men were turned in and large quantities brought out. They were stopped when ' . halfway through. • By S o'clock all the wooden portion was I levelled to the ground, and the firemen i had teen driven from the lobby, which j was gutted. j Smoke then began to pour from the root , of Bellamy's, a. thxee>-starey brick Building J at the rear of the library, and it was cvi- J dent that here the fire had insinuated itself | under the roof. It spread while a gang of ; men under Inspector Ellison emptied the . interior ; but the roof fell in, and the flames raged through the building for half an hour, though hoses were playing on it all round. By 6 o'clock everything was practically destroyed or gutted except the library, a few rooms only in some of the brick sections escaping partly damaged. Constable Hodgson was on duty in Sydney street. He noticed the flames in the building shortly after 2 a.ra., and went in. Wilby was then getting out the hose, but . the flames spread so fiercely that before he could turn the water on he says the hose* was burned through. There is no i fireplace in the room, and it is not known . whether anyone had been in the room ; ' during the day, so that the origin cannot < ', be accounted for. | j The only thing definite is that the flames ! must have jumped at once into full possesj sion, for only a few minutes before there | was no sign of fire. The most unfortunate part of all is that in a little time this portion would have been pulled down, and the fire would not | have occurred. It was very old and dry, and fine fuel for the flames, except that it was plastered. The' outbreak was observed on the Orien- j tal Bay side of the harbour, but as the j practice in Wellington when a fire breaks j but is to give only a ring or two of the bells, comparatively few people knew any- . thing about the fire, and the attendance was \ not very large. A possible consequence i of this is that out of many thousands of . pounds' worth of furniture and fittings very ' little was saved. There was ample time to > take it out, but there was no one to do it.- , The contents of the Cabinet rooms were , mostly rescued, some of Bellamy's stuff, > and a few odds and ends; but that \jcaa all. The Hon. J. M'Gowan, the Hon. J. A. Millar, and the Hon. J. A. Carroll are all burned out, and the Hon. R. M'Nab's room is much damaged. Nothing at all was taken out of either • Chamber, and very little from the lobby, • which was hung with groups of past Parliaments and pictures. The fire did not reach the Upper House's quarters for a considerable time, and they could have been emptied with ease, but were appeared to be no one in authority | , to take the work is hand. ' {

Mr Frain, contractor for the additions just decided on, had begun on the Sydney street frontage, at the bottom of the bank on which the main building stands. The burning timbers' crashed dGvra and set fire to portions, burning up a quantity of timber, scaffolding, and tools. He is' insured for £1000. The only insurance on the building known at present is £4000 on the library books. FOOD FOR THE FLAMES. The Legislative Council Chamber, which was a veritable pile of tinder, went down without a protest. It was burned from above the Prees Gallery, which was the first to take fire, and from it the names swept round the galleries above the Chamber, everything' going as if the place wae a pile of Christmas toys. In a minute or two cinders and embers were falling on to the Speaker's chair. Then a shower of debris fell into the middle of the Chamber, destroying the. neatness with which the small tables had been arranged for the matriculation examinations, which were in progress in the building. •A lead of hoee had been brought inside, and the flames were kept back for a time,, but the ceiling fell in with a crash., and set fire "to the furniture 'before the flames had even reached the northern galleries. After that it wa» practically, left to burn out, and the firemen set to work, but 'with-, out avail, to cut the fire off from Bellamy's. SAVING THE LIBRARY. | Had it not been, for the strenuous 7rork of the brigade, the valuable. Assembly Library would certainly have been destroyed. ! About 3.30 there appeared to be no danger of the place catching ftre, but the flames spread through the old wooden structure on the south towards the brick portion of the building with extraordinary rapidity. When it was discovered that the roof of the library was in danger of catching fife i the chief librarian decided to take no risks, I and at once gav^ orders to have the most ■ valuable .books in the collection removed from the building. ■ Willing workers immediately commenced to transfer the books to a place of safety. However, the library eventually escaped without damage.,, PAPERS AND DOCUMENTS DESTROYED. The Hon. Dr Findlay, the Hon. J. Carroll, and the Hon. R. M'Nab lost many papers and documents. Mr M'Nab is