Phenix Gazette

New-York, Oct. 4.

Destructive Fire and Loss of Lives.—A fire
broke out yesterday morning about half past 8
o'clock, in the bakery of Mr. William B. Humbert,
No. 924 Bowery, between Prince and
Spring streets, and before the flames got under,
destroyed seven houses, most of them two story
brick front dwellings, fronting on the Bowery,
and burnt through the centre of the entire block
to Elizabeth street, including in the ravages two
large brick houses, a slaughter house, and some
small buildings on the east side of the latter street,
with all the buildings in the rear. The further progress
of the flames south was arrested by a solid
brick wall, formed by the end of a three story
brick house fronting on the Bowery, and the end
wall of the Chandlers' Melting Company establishment.
Fortunately there was very little wind
at the time, otherwise, as the neighboring buildings
were very dry, and the difficulty of obtaining
water was very great, the conflagration would
probably have been very extensive.

What renders this occurrence peculiarly disastrous,
is that four of the men employed in Mr.
Humbert's bakery were burnt to death. It is
supposed they were asleep at the time the fire
commenced, and the flames spread with such rapidity,
that they were enveloped in them before
they had time to escape. The names of the deceased
were, Samuel Clark, a native of New York,
aged 18; George Lane and Bernard Jocelyn,
both of Prussia, aged 21, and John Gallagher, a
native of Ireland, aged 22. The remains of
three of the bodies have been found.

We have not been able to ascertain, satisfactorily,
the cause of this sad disaster. Mr. Humbert
was first awakened by the crackling of the flames,
and hastened to remove his family. After telling
his wife to take her child and fly to the street, he
proceeded to the chamber where his men, and
boys slept, and gave the alarm. One of the boys
had previously seen the flames and hurried to the
bed room of Mr. and Mrs. H. This apprentice,
and another, with Mr. and Mrs. Humbert and
their infant, with difficulty escaped down stairs
with their lives; a third apprentice leaped out of
the window. A morning paper says that "two
young ladies, the one sister to Mrs. Humbert, the
other her cousin, perceiving the flames had intercepted
their flight by the stairway, crept out of
the garret window and over the roof of an adjoining
house, into which they got by another window.
and this house was subsequently burned." There
were seven persons in the bed room over the bakery,
three men and four boys.

The want of water was the cause of the destruction
of so much property. At an early period,
one engine which was stationed close to the fire
would have extinguished the flames, had a supply
of water been continued. Every cistern in the
neighborhood, which could be got at was drained.
and the chandlers melting establishment, which
contained 400 barrels of tallow, was saved by
the extraordinary exertions of a small private engine,
called the "Black Joke, Jr." manned by
young men.

Many engines were useless for the want of water.
Had the "Public Reservoir," been in operation,
much property might have been saved.

[Com. Advertiser.