Show COURT HOUSE BURNED the inside of the county building gutted supposed to have been started by prisoners loss estimated at to the county court house ia today in ruins the inside of it having been destroyed by fire at about 5 this morning the firemen at the station heard cries ot firel 1 ment WAS soon preparing to make run at an alarm came in from box 12 and out came the department when it reached alio corner of washington avenue and twenty fourth street the men beheld flames bursting forth from the roof and windows of the county court house when the building was reached it was evident that there was a hard fight to make to pet at alie fire tor the inside was like a furnace and the wool from the basement to the tower was of flames two streams were soon pouring on the roof of the burldine buil dine but they did not seem to hae the effect A ladder was stretched to the roof and into the midst of the famce poured steady stream the front door ol 01 the building was opened and another strebra was turned on the walla which were wrapped in flames the firemen below then climbed to the second floor and soon succeeded in quelling somewhat the flames near abe front door it their way into the hall As one stream came aown from the top the other as held on the flame on the second A ESCAPE As the firemen worked their way further into the liall on alie second floor and quelled the flames a cracking and crashing wife heard above A jump was made tor the door and it was not made any too quickly for just as they had left their position in the center of the hall down through the floor a crash came the bell and clock and remained of alio tower after this had ha pend the work of getting at where the fire had the greatest headway became bagier the big from alie top which steadily poured downward began to tell upon alie alamea and soon they were mixed with gullies of smoke A particular effort was made to keep the fire as much as possible from the vaults for superintendent of recorders and surveyors offices were not greatly damaged although he ceilings are pertly destroyed by water the whole roof and tower of the building was burned entirely out at the material tho building was burned RECORDS although the fire burned all around the raulte in which are kept all the county records and important documents it did not damage them in the least and they stand as they did before the fire it is asserted by the county officers and those who oneat to know that the prisoners who were taken out of the batena ent during the fire started it why they would do this ie a for none of them had more than twenty or thirty days longer to serve and in retting the building on fire would bo running of being injured themselves bait an investigation which was made this morning by alie county and officer it is eaid it can be proven that the prisoners started the fin la alio north end of the hall in the jail are two ir shafts about 10 inches square which run up along the wall the upper shaft is burned out in some of the cells there are strong ticks out of which straw lias been taken and thare is missing from the jail several articles which would have been good to start a alre with the prisoners bed access to the hall and tho conclusion is formed eliat they stuffed this straw with paper and other articles up into the ir shaft and set fire to it the leader in this act is supposed to have been egan while the three othere are believed to have taken part in it TUB LOSS the entire loss is estimated at bo and which is fully covered by insurance the companies which hold the insurance areas follows follo wf commercial union liverpool london and globe connecticut 1500 sun 1600 orient 1600 it is lielie ved that the insurance companies will replace hat has been lost and put the building in the condition it was when burned it this is not done and ahe insurance is paid the county cobit will very likely duthe same thing although alie building may be remodeled somewhat in fixing it up therein lay the precious county records which had to bo saved the streams continued to play upon tho places where it fire wee the and gradually it was gotten under control the most of the ore to be in tho north end of alie building it took work to wt at some places and the which would continue to out again finally after soaking the building enfil about the fire wae practically extinguished THE excitement soon alter the fire belle con fenced ringing and the beam blowing people came to the fire irmi ir mi all diorec bione tione men women and children dressed and halt dressed stood in the middle of the gazing upon abe blumes flumes when thu firemen first reached the build tn shrieks of help get ue out of here etc came from the building and at first it could not be imagined who wa in distress suddenly it dawned upon the minds ol 01 the people who surrounded the building that there were in the jail below how could they le gotten out was the next question who had the keys pretta boon here came dan sullivan in afa night chirt with the keys to the jail he succeeded eucce eded in belling down to the door of the jail li eforo the fire had spread in the lower hall and the were taken to the cit jail burt star and G P east in tor belling liquor to eddie agn the man who etole a hone and budgy from grahams livery who wae alo cervine a sentence for a wagon the prisoner were trembling with and fear when they were taken out THE sum everything in the county clerke collector probate judges abd ehe riffe totally rde Stroy fd all the furniture and t in asle nearly all floor the county |