a particularly heavy loser. He possessed a very complete library of parliamentary papers, and as he had decided to make Parliament Buildings his headquarters, his staff only yesterday completed the transfer of his departmental property to his office on the eecend &x>r, which lias been completely destroyed. It ie also feared that a large number of historical records which the Minister had collected have been destroyed. FIGHTING THE FLAMES. The firemen were quickly on the seen.?, with all* possible appliances, and poured water into tha fire from all available points. It was attacked from Sydney street, where the fierce heat made the work one of endurance, and at the Mole*worth street entrance, whence onlookers could see that the interior of the fine building was doomed. Notwithstanding the volume of water ' with which attempts were being made to drench the' Barnes, the fire spread rapidly, till the narrow gables of the section immediately behind the Chamber of the House of Representatives stood out likfe tangled wire frames amid a lurid light and showers of sparks. Tfa© Isolation of tk« fetiil<Jin<? ensuroJ comparative safety for the surrounding: premises. The hose, however, had to be turned on to Government House, o\er which sparks were flying. By half-past 3 it was quite evident that nothing could save the wooden portion of the building. Not a great volume of flams was visible from without, but that the fire had a ■ great hold in the interior of the building was evident from the smoke issuing therefrom. The tongues of flame that leaped to the sky plainly showed wliat w«i the nature of the fight within. Following the lead of hose into the mam entrance building, up the main staiscase, and along the corridor towards the wood^a portion, one came upon the full fury of the battle. Framed in the lurid vermiiiion doorway of the Chamber, where the Speaker's gallery is approached, were th-< figures of three firemen, rigid and set, clinging to a powerful nozzle that wrestled to free itself from their clutch. So far the green drapery only of tha Chamber had been swept by the voracious tongues of flame that lapped the whole of the walls, but from the drapery to the walls was a short step, and within an incredibly short time there were showers cf splinters and pieces of burning matchwood falling in all directions, and brightening with dashes ©f colour even the vivid brightnees of the flames themselves. THE DESTRUCTION COMPLETE. The destruction -was complete. The wood was ready to the match, and nothing could have made a fiercer blaze. The whole Chamber was a solid mass of flame, impenetrable even when a chance breath of air, passing along the corridors from some open door, blew its deepest volume away from the doorway which framed the straggling firemen. A* a matter of fact, the Chamber of the House of Representatives was completely wiped out, for there wa§ no hope that th« fire could now be got under. STATEMENT BY SUPERINTENDENT "HUGO. Mr Hugo, superintendent of the Fire Brigade, in an interview, stated that when he got to the scene he realised that the wooden portion of the buildm* must go. The brigade tried to save the Legislative Council Chamber, but tha task was insurmountable. The superintendent then directed his efforts towards saving the library and other portions of the main building. This was accomplished without ■ causing, much damage by water, j

DESTRUCTION OF BELLAMY'S. Viewed from Ihe standpoint that Bellamy's is practically dismantled during recess, the total destruction of that portion of the building, so far as loss of furniture and other things is concerned, docs not mean a. serious financial lose. At first it was thought the brigade would be successful in keeping the fire out of Bellamy's, but the flames leaped with such fury and intensity from the Legislative Council Chamber adjoining that human efforts were powerless to stem the onslaught. A quantity of linen and utensils was saved, 'but a large portion of the 6toree •perished. The fire burned iteelf out, and finally nothing but the bare brick walls of Bellamy's were left standing. As the Government does not follow the practice of insuring its buildings against fire the loss to the Dominion is a heavy one. - SAVING THE PICTURES. On the walls of the lobby for many years had hung portraits oi members of past Parliaments, Prime Ministers, Speakers, and members of the Royal family. Most of these were saved, but a large portrait of King Edward was left behind in the hurry and excitement. Amongst the pictures saved were two valuable oil paintings -of the late Mr Seddon, which had recently been aded to the -collection. EXAMINATION PAPERS LOST. Since Tuesday last the Matriculation aw? Junior .Scholarship examinations have been going on in the Legislative Council Chamber, where they have been held for several years past under the supervision of Mr Bothamley. The practice has been foe the