GREAT FIRE IN DEE-STREET, INVERCARGILL.

Southland Times, Volume I, Issue 81, 9 December 1864, Page 2

GRE AT FIRE IN DE E-STREET, INVERCARGILL.

, DESTRUCTION, OF £7,000 OF PHOPEE.TT. : It is with deep regret that we have to chronicle another extensive fire in Invercargill. At about half-past _ four this morning the inhabitants of the town were alarmed by the ringing of the large bell belonging to Mr. Binney, the auctioneer. The flames .were first observed issuing from the premises in the occupation of Mr. L. Myers, tobacconist, in the upper storey, of which were . the offices of the Liverpool ' and . London Eire and ' Life • Insurance Company. Almost immediately afterwards Mr. Koebuck's Empire '. Hotel was alsb -. observed to be on ' fire, and although the mornincr was very- calm, it was apparent . that nothing could prevent the destruction of every building between it and the :

south end of the block. The lately-formed Fire Brigade were quickly on the Spot'; and a detachment of-^police under Mr. Commissioner Weldon. Great fears were entertained that all the 'inmates "of; the various , houses would '- 'not auc.csed in making their .escape^ffor - hotwitht standing the almost -iotal v absence of wind, the fire spread ymth^fpffdepftil rapidity. 'We are glad -td'^b^abte i to state thakthis la% calamity was «verted, though some escaped with barely clothes sufficient to coyer thgm. A 4 very large crowd collected in ajewminute^land the most strenuous exertions vfer^made to save the stocks and the" furfmawt'of the buildings to the south of MyegsV Prom the Empire Hotel, and from l^^Myers 1 , the tobacconist, nothing was saySklv The next building which', 'caught^ wafc the boot store belonging to M^P'Har^a small quantity of the stock 'hispng been previously got out. The adjoining building was the Southern Cross HotSl, kept by Mr. T. "Wright. The fixtures* in the bar, a part of the stocky ,and of the bedding and furniture were saved, but before the whole could be- removed this fine hotel was' enveloped/ in dense clouds of black smoke, *wHi6h> ere long burst into a magnificent^shejst of flame. The Southern Cross Hotel was the cor- " ncr building, but the fire,'Vatta\jked the builcling to the right, in Don-street, in which W. Chandler ,, carried on the business of boot-maker. A considerable stock was on the premise's ; a large^pbttion of it was, however destroyed. From, Chandler's to the premises of Mr. EST. Boss, wine and spirit merchant, the fire spread with lightning speed. Miv,Jß6ss succeeded in rescuing a great' "portion of his stock. Last of all, the store of Mr. H. E. Osborne, general dealer,-' was destroyed. At this' point a gap**occurred, and a line " of buckets having been established and, y forked '-.'^by - a large number of willing hands, the side of the next house, hrthe oceupationCfbf Mr. Bruce, working jeweller,.- was,- kept sufficiently wet and cool to -preserve it intact. At the time when thisjfrjass of buildings was all on fire the; .spectacle presented was one of surpassing grandeur. Par above the highest houses 'the-volumes of dense black smoke rolled upwards intermingling with vastjets of lurid flame, changing as it obtained complete 1 "mastery over the inflamable materials which fed it, to the most dazzling brigntnessj-iwhilst the crash of falling timber and ing glass, and the hoarse - Voices of the men vainly endeavoring" to ~ stay the progress of the eonflagrationaclded to the horror of the picture. -."Although I>ee-street is . two chains wide the heat on the opposite side was,, intense, and the most strenuous exertions were necessary to save the Prince of' Wales Hotel, directly facing the burning block. A fair supply of water was at r hand, and by covering the front of the building'with wet blankets, it remained unscathed, the white steam rising r in clouds above the roof. From the time that the 'first alarm was given, until the danger was completely overcome, scarce three-quarters of an Lour elapsed. We never* witnessed a fire where there was less confasion, or more alacrity on the part of spectators to render hearty assistance. Every, 'praise* is due to the newly-formed Fire., Brigade Both officers and men worked- splendidly, and gave evidence that with proper appliances at hand, their efficiency could nob possibly be surpassed. We particularly noticed Captain M'Culloch, .and" 'Mr. Eeese, who directed the movements of .a large body of men.- Most unfortunately the fire engine -was" undergoing repairs, and wasi therefore not brought, on the ground. The police, under Mr. Commissioner Weldon, are also entitled to the warmest thanks, of the community, -for their almost superhuman exertions -in quelling afire wldeli on account of 'the locality, threatened to be the most serious, we have yet nad to record. . Sergeant Chapman was particularly active. Amongst private individuals /present, , who rendered the most valuable. asssistajic,e, "7 we may mention the names of Xfr.'Menzies, and I. N. Watt,. Esq., E.M., of Campbell- - town. "Had a breeze* sprung lip, nothing short of a miracle could have , saved'the larger half of -the -business portion of * Invercargill. ,We are unable to giye full particulars as to the loss sustained^, but the following .statement approximates to the amount rof insurance on the various buildings and stocks : — ' W. Roebuck, Empire Hotel, £300. „ , - t - r - L. Myers, tobacconist, &c, . £900. , r „r" — ; ■ - Mr. O'Hara, boot store/ Loss not' known. • T. Wright, Southern Cross- Hotel, ,r . £650. . . , T Mr Chandler, boot-maker, , „ T £200. /, t . . " ' - H. T. Eoss, wine and spirit' merchant/* £1000. A rough estimate of the total loss is about £7,000.

