Jasper County Democrat, Volume 3, Number 13, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 July 1900 — PROPERTY LOSS IS ENORMOUS. [ARTICLE]

PROPERTY LOSS IS ENORMOUS.

Steamship and Dock Companies Great Pecuniary Sufferers. The property loss can simply be approximated. A conservative estimate made by a prominent fire underwriter* places the entire damage at not less than $10,000,000. The three docks of the North German Lloyd line are total losses, with all their contents. The pier of the Thingvalla line is totally wiped away, and an extention which had just been built on the Hamburg-American line’s expanse of piers was burned down to the spile tops. The warehouses of Palmer Campbell, which were across the street from the North German Lloyd line docks, suffered greatly and a number of houses along the street were scorched badly. The loss on the Steamship properties and to other companies is estimated approximately as follows:* The steamship Main of the North German Lloyd line cost $1,500,000 outside of the cargo, fittings and stores. The loss is placed at $1,300,000 for the vessel and about $400,000 for the fitting* and stores and cargo that was aboard of her. The steamship Bremen of the North German Lloyd cost $1,250,000 and her fittings and cargo were valued at $300,000. The cargo and stores were entirely consumed and the loss to the vessel proper will amount to at least $700,000. The Saale, the steamship which will have the most horrible story of death to unfold when the divers go down in her, cost the North German Lloyd Company $1,250,000 and the fittings and cargo were valued at $300,000. The damage to the vessel proper is placed at about SBOO,OOO. The damage done to the Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse is estimated at $25,000. The three docks of the North German Lloyd line, which were burnedto the water’s edge, nre estimated to have cost $300,000. The docks were well filled with merchandise just received from abroad aud valued at $350,000. The Thingvalla pier, which was entirely consumed, was valued at $50,000, counting the stores which were on it. The Hamburg-Ameri-can line dock, which had just been completed as an extension to their great pier and which was destroyed in order to prevent the spread of the flames, was dam-

aged to the extent of $15,000. The warehouses of Palmer Campbell, houses E, F, G and H, were burned. The damage to buildings alone amohnt to at least $50,000, and tbe contents $1,250,000. One lighter containing 5,000 bags of sugar was destroyed, the loss beiug $27,000. Eight barges and eleven canalboats were either burned or sunk with their cargoes. Total valuation $125,000. Minor losses on floating property burned at the fire proj»er or set on fire by burning driftwood will amount to about $20,000. Four of the North German Lloyd fleet suffered. The unlucky Saale was totally destroyed, the Bremen will probably be a total loss, the record-holding Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse was badly damaged, the Main was sunk at her pier. The Bremen was one of the six twin-screw vessels built in 189 G nnd 1897. She had heretofore been singularly fortunate and had never met with serious mishap. Her maiden trip was made in June, 1897, from Bremen to New York City. She was a steel vessel, 550 feet long. Accidents have tnarke«L the career of the Saale since she wns built In Glasgow in 1880 for the North German Lloyd line. Shortly after her first trip she ran aground, but was rescued without injury. She again went aground off Flynn’s Knoll in 189(5, but got off uuhurt. The Saale on Aug. 4, 1892, during a fog, ran into and sunk the Norwegian bark Tordenskjold. No one was injured. On June 12, 1889, the Saale struck an iceberg, but escaped with little.damage. The Saale was a single screw steel boat, 438 feet long. Tbe Wilhelm der Grosse, which had just arrived at the North German Lloyd piers, was badly scorched at the bows by the fire, is the second largest ocean steamer afloat, being surpassed only by the Oceanic, recently launched. The ship is even more famous for speed than for size. In its maiden trip across the Atlantic in tbe fall of 1897 it broke three ocean records. It made the passage in five days twenty-two hours aud thirty-five minutes from Southampton, which was two hours better than the record fun of the St. Paul a short time before. At the same time the best single day’s run on record -had been made. The Kaiser Wilhelm is 025 feet long, 00 feet beam and 43 feet deep. These figures, however, do not mean so much to a landsman ns the statement pf the fact that tbe boat has four smokestacks, each twelve feet in diameter and 100 feet high. The accommodations provided are for 400 first-class passengers, 850 secoal class and 800 steerage, nnd the complement of officers and njgn is 450. The bunker capacity is 4,500 tons.

No Kndeavorera A boa yd. Alorft with other vessels, among which wan the Main, the Ranle had lieen chartered by the Christian Endeavor Society to carry 300 of its members to Ix>ndon. None of these were on board, however, as the vessel was not scheduled to sail until July 3. On board the Main were thousands of boxes of cartridges Intended for Gibraltar. When the flames reached these there ensued a rapid succession of explosions. and it la believed that many were killed by the f”’ng ballots.