supervisor to send the examination papers every other day to the offices of the University of New Zealand, Lambtoa Quay Ths papers were sent in up tfo Saturday, and in the ordinary course the papers for Monday and Tuesday would have been forwarded this morning. The fire, however, intervened, and Monday's and Tuesday's answers of the students who sat- for the Matriculation examination wees destroyed, as well as Wednesday's questions. The examinations, which will conclude to-morrow afternoon, are being "EeW in the Sydney street schoolroom. TREASURY RECORDS. A large collection oi old Treasury records, dating back to 1840, v stored in the basement of the buildings. At first it was thought that a considerable portion of these had been destroyed, but Colonel Collins, Secretary to the Treasury, states that quite recently all the, records were shifted well under the stone portion of the building! He does not, therefore anticipate that anr have been destroyed. „ AN! EXPENSIVE UNDERTAKING. A great deal of labour and expense wil/ be involved in reprinting the sets of statutes and parliamentary records destroyed. The supply is reported not to have been excessive, and reprinting w\M of necessity have to be resorted to. FIREMAN INJURED. A fireman named Williamson, of the City Brigade, was badly injured, it is feared, during the progress of the fire. It is reported that he fell from a height whilo directing a nozzle, and had to be sent to the hospital, The exact nature of his injuries is not known. •APPRECIATIVE ~TELEGRAMS FROM SIR J. G. WARD. Th following telegrams from the Prime Minister were received by the chief officers of the police and fire brigades in recognition of their services: — "W. Dhmie, Esq., Commissioner of Police. " I desire to thank the. inspectors and police officers who worlreS zealously to save effects in the Parliamentary Buildings this morning. lam advised that they did eccellent work. Their efforts in this respect are highly appreciated by me. I shall bo glad if you will convey my oommendati ns to them.— J. G. Wabd." " Superintendent Hugo, Fire Brigade. " I desire to warmly thank yourself and staff for the great service rendered in connection with the fire at the ParliamentaryBuildings this morning. I am quite certain that your efforts greatly minimised the disastrous effect which must have ensued had the fire gone through the back portion of the building. Please accept yourself, and convey to those . associated with you, tnf appreciation of the good work done. — J. G Wabd." HON. R. M'NAB'B LOSS. In reply to a telegram sent by the Post, the Hon R. M'Nab telegraphed the following: — "My loss in connection with thi> historical work J6 very great, but the publication of my book has rendered all that matter safe, and the custom followed of taking my notes in duplicate leaves ii.o with a second copy of a grcit portion of ray unpublished material. My chief loss will be that the' ordered and arranged material is lost. I im afraid, too, that a great quantity of material not ac'.iaJlv copied by myself, and of which I cnly held single copies, is now non e.i. On the whole, it will not mean more than a year's work, though it might mean very much more. No departmental files were lost." THE FIRE APPLIANCES. Two of the local papers state that soma of the fire appliances in the building were faulty, the hose being rotten, and the attachments out of order. With respect to this Captain Hannah, the inspector of fire appliances in the Government Buildings, cays that a Tegular inspection was made every three months. On Monday last he sent an officer (an old and experienced man) to the Paiiiamentary Buildings to make the usual inspection. He completed the work last evening, and reported the necessity for a washer onl* in the case of ono hose. He also reported that the hose at the rear of the building" had been vsed, and that it would requicf to be hung out to dry. COST Of REBUILDING. It is estimated that it will cost £100,000 to replace the building* destroyed, if advantage is taken of the opportunity to erect them on a more liberal scale. MESSAGE FROM THE PRIME MINISTER. We have received the foUowintr reply to a telegram despatched to the Prime Minister: — "In reply to your wire, the new Drill Hall in Wellington, which is a very large one, and which is nearing completion, may be made to meet the poaitionj but I aaj not quite certain until I look into the xca& " ter on my return to Wellington on Mond&x aexk Xfee Town Hall and Q&> ooncarj

