Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 36, Number 56, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 March 1904 — FLAMES RUIN A CAPITOL. [ARTICLE]

FLAMES RUIN A CAPITOL.

State Building at Madison, Wis,, Burned, Causing Loss of SBOO,OOO. The Wisconsin State capitol at Madison was destroyed by tire Saturday with a loss estimated at SBOO,OOO. The State carries only partial insurance, being in the process of changing from insurance in companies to a system of State insurance. The fire involves the building of a new- capitol, a special session of the Legislature, and the probable renewal’ of the agitation in favor of the removal of the capital from Madison to Milwaukee. The flamos, which wore caused by a lighted gas jet on the second floor, early in the day, had ruined the east and west wings, containing the Senate and Assembly chambers, and the departments of the tax commission, the adjutant general, railroad commissioner, State school superintendent, superintendent of public property, board of agriculture, State normal school, commissioner of fisheries, fish and game warden, State board of pharmacy, State land ofHce, dairy and food commission, State treasurer and commissioner of labor, and were about to attack the departments of the Governor, Secretary of State, State board of control and the insurance commissioner. The local fire department soon liad ten streams of water playing on the flames with little effect and the Milwaukee department was called to render assistance. At 8 o'clock the flames were bursting from the windows of the north and south wings, the east and west wings having by this time been destroyed. The last departments to burn were those of the Secretary of State and Governor, on the south, tho Attorney General and insurance commissioners on the main floor and Ihe Supreme Court law library and State library commission on the second floor. Practically all the valuable State records were saved, as most of them were in masonry and steel vaults. The State treasury had only about SB,OOO ’in cash on hand. Ex-Gov. Schofield maintained insurance on the hnild'mg throughout his term totaling SOOO,OOO, but the last Legislature instituted an insurance fund and directed the State's officers to allow the insurance policies to lapse. In Juue last there lapsed $510,000 and in December the sum of $90,000. There is in the insurance fund at the present time about SO,OOO to meet the loss of SBOO,OOO.