of fc ifian named William "BxctAti*, -whose body had bfcen discovered'3b";jrSergeant Morton hi the Oreti Siver. Tho^uiyjuturned tho 'following verdict : — That the deceased-oame -by his • death by being aocidentally/drovm^*in the Oreti River on the night of the 23rd,-2rorember, whilst crossing from BltC Morisou's Accommodation House to Mr. •Tamießon's station, Hill End, and that he had fall&n. off a stefeg bank into the .river. Yesterday morning at about half-past twelve, whilst Sergeartt""J?orster wa9 passing through Deeitreet;he observed- fire in the-" Noah's Ark" yard. On entering he found the tilt of a waggon, belonging, to a man named^Morris Currin, in flames. He gave'tyhe alarm at once, and approached the waggon, when he found Currin asleep, and the blankets covering' him on fire. The sergeant pulled' the man out, before he had received any injiiyy/his whiskers alone being singed. The inmates of the house were promptly in attendance, and- assisted in. removing the waggon fwhieh by thai. hrn« had taken fire\ so &3 to save the adjojning one, which stoq^ih close proximity to the stable.- ;The tilt ignited by means of a candle which Currin had not properly extinguished previous to going to sleep. The monthly genei'al meeting of the Invercargill Fire Brigade was held on Wednesday evening, at half-past seVeri. There were about seventy members present, j .The minutes of the previous meeting were^ionfirmed.. The meeting adopted the ;rules and' regulations which had been drawn up by thetcommittoe, and they were ordered' to be printed. A Uniform was likewise decided upon. It is to consist of a red shirt and black cap -with red^band.^; The necessary arrangements as to its' purchase was left" to the committee. The captain ■reported the purchase " of the nre engine, and - stated that at present it was in the hands of Mr. ' J/' R. Dairies, for repairs. There was some diseussion'about the 'p'urchase of an alarm bell, and one.atp'resentiu the possession of Mr. Binney, the auctioneer, was mentioned, but nothing definite was arrived at. About twenty new members were enrolled; so that the fu 1 ! compliment of the brigade is rapidly being filled up. 'The usual drill took place yesterday evening 1 . The trustees of the Invercargill Savings' Bank met according to advertisement at 4 i^.m. on Wednesday, for .the despatch of general business. We are requested to remind the public that the Savings' Bank will be opened for receiving deposits tomorrow afternoon, between the houi-3 of five and eight. . Since tlie last oceasion v on which we noticed the bush fires to the north of the town, they have continued to smoulder, a high wind alone being wanting- to cause them to bura up with renewed vigor, and endanger the whole of Invercargill. On Tuesday there was a fresh breeze blowing, and towards noon immense volumes of smoke were observed rising from the town belt to the north of Gala-street. It -was at first supposed that some of the numerous huts and tents with which the outskirts of this part of the town ai-e covered, had taken fire; but on visiting the spot, we found that the mischief was confined to the bush, which is throughout choked with ,a dense accumulation of underwood and . debris left on the ground by sawyers and woodsplitters, and against the danger arising from which it is almost an impossibility to form any efficient safeguard. As the day advanced, the flames spread with great rapidity, a large acreage being at one time burning with fury. Through this portion of the bush Mr. Peters had constructed, at a very considerable ; outlay of time and money, a wooden tramway, the rails being, for the most part, faced with light iron. . By this means he supplied a large proportion of the firewood -consumed in Invercargill. .Notwithstanding very great efforts to save this property, the tramway caught fire, and being made of dry, well-seasoned stuff, burned quickly. 8ome : hundreds of yards of. it were completely destroyed, and other parts of it were injured so as to render them of no further service. The proprietor had about, two hundred cords of firewood split and stacked, in the vicinity, some small portion of which was ■ likewise -consumed, and should the flanies continue • to spread, the whole o£ it may be expected to share the same fate. ..." A' small quantity of rain fell on Tuesday night and .early on Wednesday morning, but its effect in quenching the fire was trifling, ,the brushwood ; being thoroughly dried -■ up by the, continuous hot weather. On Wednesday the wind freshened, and the flames continued to spread; and during Wednesday night and yesterday; morning: fears were entertained lest some of the detached houses in the vicinity should be destroyed. We are happy to say that up to the time of going to press these fears have not been realised. The extent of valuable bush destroyed by fire during the past month near Invercargill is very large, butthere .is the consolation that the clanger to the towa from any future conflagrations is proportionately decreased. The police, under Mr. Commissioner Weldon have been very active in using the limited means at their disposal for obtaining the mastery over the fire. The loss sustained.; by ■ My. Peters is very considerable. : ; ■ .. •:'; . We understand the chairman of the Railway , Board received intimation from Mr. Higgin yesterday, accepting the contract for the construction of the proposed line from Auckland to Drury. Mr. Higgin may shortly be expected in Auckland .to perfect his. securities, and go on with the work. The usual fortnightly, meeting of the Town Board, was held last evening, in the Board Room, Tay-street. ' Members present were Messrs. Livesey, (chairman)/ Smith, Lumsden, Jaggers, Moffett, and Webster. Tfie, minutes of the preceding' meeting having been read and confirmed,-' ihe Cleri: read a letter from Mr. Joseph Hatch, honorary secretary to the Invercargill Volunteer Fire Brigade, requesting the permission of the Board to the formation of water-works beneath the footpaths of the town, in places to be hereafter pointed out. Some discussion took place on the proposed plan. In the absence of sufficient data, it was ultimately moved by Mr. Jaggers, seconded by Mi. Smitfi, and carried,- — " That the clerk be 1 instructed 'to inform the hon. sec. J of the Invercargill Volunteer Fire "Brigade that the Board is ' desirous to co-operate in the matter referred to in -his letter, and after consultation with its engineer, will communicate its decision." The report of the' committee appointed to revise the present Ordinance, was received, ,and, after some slight alterations, adopted unanimously. It was then , resolved that a deputation should wait upon Dr. -' Menzies, a3 one of the "members for the town, and request him to take charge of the proposed- " Amendment Bill. The rest of the business trans- 1 acted possessed no features of public interest.