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iall attached 10 it are also capable of being ksed for the pu-rpc6e. I hope after I £each Wellington to be able to arrange » definitely for one or the other. An automatic fire alarm would in this case, I think, havo been of great value.— J. G. Wabd.'V MEETING OF CABINET. WELLINGTON, December 11. At a meeting the Cabinet held an inquiry into the fire.> It was ascertained that tho room where the outbreak started was notused yesterday or last night, and that the watchman had attended to his duty. ANOTHER ACCOUNT. TThOM OVM OtlS COKKISPOJIDXiTT.) Between 2 and 3 o'clock this morning I was awakened oy the editor of the Dominion knocking loudly at my door, i whioh is just across the street from Parliament House. The glare through my bed- | room window indicated a large blaze nn- ; comfortably near at hand. On' opening 1 the front door I found the Parliamentary Buildings in flames. ~ I Between half-past 2 and a quarter to 3 ( great tongues of flame were shooting ! above the highest pinnacles of the buiW- ' inge, and dense volumes of smoke were ( ■rolling southward on a gentle breeze. The , main body of the fire appeared to be above the Native interpreter's room in the old wing of the building. Here there is a congeries of old matchwood rooms, which , once ablaze no power on earth could save. Having run out a small hose for some protectiori^o my own houee, I rushed across the street and entered the building by the entrance leading to the Speaker's rooms. Mr Lucas (Mr Guinnees's faithful messenger) was already busy saving hjs effoots. An inner door was broken open, and papers, clothes, gowns, and even v>« wijj were conveyed to "another fcla^e. 1 ' Going upstairs in the darkness to have h Jast took at the old press room, I found the acrid smoke already beginning jp penetrate it, and it was then, plain ftftf the whole building xnust (&• Down below th* ■ Fire Brigade, Rhich jjod sot. enough men ; lor 09 bigr • tw*» wea getting «<L w J3 r #» and among those assisting I *oi!9*a yaptain Stewart, of the Fateepa, acting %)to all the oopipear oL one bora to pomftMtd* Messrs Gilloq ©nd Brandon (of the Wsk lard staff) we.ra oa the fljf^h J9" we made n, burned *VL *" Q "JE^j visor's room, from which "}6y sfrfcu ftp ; come important papers. Seemg 1 trt ■bu . time that the whole of the wooden pu Id- j ing was doomed, I rushed down to B| room of the second clerk's assuran^ in QiJ hope of saving the journals of ens Ifous* #1 Representatives for last eeeslon, .which j

I knew Mr Lowe had been busily engaged upon of late. With the assistanoe of a messenger I broke open his roll-top desk, but there was no sign of -the two volumes of the> journals. It appears that Mr Lowe had only the previous day finished the* work and had sent the books up for copying to an upper storey room, where by this time they were well within the danger zone. The drawers, however, contained the full notes made by the Clerk of the House up to the last day of the session, and these I carried across to my own house. They constitute the only record from which the journal of the Hou6© for 1907 can be made, but Mr Lowe will have nearly all his tedious work to do over again. I also secured a full list of the accounts and all the House of Representatives vouchers for last session's payments, which will save a great deal of trouble in some of the departmental offices. Amongst other salvage from this desk was some £70 worth of 'stamps and all the original Houee of Representative division lists for last session. These lists are of considerable value, for notwithstanding .the fact that they are published in Hansard, the origiaals are very often referred to. All the reports for the journal of the House in committee and the original division lists in committee were in another room, and have been destroyed. The journal of the committee proceedings for 1907 will therefore suffer considerably, and ; members will have to depend on the meagre account whioh js embalmed in Hansard. On suoh items as the Tariff Bill and the Land BUbj tljese records would prove of great val'U« to parliamentarians. Amongst those who were very early <?n i ta« scene I noticed the Hon. Mr M'Gowan, > who had evidently made a very hurried toilet, and Mr Mathe*Ws (his private secretary), who, haying the keys of the Cabinet Room, w,as abje wit|i the assistance of some others to get pretty well everything the Prime Minister had there to a place of safety, Mr Donne (manager oj the Tourist Depwsxien't), Mr MacAlister (formerly one of We Seddon's secretaries), and Dr Bay (head of tho Department of Mental Hosmtajbj were amongst others who worked Very bard eavjng papers and books. Me«rrs Ree*ss and Grealish (of the Poet's gaxlUuxtefptfity staff) xna.de a dasn for tho press JWb'nj Jusi as tb.o flames were bunting into lt> fend. Mvqa nearly &U the cherished memorief of bfgope y6a» in the shape 3 the gajlery pictured that adorned ihe %13f. As I took * last look up ihe well(emembered pteps leading to t|je cillery I was" surprised lo bear the diTJflion be]l nngujg. The. wires h.ad (used in oontiot, tod ihe oj^, tfred, <jlangva^peUf t&At baß -put .tfg * iscojh} p§r£otin- '

