Big Blaze At Milan

Milaa was visited by a destructive fire last Monday night which broke out in Doersam's saloon and for a time threatened to burn up the entire business part of Milan. The hand engme which Milan purchased of this city refused to work at first, the valves being frozen and the hose having been uncared for. Unable to stop the rapid spread of the flames, the Ann Arbor fire department was telegraphed for. But long before the department could get permission to leave the city, could get transportation and traverse the sixteen miles between this city and Milan, the intricacies of the hand engine were mastered and it did good work, getting the fire under control just before the Ann Arbor steamer arrived. As it was, the total loss in the village reaches $16,000 on which there was $8,450 insurance. The fire was discovered by the night watchman in Edward Doersam's saloon about 10:15 In Milan the saloons close at 9 o'clock standard. It is supposed that the fire caught from the chimney, the stove in the saloon using soft coal which sometimes heated the stove pipe red hot. So quickly did the fire spread that Mrs. Guy, who lived in the upper story, escaped in her night dress just as the upper floor feil into the flames and one of the boys had to be carried out half smothered from the dense sraoke. In a few minutes nearly everyone in Milan was on the streets and intense excitement reigned. The hand engine was placed at the river about 300 feet from the fire. Considerable difficulty was experiencad in coupling the hose, but after the valves in the engine had been thawed out, many eager hands seized the brakes and good work was done in throwing water on the fire. It was the hand engine which saved Milan. Never was 400 spent which yielded more and quicker returns than the $400 that Milan üut in that band engine. The men worked with a will, and the women joined in carrying out the stocks in the stores supposed to be doomed. Of course, the usual hot heads were present and windows were broken and stock carelessly dumped out to its great damage. Great pains were taken to save the contents of the five cent counter in Gauntlett's store. The fire was confined to the three stores owned by O. A. Kelly, Jacob R. Vescelius and Mrs. Phoebe Kelsey. The stock of goods in W. H. Whitmarsh's grocery and Jas. Gauntlett's general store, consisting of clothing, dry goods, and boots and shoes, were entirely removed, while the fixtures in the Milan bank were taken out. The telephone in the bank was used to summon help from Ann Arbor, but before wor&could be received that help had started the toppling walls carried down the telephone line, and, to the anxious people who were awaiting help, the minutes seemed hours while the flames raged. lhe Arm Arbor department, after securing permission to leave the city, guaranteeing the expenses of transportation and loading the heavy engine and one horse wagon on the cars, reached Milan. and got to work at almost midnight, au hour and three quarters after the fire started. By that time, aided by the fine fire wall of Whitmarsh's grocery, the Milan workers were getting the best of the flames, although about exhausted with the work. The stearaer was placed at a cistern 1,200 feet away from the flames, as the hand engine workers did not want to give up their position by the river. As soon as the Ann Arbor firemen began playing on the flames, the Milan workers ceased pumping and until daylight the Ann Arbor firemen thrt'w water on the fire, removing, after the water in the cistern had been exhausted, to the river. The firemen who went to Milan from this city were Chief Fred Sipley, Charles Bdwards, Jack Kinney, William Kearns and Eugene Williams. The building in which the fire started was owned by Mrs. Phoebe Kelsey. Her loss on the building is $1,500; insured for $1,000 in the Phcenix; Edward Doersam, saloon, loss $1,000, no insurance; Harvey Guy, all his household goods, $400, no insurance. Jacob R. Vescelius loss on building, $1,800; loss on billiard fixtures and household goods, $r,8oo, insured for $2,000 in the New York Underwriters. O. A. Kelley, building $2,000, insured for $7,000 in the Phcenix; hardware stock, loss $4,000, insured for $3,000, equally divided between the Phoenix and HomejRandall&Corbin, law office, loss $150, no insurance. Dr. Samuel Chapín, physician's office, loss $400, no insurance; VV. H. Whitmarsh, loss on grocery stock $500, loss on building $500, fully insured in Home; James Gauntlett, loss on stock $1,500, no insurance; Charles Gauntlett loss on plate glass front $150, insured. Loss to other store fronts $200; Milan band, loss on fixtures, etc, $100, insured. The loss on Whitmarsh & Gauntlett's stocks is due partly to the damaged condition of their stock and partly to the fact that some of their goods were stolen. The heat was so intense that it blistered the store fronts and cracked the glass on the buildings across the Street. The hand engine was put in play for an hour Tuesday afternoon to again quench the fire in the smoking ruins.