The Sydney Morning fftvald of the 21sfc ult " says ! — " At a meeting of the electors of Wost Sydney, held yesterday evening, the Treasurer, in his address, stated that the actual deficit for the year 1863, and previous years, amounted to £389,822. ts. lOd , and, to meet this, the Government had issued Treasury bills to the amount of £400,000. The deficit for the present year, 1864, he estimated in round numhars, at £400,000, and accounted for- it as follows :— Decline in the Customs; £60,000 s decline in land revenue, £102,000 j taxation scheme not passed, £220,000. Total, £382,000. Had the scheme of taxation he proposed been agreed to, the deficit of expendituro over the I'evenUfi would h&VD been very small. The Government, at the meeting of Parliament, he said, intended to propose a scale of taxation somewhat similar to the last ; hut omitting those articles the duty on which wei*e considered of a protective character. They intended to propose a tax on luxuries ; but ib xrouiH he imprudent at present to specify the articles, lest tho mercantile community should avail themselves of the information. He anticipated realizing by the border customs £10,000 to £60,000, and the annual cost of ...collection would not exceed £3,000 ; and pointed out that the savings on the salaries of next year would amount to^MtMS- 'Tha Treasurer liar smco been . defeated for West Sydney, but purposes standing for another ; The Southland Provincial Government Gazette of the 28th ultimo, contains an elaborate report, Vr Mr. Heale, dated July 19, 1864, on the surveys of the-Prorince ; also a import by the '/Deputy Chief Surveyor, Mr. Bakev. The Chief Commissioner of Crown Lauds reports to His Honor t,he Superintendent on the sales of waste lauds,.of the Crown, from the Ist October, 1863, to the 30th September, 1864. "We quote the following 's— '" From the return marked A. your Honor will see that there have have, been 57 5 837 a. 3r. 35p. escheated from the Crown 'during the year, the sale of which has realised £63,088 14s. 9d.,.0r an average of nearly £1 Is. lOd. per acre. A great deal of this land is of ehoic« description, such as the Mataura and Aparima Hundreds, and did not, in my opinion, reaJise any tlriug Jike its legitimate value. That in the Matauva Hundred averaged 255., in the Aparima Hundred, 265. per acre respectively. That this land did not fetch a higher price was owing, I believe, to the general commercial depression prevailing at the time the blocks were opened for application. Had it been possible to open to the public either of these two HiTOCfreds m the preced ; ug year, I feel convinced it would have averaged thv.ee pounds per acre. The highest price realised for a section, was in the Mataura Hundred 40s. per acre, and in the Anarima 555."