ance during last session, was sounding ite last alarm. One almost expected to hear '.h-3 well-known voice of Mr Flatman, the "ormer whip, or of Messrs Kidd'and Colvin h outing as they left the Chamber and ralked down the lobbies, "'Vision! vision!" to look down on Mr Speaker, a lately figure in wig and gown, and hear im calling in clear resonant tones, " The" lyes will go to the right, the Noes to the eft," and to see the faithful "Commons" olldwing Sir Joseph Wajxt or Mr Massey ,-j.t through the side doors as they settled or the time being some momentous ques* ion in the history of the Dominion. But he Chamber was empty save for 6tnoke, ad it was not the finger of the ojerk, but he finger of the leaping flames that was inging the bell for tho last time. The rhexsta of departed members may have .overed about the Chamber for a while 3 it went heavenward in smoke, but it \ as with the crackling of old timbers and he ©latter of fallen glass that the long obby now rane instead of with the laughter id song of members in a merry mood. RECORDS OF THE CATASTROPHE. Just after dawn was breaking I took four fhotographs of the burning building from ifferent points of view. The first of these, .vhich I have developed, shews plainly hat by that time a considerable portion )f the roof of the front wooden buiklng on the south, which is thr^e stories aigh, had fallen in, and that the fire was ust bursting through the windows and veatherboards of the wooden portion that aces Moleaworth ttreet. As evidence of the rapidity with which the fire spread, the negative shows that several of the windows m the Mpper stories had gone. The ftrenen are playing a stream of water above !ho Speaker's room, and on the lawn belind the inartistic marble statue of John Ballanos is a heterogeneous collection of office furniture and parliamentary papers ard books. Later on a whole battery of ail sorts and sizes of cameras were at work. THE FIRE AT ITS HEIGHT. When the fire was at its height it was from a spectacular pdint of view a magnificent sight. The centre of v the great pile, of buildings roared like the throat of a volcano, dense volumes of black smoke belched out, and long,, leaping flames lit up the scene. Sparks flew in showers to the southward, alarming women who had come out in scant attire, and threatening Government House with destruction. Those in charge had a trying time in their efforts to preserve the building. Flakes of fire fell on the house and among the trees. The fence at the tennis court was ignited, and it was feared at one time that the laundry and other outbuildings would go. Sergeant Bxrwell, orderly at Government House, got the hose out, and as soon as it was seen that the outbreak in Parliament Buildings was serious Captain Hennah, who was at Government Buildings, came over and took charge. Hoses were kept continually playing on the Sydney street side of the house, where, notwithstanding the, intervening garden, the heat from the fire was intense. Several of the trees caught fire and also the grass in places, but Mr M'Kay, the head gardener, and his sons looked after the grounds, although they had an uncomfortable time by reason of the shower -'of sparks and burning papers which descended in a fiery rain. The direction of the wind at the time the fire "broke out was not unfavourable, but the risks of ignition from spaijks falling in inaccessible parts of the roof was never absent until the fire itself was under control. As the fire gained in strength and volume there was a great noise of crashing glass, breaking beams, and , toppling ohimneys. The water played on it and went off in . hissing steam. The , firemen climbed to dizzy heights, and worked with great bravery- ! Presently one was seen staggering along j the side of the building. His face was j livid, and he could scarcely stand. Soon he. was in the care of friendly hands, and was taken into a chemist's near by. He had fallen through a floor or from a ledge, and was bruised and badly burnt about the hands and face. High above another* man working with his branch at the front of the" building. ■* gable swayed and tottered in its fall. It struck a chimney, the top of which came crashing down. The crowd called in alarm, and the fireman, turning to retreat, tripped and fell. The bricks clattered down about him, but, strangely enough, he was not touched. A TOUR OF INSPECTION. Later on whilst the building was still smouldering and the hoses were still playing I made a tour of inspection along the* old familiar paths. My companion was Mr Smith, .of the Public Works Department, who has known the building since his boyhood. We dived under a shower of warm water that spattered down from the eecond floor and into the main lobby-^-a scene of charred timbers, half-burnt pictures, blackened matter, and lumps of moist plaster. At the end we looked forthe late Queen's picture, a replica of the Jubilee one presented by Sir John Hall at a cost of some hundreds of pounds. There was not a trace of it. On the right the rooms of the Government and Opposition