ONLY ONE RECORDED FIRE IN HOMER, N. Y. IN 1887

The Cortland Democrat, Friday, December 30, 1887.

HERE AND THERE.

   Happy New Year!

   Write it 1888 after to-morrow.

   Everybody seems to be enjoying the splendid sleighing.

   We send the DEMOCRAT and the N. Y. World for only $2.90 for a year.

   Be sure and attend St. Mary's Fair, now being held in Taylor Opera House.

   Gates have been placed at the D. L. & W. crossing on Port Watson street.

   The stone walk in front of the new Wickwire block on Railroad street [Central Avenue] is nearly finished.

   To remove grease from garments, dissolve a tablespoonful of salt in four tablespoonfuls of alcohol, shake well and apply with a sponge.

   Russell Phelps, of Solon, captured a bald eagle recently that measured 7 feet from tip to tip. The bird is now in a museum in New York.

   The Odd Fellows are making preparations for a grand fair to be held in the new Wickwire buildings, February 6th, closing February 11th.

   The editor of the Standard is endeavoring to form a Republican club in this village. Genuine Republicans are fighting shy of our neighbor's efforts.

   The merchants in town were all very busy last week selling Christmas things.

   The excellent sleighing caused people to turn out in large numbers.

   The work of finishing the interior of the new First National Bank building is being pushed as rapidly as possible. It will be a very handsome structure when completed.

   Don't fail to hear the Montague-Turner Opera Company in the Cortland Opera House, this Friday evening. They furnish one of the best entertainments of the season.

   Excelsior Hook & Ladder Company held their annual banquet at the Cortland House, last Tuesday evening. Several invited guests were present, some of whom responded in a happy vein to toasts. The spread was an elegant one, and the occasion was most enjoyable.

   On Monday afternoon last, Mr. Edward Simpson, who was working on the addition of the Cortland Top and Rail Company's building, fell from a staging to the ground, bruising his hip and back badly. He was carried to his home in Homer in an insensible condition. He will recover, but it will be some days before he will be able to be out.

   A level-headed writer has just given to publicity the following: One-third of the fools in this country think they can beat the lawyer in expounding the law; one-half think they can beat the doctors healing the sick; two-thirds of them think they can beat the minister in preaching the gospel; and all of them know they can beat the editor in running a newspaper.

   St. Mary's Fair opened in Taylor Opera House last Monday evening with a large attendance. The hall is beautifully trimmed and decorated. Handsome booths have been erected in different parts of the building, and in the centre of the same is the fancy booth where numerous useful and handsome articles are for sale. On the north side of the hall is the refreshment table, where one can find an excellent meal at any hour when the hall is open to the public. The fair bids fair to be a grand success.

Safe and Sound.

   Last week Wednesday dispatches in the daily papers, dated at Ada, Minn., announced that Sheriff John D. Benton, of Fargo, Dakota Territory, arrived in that place the day before with a requisition for the arrest of one Honlodue for forgery. The account further stated that two local deputy sheriffs went to the man's residence to arrest him when they were set upon by the man and his entire family armed with knives, shot guns, clubs, pitchforks, stones and other implements of warfare, and were badly beaten and left for dead. The account also stated that the men would probably recover. From the reading of some of the dispatches, the many friends of Mr. Benton in this vicinity inferred that he was with the Deputy Sheriffs and must consequently be one of the injured. His father in law, Mr. Chester Babcock, of this village, telegraphed him on Saturday, soon after hearing of the melee, and was gratified to receive an answer stating that Mr. Benton was well and uninjured. This will be good news to Mr. Benton's many friends in this county.

Iron Hall.

   On Monday evening, local branch No. 213, order of Iron Hall, elected the following officers:

   Chief Justice—F. Burghardt.

   Vice Justice— Mr. Edwards.

   Accountant—L. A. Patch

   Cashier—N. Cone.

   Adjuster—F. Bates.

