FIRES. !

Otago Witness, Issue 2848, 14 October 1908, Page 52

FIRES. !

- THE WYNDHAM FIRE. Particulars about the fire at Wyndham on Wednesday, 7th inst., show that it was observed at half -past 4 4 o'clock. It was ' then found that Mr Donald Gordon's but- , cher's shop was on fire. The flames com- j municated with the tailor's shop of Mr | John Graham next dcor, and both build- J ing« were gutted, not much of the contents being saved. Tha premises of tOie • Loan and Mercantile Agency and of Hen- j derson and Co.'s adjacent were endangered, | and the contents were removed. The insurances on tho buildings affected are as under : —John G. Graham, £275 in the Standard office, on etoek and fittings. Gordon Bros., £200 in the Standard office, on stock, fittings, and plant. John Wocd (owner of Gordon's shop). £200 in the Royal office, on the building. Andrew Wood (owner of Graham's shop), £325 in the Standard office, on the building. J. H. Kitto (owner of Loan and Mercantile premises), £250 in the Standard office, on the building; damage sligiht. PALMERSTON N.. October 7. An eight-roomed residence in Ferguso;i street West Was totally destroyed by fire to-night ©wing to a candle in a child's bedroom catching a curtain. The- house was owned by Mr Hintze, and was occupied) by Mr Lomax. It was insured for £400 in the New Zealand office. The insurance on the furniture is believed to have run out. Practically nothing wa3 saved.' Fire bereft Mr John Spillane, farm.:*r. of Pajmerston, of his house and furniture on Fr : day, 2nd inst. His family were absent from home, and Mr Spillane, on returning about 7.30 p.m., lit the lamp and also a fire. He then had to set off suddenly in pursuit of a horsa that had got out of tho paddock. He followed it for three miles, and after catohir.g it came back to find his house in flames. The fire had obtained' such a hold that all attempts to extinguish it were futile, aiwi it and everything it contained were destroyed. The house (a four-roomed one) and furniture were valued at £350, and were insured with the Atlas Insurance Company for £200. The cause of the fire is attributed to the explosion of the kerosene lamp. A fire broko out in South Dunedin early on tho Sfh instant, the occupants of thehouse barely escaping with -their lives. The house was four-roomed, and belonged to William Alexander Porteous, who is employed at the Hillside Workshops. Mr Porteous, with his family, returned from the theatre and Tetired before midnight, leaving no fire 3 burning in any of the grates. Mrs Porteous awoke suddenly soon after 2.30 a.m., to find -the houte in flames, and, awakening her husband, they ju3t managed to make good their escape. Two rooms axe completely gutted, und mo=t of

the furniture has been destroyed. The i house is situated in Ilelena. street, and- is insured in the Alliance Insurance Company for £200. The furniture was insured with the National Insurance Company for £50. The house and furniture are said to have been under-insured by £5Q and £10 respectively. The cause of the fire is unknown, but someone went to look in a ] cupboard during the night holding a ' lighted match, and the fire would appear i to have originated there. Another of those inexplicable- fires, of late so prevalent, occurred at Rosebank, Balclutha, on the 7th insi., and was at- , tended with considerable loas end an mciii dent of a pathetic and painful nature. The property on which the fire occurred is owned by Mr James Lilly, and rented by Mr John JVfKenzie, traction-e-njjine driver. He was away with his engine in the country, and at 4 o'clock on Wednes1 day morning his wife was awakened by , fumes of emoke and the glare of flames. Looking out, she saw the dairy, stables, cow-byre, bain, and other outbuildings wrapped in flame. Neighbour were quickly in evidence, but as the case of the ou-CbuiltJings- was hopeless efforts 'were • concentrated on saving the house, which | stood in dangerous proximity. Blankets : , were saturated and laid on the roof, and every stratagem imaginable was tried, with the result that the apparently impossible was achieved, and the dwuiling saved. Meanwhile another scene was being enacted. A series of appealing yelps from the burning barn brought home the fact that a dog wae chained up within — a valu- j able and a faithful creature. A gentleman named M'Naish fought his way in through spark and flame in an effort to save the tortured animal but choking, blinded, and badly burned, he was forced back. Hemade two other plucky, but unsuccessful, i attempts, and the yelps, rising to a heart- ! rending wail, died away in the noise of j the fire. I Stored in the buildings were throe tons of choice seed potatoes, valued at £10, < several loads of ?traw, a quantity o£ pollard, and much chaff. All the dairying utensils were burned, also various tools and implements. Two fino pigs and a valuable dog were roasted to death. Mr ' Lilly's loss is heavy, as the buildings had i only recently been repaired and revoofed. | They were insured in the State Fire Office I for £60. Their approximate value is £130. None of the contents carried any imurance.