whips, in which members were wont to congregate for party chat, were desolate, cherred, and sodden. Bellamy's was almost indesoribable. It was a weird tangle of great broken beams and iron roofing, twisted by the heat into strange shapes. Tho semicircular bar -was piled up with a mass of fallen plaster and charcoal debris. The custodian had dug down through another mass to the cellar, where choice brands of cigars and casks were swimming in the blackened water. His own room, still m.arked " Strictly, private," agape, with all its privacy p. thing of the past. The dock at the farther end of the lobby still ticked on, and told the right time. These iportions of the building were within walls of briok. Beyond' them the green- draped House of Representatives Chamber and the red Legislative Counoii Chamber had vanished altogether. As we picked our way back through the lobby the blaze broke out again overhead, and a fireman turned his "branch" on, and made the flaming timbers hiss again. Up the fine broad stairway of the new building w« went somewliat anxiously, for the h&autl£ul glass dome ovftrkead was lMuMy shattered, and the eteps were strewn -with fallen piaster. In the room of the chairman of committees (Mr Roderick M'Kepzie) the bound journals, Hansarde, and statutes wejre oob badly damaged. Air M'Nab's room beyond, on the right, was a melancholy spectacle of wreckage. Here were some precious early historical records. If they ar_e in a charred wooden bo,x whjch I could (tee on the, §oor t thsy may 6t4J be decipherable, but yre'eouti not get «t

the box because of the fallen debris. The Parliamentary books in the big bookcase were standing in black and melancholy array. The room was just beyond the wall of the fire-proof building. Next door Mi Massey's room was roofless, and its floor a mass of brick and bent and charred roofing iron. Of Mr Carroll's room and of Dr Findlay's there was not a vestige left. With the Legislative Counoii went up in flame and smoke many books and documents and some historic paintings of such men as Featherstone, Waterhouse, and "some others whose names are writ large on the page of colonial history. Another valuable picture that 19 gone is that" of Sir Charles Clifford, the first Speaker of the House of Representatives. It hung foxmany years juat over the old horee-hair sofa in the prees gallery, and many a sleepy pressman in "the wee sma' hours" used to imagine that it might fall on his recumbent form, and wondered why it was 'not put in a safer place. The fire must have been smouldering since 11 o'clock the previous night, because some Hill street residents smelt it, but could not locate it. THE HUMOUR OF THE TRAGEDY. (Specially Written by Mbs Malcolm Ross.) Awe-inspiring as the conflagration was, there were, still many touches of comedy for those who had time, and inclination to notice them. The various costumes were a feature of the ' crowd. Here & girl fa a leather motor coat, a. pink fascinator tied over Hinde'e curling pins, and bare feet thrust into bath slippers, discussed the situation 'with, a man \u a straw hat, « dressing gown, and peeps of pyjamas above his canvas shoes. Hurry seemed the chief reason of the quaint garb, and maidens who usually appear with ever; glossy tress in place had apparently snatched two hasty hairpins, skewered their hair up, and fled to the fire, dropping bnl hairpin on the way. It was dark when tip fire broke out, and in the glare could bp seen many familiar faces. The bizarre costumes did not matter, but the red dawn fired the east a. lovelier prototype of the raging flames, and as the light grew clearer one looked at one's neighbours and wondered if everyone looked suoh scarecrows. A damsel in a pink opera ccat over an elaborate robe de suit who had formed a brilliant spot in the crowd slipped home to don more comfortable attire, and the man in the tartan dressing-gown found t the light of common day too strong for him. It was the bestnatured and most orderly of crowds, though there was no tendency to merriment as it watched tho historic pile ablaze. Every house around had its windows crowded with eager faces, and from the terraced gardens and high walls hundreds watched. The policemen kept excellent order, and their dignity and impressivenese were quite in proportion to the extent of the calamity. One white-haired' Irishman was perhaps a little excited. He came to my door and said, "Have ye a telephone? in so fierce a tone that I was almost afraid to admit I had.