Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 19, Number 35, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 January 1898 — A Fire Alarm. [ARTICLE]

A Fire Alarm.

The fire aharm rang Monday tnorning about 5:30 o’clock, and,for the first time in several months except the one in the kcourt hduse. The fire proved to \be iq-the bakery, of the Millifyn Restaurant on the north side off Washington St. The baker had started a hot fire in the stove in tire room, about 2 o'clock, and gont away and left it. The stove evidently got too hot and set the floor (beneath it on fire. When discovered several square yards of the floor had burnt through and wa/extending to the walls of tli^ z / building. Things were in shape for a bad fire and that Veiy rapidly, but the fire company got quick action with the little chemical and soon had the fire extinguished. The damage damage is not extensive, as the burnt floor was a very old one. It is estimated at 850.

The fire was first noticed by a traveling man, on his way to the Nowels house, and he sent parties from there who made further investigations and located the fire. Had the fire got under good headway, it would have been a matter of great difficulty to have stopped its progress westward, and H probably could have been done only by tearing down some of the smaller buildings. The little chemical deserves a | good deal or' credit for its work on this occasion. It doused the fire quickly, and without doing the damage which a stream of water -would have done, in accomplishing the same purpose.