OCR Text |
Show hYhbVhbI BURNING OF UNITED STATES ARSENAL I H CAUSES ENORMOUS MONETAR.Y LOSS H Shop A, tho principal lssuo store-houso store-houso nt tho United States arsenal at Rock Island, HI., was destroyed by flro last weok, together with Its contents. con-tents. It wns filled with cavalry and Infantry equipments of ovcry description descrip-tion and a million rounds of Krag-Jor- GENERAL VIEW OF UNITED STATES ARSENAL. i .i I gonson smokeloss ammunition. Tho contonts were valued nt $1,500,000. Tho building was a masslvo structure, threo stories In height, and was erected erect-ed twenty years ago at a cost of $400,000. Tho exploding of tho rlflo ammunition ammuni-tion for two hours maintained a continuous con-tinuous rattlo of musketry resembling a battle. Tho flro was fought hard until tho conditions boenmo dangerous to lifo on account of tho largo amount of ammunition In the burning building. The building then was loft to Its fate, and nil attention wns devoted to saving sav-ing tho rest of tho plant. Tho sight of tho burning building furnished a spectaclo to thousands of people who lined tho bluffs on both sides of tho Mississippi, In tho midst of which the arsenal lies on n beaut!-tul beaut!-tul Island. In tho end nothing was left of tho Immcnso shop and all It hnd contained but n mnss of glowing coals. Tho flro had burned Itself out destroying ono of tho government's finest storehouses nnd a most vnlu-nblo vnlu-nblo collection of equipment. Tho nrscnnl had been busy with largo orders recently, working 1,600 n.on and advertising widely for machinists ma-chinists to work on rush orders ro- MAJOR 3TANM0PE . BLOUNTiUSA cehed from tho war department. Most ot tho factory capacity Is left Intact, hut thero Is an Immcnso gap oponod In tho stores oil hand by tho work ot tho flames. Tho new small arms plant, equipped nt a cost of several millions oi dollars and about ready to turn out tno now model of rlllos, escaped tho flames. MaJ. S. E. Blunt, commandant nt tho arsenal, estimated tho loss resulting from tho flro at $1,7GS,000 and states that equipment sufficient to supply tho army for throe years was dostroyud. Tho origin of tho flro Is a mystery, as there was no fire In tho shop, no forge from which a spark might have fallen, whilo tho electric curront had boen turned off over threo hours be-foro be-foro tho first alarm of fire. In accordance accord-ance with tho usual custom, also, the entire building was gono ovor by the watchman and everything was seen to bo In ordor ' beforo tho doors wore locked for tho day. The building burned was located apart south of tho shop, a throo-story structure, covering about an acre of ground. Reports of casualties when tho walls of tho building fell precipitated n grand rush to tho arsenal from tho three cities and though tho gatos wero closed tho crowd ru'died across tho railroad and street car bridges or scaled tho railroad track from Fort Armstrong avenuo and ran across lots to tho scene of tho flro. Gen. Crozler, chief of ordnanco at Washington, received a telegraphic report re-port from MaJ. S. E. Blunt, ordnanco department, confirming the pross report re-port of tho serious flro at tho Hock Island arsenal Wednesday night and placing tho loss at $1,705,000. Tho report re-port stated that the flro was confined to storehouse A, containing a quantity quan-tity of equipments and small arms ammunition, but no machinery. Gen. Crozler regrots tho disaster, but Is grateful that nono of the machinery ma-chinery of the valuablo manufacturing plant at Rock Island was damaged. Gon. Crozler says tho ammunition destroyed de-stroyed formed a reserve supply nnd can bo readily replaced from tho Frnnkfort arsonnl, As nono ot tho machinery ma-chinery was damaged, tho flro will not Intcrfcro with tho operations at Rock Island In tho manufacture ot cnrrlnges for field and slego guns or othor curront work. |