- He got the list, and then said, "Here, misthress, yeVe got bother eyes than me; find the number." He then put on his spectacles to ring, up, tried again and argain in a"tori& that grew more milesian at ,everyi repetition. At last ho gave' up. " Thry it yeself," he said, "and tell.. the carrier to send up two or three telephones to the Government Buildings." Witjp that he rushed from the house and was lost to sigitf. Fortunately I knew what he- wanted, and revised his message. * The poor muddled man wanted two or three expresses for Parliament Buildings. Wflen it was decided that the books should be taken out a horde df volunteers offered. Boys and men trotted with armfuis of various literature between the library and the first house in Hill street, used last session as the law drafting office. Various means were used to carry the books— tin baths, buckets, baskets, and trays were preeaed into the service. A touching sight was a huge policeman with a small library trolly laden with big books. The man was so big and the handles so low that he was almost doubled up, and so zealous had he been that his trolly was overladen, and books kept falling off and had to be put on. He could have more easily carried the trolly, books, and all. The procession of < book-carriers was quaintly varied. Heads of departments hustled* lumpers, and the man about town trotted after the, übiquitous small boy, but whether butcher' tailor, soldier, or sailor, each was the embodyment of eager service and hearty goodwill. « Meanwhile our pretty drawing-room was fast assuming the appearance or an untidy second-hand 6hop, and my front garden was- decorated with a variety of parliamentary belongings. I lifted a typewriter from the top of a favourite plant, and carried it inside. Just outside the door were two pictures, and both of the late Premier — one of large size, the fine painting by Tennyson Cole. It almost seemed as if the great statesman should have his face turned to where the arena of his many triumphs was disappearing in a glory of flame instead of being ignominiously turned to the wall. Inside was* distinguished company, for the Princess of Wales rubbed shoulders with Sir Julius Vogel, and a huge frame containing veteran statesmen', giants of earlier politics, wes side by side with a portrait of Sir George Grey. Drawers, brimming with documents, were piled on the floor. More typewriters, and leather satchels stuffed with papers lay about, and a cheque book and a cash book decorated the piano. 'It was the weirdest medley, in the muddle of which we drank our early morning tea — the earliest morning tea and the most welcome we had ever known. Even the milkman was not abroad, but a medical man of resource managed to get somewhere a phial of milk, and was allowed two cups for his enterprise. THE LIBRARY SAFE. Mr Jr-mes Allen, M.P., received on the ,Ith tho following telegram from Mr O. Vilson, parliamentary librarian, in reply to an inquiry from him: — "Glad say library quite safe. We got out 8000 volumes in three-quaVters of an hour. Of course, jsom© confusion few Jays- All others "parts building gone save lavatories." PARLIAMENTARY BUILDINGS. Parliamentary Buildings' must not be confused with Government Buildings Some people have concluded from tie fact that Ministers' rooms have be<>n destroyed that the fir© took place in ihe Government Buildings (said to be the largest wooden building in the world), where many of the departments ar» £«rinanently located. <Ch£

i explanation is that during the session of i Parliament all the Ministers occupy rooms r in the Parliamentary Buildings for conl veoienoe cake. They remove the moefc r important of their papers, documents, ancß i reference works to these rooms for their ; sessional work, and send them back to ther • Government Buildings for the reoess. ItJ was only on Tuesday last that Mr F. IX, i Thomson, private secretary to the Hon. Mr* - Millar, remarked to a member of our 6taf? i that all the Minieter's papers and boot* I had been returned to the Government* i Buildings on the day following the close* • of the session. r The destruction of the Lobby oarrie* -. with it the loss of many valuable paintings ■ and portraits. At the south end- tsere was : a, large painting of her late Majesty thir ' Queen, presented in 1895 by tfee late Sip I John HaQ. and two life-size portraits (en- ■ largements) of the Prince and Princess o£ ; Wales, as well as oil-paintings of the Honv Mr Seddon — & capital piece of work bqfr Mr Tennyson Cole,— Sir Julius "Vogel, ana > others who have figured prominently iit > New Zealand politics for years past, as = well as oil-paintings of the White and Pink Terraces aa they appeared before they were destroyed by the eruption. In addition • there were a number of "shields" of past ) Parliament*. It was the custom at th» „ close of every session for members to hand 7 I in their photographs, these being eubsej quently framed in "shield" form and hunc » on the wall. .There was a most interesting i collection of these in the Lobby, extending" I back to the earliest days of -Parliament. t IA the Legislative Counoii there were? i pictures of Sir J. ,L. C. Richardson and Sir *> W. Fitiherbert, and in the "M." Committed s Room there was a splendid' cul-painting o£ J; ft seotion of the Southern Alps. This painti 4ajf