Show I NEARLY AMllE OF FLAME Fire in Toronto Yesterday Itslroys Over n Millions Worth ClI Property I I Wharves and Warehouses Burned and the Shipping Blazing the on RiverA I i II I a I A Fear That Several Lives May Have llecn Lost In the Conflagration I A Hot Sunday in Toronto TORONTO August 3CA fearfully destruc tive fire commenced about 1230 this morn ing in a largo brick building erected by the Toronto Sugar Refining Company on the esplanade A strong wind was blowing from the east and carried chunks of the burning timber along the esplanade igniting the wooden buildings as far west as five or six blocks In a short time NOTHING WAS LEFT OF TlUi SUGAR EEFINKHY But tbe walls and the fyuoko stack The buildings of Saulter Evans Heakes Gun sell and Abbottson all boat builders Reed Co and Welch JJ Co lumber merchants Carrie Martin k Co boiler makers and other buildings are in flames and unless the wind changes the whole south side of the esplanade will have to succumb Sparks are flying and lodging on the roofs of large warehouses on Front and Wellington streets and fears are entertained that several of them may take fire The fire brigade are and have been working manfully but their efforts seem powerless The streets are lined lned with thousands of people THE LOSS WILL BE ENORMOUS Many schooners are burned to the waters edge The fire is now half a mile in length TOHONTO August 4The work of destruc tion on the esplanade still goes on having reached the foot of Yonge street all the intervening buildings and wharves having been burned to the ground The Great Western freight shed formerly a passenger station on the north side of the esplanade is in imminent danger and is expected to be in flames every moment BCnOONEHS AND STEAMBOATS IN A BLAZE i The steamer Chicora is getting up steam to go out into the lake The steamer Ontario began to tow out the steamer Mazeppa but a schooner blocked the way and they could not get out The Mazzepa5 has caught fire and all three will have to succumb to the flames Unless the wind changes the whole south side of the esplanade esplan-ade an far as Union Station will undoubtedly undoubt-edly perish Showers of sparks are being cared to the opposite side of the street and if the buildings there catch fire there is no saying what immense damage will be done The lire brigade is absolutely powerless power-less I is feared that Watchman Worth of the sugar refinery factory has lost his life as he has not been seen since the fire started Wm McCallum sailor of the schooner Annie Mulvey is dangerously burned about the head Several elevators coal yard schooners ferry boats warehouses and many boathouses boat-houses are among the property destroyed I THE LOSS IS NOW OVER A MILLION DOLLARS 5 a mSo far the fire has been unable to cross the gap between Scott and Yonge Street wharves but it is completing the destruction de-struction on the path it has traveled A hurricane has just sprung up from the northeast north-east which threatens to drive the fire across the street to the man partof the city but the buildings on the north side are burned so nearly the ground that unless the main part of the city catches from sparks it is I thought to be safe 430 I mThe fire is now under control i I i impossible to obtain the losses and I insurance yet The fire last night was the most destructive I destruct-ive that ever occurred in this city An hour after i broke out in the eightstory glucose factory the flames extended for half a mile along the south side of the esplanade Scores of vessels of all kinds were moored along the docks and all were destroyed Henry Wort private watchman is known to have perished in the flames THE MOST EXCITING SCENES Were on the crafts at the docks The crews were cut off by the fire from the docks and as the vessels caught fire they were forced to jump into the water and swim for their lives So rapidly did the fire spread that small boats were consumed before they could be launched and the sailors m the water had to depend upon their own strength until the tugs from outside could pick them up As it was many of fatally them were badly scorched and it is feared No exact loss or insuranc can yet be given but the loss is estimated at over a million dol aIrs The glucose works were valued at 2Or 0 The schooner Annie Milloy valued at 250000 was burned to the waters edge Among other buildings burned were a number num-ber of boat houses and warehouses on the river front and coal docks A fleet of ferry steamers four in number at the foot of Church street was destroyed I |