   Prelate-— D. Doubleday.

   Herald — L. Rittenhouse.

   Watchman—S. P. Cleary.

   Vidette — C. H. Nearing.

   Medical Examiner—A. G. Henry

   Trustees-—M. M. Robbins, S. L. Danforth, D. Totman.

Fire in Homer.

   Last Sunday evening at about 8:30 o'clock flames were discovered issuing from the sides of the small one story building just north of Daniel Donohue's restaurant on Main street, in Homer village. The Fire department responded to the alarm and soon had the fire under control, and confined to the building in which it started. The building and contents were burned. It was occupied by Mrs. C. Chatterton as a millinery store and her stock of goods was insured. The building was owned by Mr. Donahue who had an insurance of $250, which is not sufficient to cover the loss. The fire is supposed to have been of incendiary origin as there had been no fire in the building during the day. It is the only fire that has occurred in Homer during 1887.

Fire in Millinery Store.

   At 11:30 last night fire broke out in the millinery store of Miss Jennie McNulty, in the building just north of Chidsey & Walton's bakery on North Main street. The alarm was at once given and the department responded promptly and soon had two streams on the burning building from the hydrant at the corner of the Cortland House. The flames were extinguished but the contents were entirely burned.

   Mr. Martin Brownell who with his family lived over the store, smelled smoke and slipping on his pantaloons went down the front stairs to [see] the lower part of the building in flames. He was unable to save anything from his rooms except a sewing machine and a trunk and he and his family are almost entirely destitute of clothing.

   Geo. Lansing passed the store only a few minutes before the alarm and says he saw no fire, but noticed a kerosene lamp turned down, which stood on the end of the counter. It is supposed that the lamp exploded and set fire to the contents. We have been unable to ascertain Miss McNulty's loss or the amount of insurance on her stock. Brownell had no insurance. The building was insured for $400 which will hardly cover the loss.

Fire Department Elections.

   At the annual meeting of the Cortland Fire Department held last Wednesday evening, the following officers were elected for the ensuing year:

   Chief —C. F. Thompson.

   First Assistant— John Phelps.

   Second Assistant—DePuy Mallery.

   Secretary— Geo. W. Cleveland.

   Treasurer —A. Sager.

Photography no Longer Confined to Daylight.

   "The Sun shall not give them light by day nor the moon by night" but Selover & Schutt make instantaneous photographs just the same. A number of people were at their gallery last Tuesday evening to observe a new and novel method of photography.

   After much time and thought spent in experimenting they have succeeded in making negatives at night, far superior to those made by electric light, (the only other known process by which pictures can be made after dark.)

   This enterprising firm will repeat these experiments until they can produce fine negatives by artificial light, a feat that has not been accomplished outside of New York city.

P. T. Barnum Writes a Story.

   The opening chapters of a splendid story for the young, by the famous showman, P. T. Barnum, appeared last week in the columns of the New York Family Story Paper. The story describes the adventures of an American boy, whom Mr. Barnum calls "My Plucky Boy, Tom," and whom he sent to India in search of wild, fierce and rare animals to replace those destroyed by the disastrous fire at Bridgeport last month. The reader is thrilled by the hair-breadth escapes of this dauntless American boy when capturing the fiercest and wildest animals ever seen in a traveling show. The New York Family Story paper is for sale at all news stands.


Recommended: Annual Report of the Massachusetts Insurance Commissioner, Vol. 33, Part 2: http://books.google.com/books?id=ioA_AQAAMAAJ&pg=PR23&lpg=PR23&dq=Order+of+Iron+Hall+insurance&source=bl&ots=C0yRyCuTfM&sig=7AaO1BfJvREKxxWq3Q5KI3F-41g&hl=en&sa=X&ei=jaYgVJCgBIi6ogSW-ICQDw&ved=0CB4Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Order%20of%20Iron%20Hall%20insurance&f=false