measured 24ft by 4ft. t The buildings date back to 1873. Tribe J. to that date the- General Governments • Buildings were inadequate- for the require* " ments of the time, for a number of departc ments had their offices in the Parliamentary 3 Bufldings. During the -session of 1870 Me i Gisborne, then Colonial Secretary and] i Leader of the Legislative Council, and Mn • (afterwards Sir) W. Fox informed the r Upper and Lower Houses respectively thatf j the roof of the buildings was in » preca- | rious condition, and was liable to be brought? down by a gale of wind or an earthquake,, being badly affected by dry rot. However.', no action was taken until 1872, when Sit) [ James Hector and Mr Clayton recomL mended tho reconstruction of the building* . as soon as the session ended. The Colonial Architect, Mr Clayton (father of Lady I Vogel), accordingly^ p/epaxed plans for* r buildings to be used exclusively by the I Legislature, and not for departmental work.. [ The contract price was £5218 for the House of Representatives and £6230 for the Legist I lative Council . Chamber. Tbeee building* i were first used ki the- session of 1875, and* s have been in nse ever since, but consider' i able sums have been expended on them! r from time to time. Some extensive alter** ' tione were made in the recess of 189J-94',] ! when a system of ventilation wa« ' estatH i liahed by means of fans driven by electric. ; motors, special appliances beeing laid on tot heat and distribute air throughout thej buildings. For this purposa a chamber ' had to be constructed under the buildf • ings. At the same time a complete elec1 trio lighting system was installed. > The Legislative Council Chamber was ; an exceedingly pretty hall, the schemeof i decoration being in white-and-gold. Tn« ' rooms attached to the Chamber comprise* > two rooms for Mr Speaker— in one ofi : which Sir Harry Atkinson died, — one for > the clerk, a reading room for members, «.' "reception room for strangers, two messen- ■ gers rosms, and a store room, while on' 1 the first floor irere two committee rooms* the Chairman of Committees' room, two bill offices, the record offioe, a. room for. the Maori interpreter, and a dressing room for the clerks. The Chamber of the House of Representatives was some distance away from, the Council Chamber. At the north end] was the Speaker's chair, with Ministerial and Opposition benches to right and left on' either side of the long table, on whicb> papers are laid, and at one end of which) the clerk sat. A passage ran past the end of the table, at right angles to it, and* bisecting" the Chamber, led to the "aye" and "no" lobbies. On the other side ofi the passage the remaining seats were ranged three deep in circular fashion. Altogether the. Chamber seatedy 80 members. The galleries surrounding .he- Chamber accommodated the ladies at one end and! Hansard and the press reporter* at the other, while the sides accommodated the public, provision aiso being made for Legislative Councillors and wives of Ministers. Connecting two Chambers was the Lobby, a lofty corridor 101 ft bng by 25ff wide, and lighted from the top. Opening off one end of the Lobby were the quarters known as " Bellamy's." These, consisted of a large dining room capable lof accommodating over 100 members. The, bar was at one end, and underneath was . the cellarage, 60ft by 40ft, and the bonded*store. The kitchen and cooks' and waiters* rooms were on the first floor. One of the doors off the Lobby on tho other side led to a corridor running parallejf with the Lobby, off which were a number of committee rooms. It vas in one of these the fire broke out. Grouped about the House of Representatives Chamber ovl the ground floor were the bill room, messengers' room, waiting rooms, the Ser-? geant-at-Arma' . room, and Mr Speaker's! quarters, besides the Cabinet room and tha Prime Minister's office. Above, on thff first floor, were a number of committee rooms, Ministers' rooms, the room of the Leader ""of the Opposition, the press tepoTfere' room, and Hansard rooms. On si floor still higher up was another Miniafcer'sf room (Mr Fowlds's), and more commit to* rooms. On the ground floor the Prim* Minister's office was in the newer bride, part of the building; and on the first) floor" the rooms of the Hon. Messr* M'Nab and? Millar were also in this new part of tho building. In the corridors adjoining, the Lower; House were dozens of shelv&a filled wifcbi volumes to whioh members were constantly referring— statutes, Hansard, Blue Booksy and other work*. These have all gone, and their loss will be hard to replace.

The main entrance faces Molesworth street. The wooden portion of the building, which has been entirely swept away, faces Sydney street, on the opposite side Of which stands Government House, the Vioe-regal residence. Hill street runs parallel with Sydney street. The new wing (library) looks out on to Hill street.