SERIOUS FIRES.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 83, 14 May 1914, Page 10

SERIOUS FIRES.

IN AUCKLAND DISTRICT.

GOVERNMENT HOUSE ABLAZE.

TRAGEDY AT WHANGAREI. v I'resii Associativa. AUCKLAND; May" 14. A lire broke out at the Government House at nine o'clock this morning, his Excellency and Qeneral Hamilton were at breakfast. There was a viceregal bali last night, ofjwhicli the electrie lighting was a feature. It is supposed the fire was caused by a fusion of electric wires. The alarm having been given, the 1 ' brigade responded smartly. A detachment from H.M.S. Psyche, under oom- , - mander Carr, also, arrived early on the scene. <Lord Liverpool and Sir lan Hamilton / - and staffs assisted in saving, personal effects, and removed some furniture. «, When the brigade arrived, the fire i had a good hold. It had burned a hole in trie (wall above the bed in which the General slept last night, and through the floor of the passage leading to the Governor's bedroom, and had attacked the roof of the building. . The brigade.,got the lire under after it >l li3d spread to several other rooms. , , . The damage-bv fire and water is estimated at six thousand pounds. Quite half the building is beyond';"repair. Sir lan Hamilton's bed was'-partly burned. Iu the drawing "room* on the ground floor ■the weight, of water carried away -part ■of the ceiling. His Excellency's room was flooded and the. wall papers torn • Away by the\deluge_ of water. The tire did not make much of a spectacle, the brilv outward sign-being dense clouds of smoke. .General Hamilton was down late for-the inspection of * > the forts. Mr A. H. Nathan has placed lus residence adjacent to the.Government House at his Excellency's disposal. • ** HIS EXCELLENCY'S PRESENCE ; . OF MEND. . - SALVAGE WORK BY THE STAFF. « Later. At the ball last niglit in honour of * General Hamilton, there were over 400 guests.. It' was a brilliant affair, and , ] terminated, at 1 o 'clock. * - - It was something io be thankful for ' . that the fire did hot occur while the 'ball'was in progress, or later, while the residents; of Government House were in bed. -TJhe outbreak; was discovered- by ' a carpenter removing. the veranflah awn- ; 'ings,- "'Which.* l had.: provided shelter for - * the dancers.' ■Smoke was seen to be_ eomiiig from an .upstairs window.The "' ■ Government Ifouse party -were j nsfc about ' ' all down to breakfast. " ,tfl?he household was thrown into a state of eoafusion, which, however, was only, momentary, for the presence of mind dis- , tdayed by his Excellency, his staff, and Cieiieral. Hamilton had a influence. In quicker''time than it takes to reebrd, the; office telephone conveyed the ' 1 a v larm to the City Fire Brigade," and si" - ■large-body of _ expeditious ..workers , set ;_ ' about removing the contents of the build- ' ' / ~\ing to the, garden, paths, and lawn. In ' «>> a- few miuutes the brigade arrived, in i r -two motors. ■ The firemen : were : confronted. by volumes of flense; smoke and a small body ,of flame issuingv.from the second- storey -window- at the city end. > , While some firemen dashed upstairs"

. t others.got hoses. to, work from, oiitside; Tlie efforts were productive of "excellent results, and 'in . about 15 minutes they ... -Jhnd the fire-fully in hand., REMOVING EFFECTS. ,+ In the meantime the house party had a removed their personal effects. The .y-r. ) Jarge:.<drawing room on the ground floor ~ ! was stripp'eil of its contents while the ' peiling was burning briskly, and the Weakt'ast room- was similarly cleared, 'Governjor's private room was re.'•iieved' of • its • valuables and private , papers, and from the upstair windows e -.there-was articles, singly s jahd in ..bunnies,' ;' H A The pathways an-d lawns were strewn * with .piles personal and household effects. ' A SHOCKING DISCOVERY. r. W _ 4 TWO MEN BUENEIJ TO DEATH. J -witAkc ABUT, May 14. || Tvyo men, Patrick Daley, aged 65, "and :| . Alfred Carr, aged 60, were (burned to i death in. a whare in the Puwera gum•f ' digging, camp, near. Whangarei, yester.l day. Daley was seen'alive at-daylight, 1 -when he called- at the adjoining whare j "for matches. '_ . 4 The diggers, following their usual ■ I custom, were away from camp all day. j 'On their return .one of their number >; ' : iriade a shocking discovery. j Both the deceased were lying in an 2 ' open fireplace, their bodies being badly -'eftfirred.. ' • ' ,A large auautitv of liquor was found ' the jiremiVes;^lt is surmised that ■"* both tlie men, whovlived-together, had t been on a dwnking bout/rand, while Mil oft a fartbi, which was ; \ were no signs' of any struggle. J ;; ' ■ 1,.., := IG ' DESTBOYEB; V.'A.MIAM'i. May 11. A fire broke out. at ".35 a.m. at the residence of Mrs J. H. Nixon, Wangamii east, and the building, comprising 1(3 rooms, was totally destroyed. One of the inmates had a narrow eucapd.