PETERSFIELD
A MALT HOUSE BURNT DOWN.—On Friday morning last, between four and five o’clock, the inhabitants of the town, lying at its southern extremity, alongside the Portsmouth-road, were alarmed by the cry and glare of a large fire, from their sleep, which was discovered to have broken out in the malt house belonging to Mr. Crafts, containing over 200 quarters of prime malt, and eight quarters of barley in the cistern. The whole building was soon enveloped in flames, and in about half an hour after its discovery the roof fell in with the two floors to the ground floor below, and consumed the greatest portion of Its valuable contents, upwards of 100 sacks being only saved, but not without great injury to its value. The cause of the fire is conjectured to have arisen from some old timber in connection with the flue from the furnace, which was backed up at eight o’clock. Every assistance was quickly rendered, not only by Mr. Superintendent Bennett and the police under him, but also by numbers of ready hands and willing hearts, with the parish engines—such as they were—proved by their inefficiency and the requirement of well-trained hands to work them. Luckily the wind from the north blew the flames over some open garden ground on the south, otherwise the buildings and brewery belonging to Messrs. Henty, would probably have been destroyed, the malthouse running parallel to the sheds and stores for about 80 feet, and divided only by a six feet space. We understand that the property was only partially Insured.
AN ENGINE FOR PETERSFIELD.—On Monday, August the I4th, 1865, at five o'clock in the afternoon, a fire broke out on the premises of Mr. James Sturt, wheelwright, &c., in Horn Farm lane. On Tuesday, August the 29th, the following letter appeared in the columns of this paper (and others) relative to the sadly inefficient state we were placed to resist the destructive power of fire, and which we cannot do better than republish, as being so applicable to the present time:—
"TO THE EDITOR.
"Sir,—It remains to be seen, after the late fire, whether we are to continue in our present stste of almost hopeless insecurity, from want of proper and efficient engines and well trained hands, to give full effect to their saving power in the hour of need; for it must not be forgotten that this is the ’second warning’ given within the last twelvemonths, the first being Mr. Harffey's (which appeared in these columns), in October last, when, alas, the keys of the engine house, were ’not found till the day after the fire.’ We may, therefore, ask if we are still to continue on, unprepared against the coming of the fiery demon, whose stealthy approach may next be in the dead hour of the night, when life and property may be subjected to his all consuming advent? and when the knowledge of our perfect inefficiency, with the attendant confusing consequences would flash across our senses, and tend to render our exertions but of little avail against the all-destructive power.
"Is it, there is no one (amongst the many) to stand forward to induce a public meeting to be called, that a sense of the inhabitants may be taken in a matter of such vital interest?
"We have a noble example sat before us by our neighbours of Midhurst, who (being placed exactly in the same position), well backed up the exertions of two or three energetic tradesmen of the place, that originated the safety movement, by whose endeavours £150 has been promised, and which will be more than necessary to purchase the engine, and,Ether already ordered of the Messrs. Mereweather, and called ’the Parton.’ The surplus will go towards a fund for purchasing the uniform of the Volunteer Fire Brigade,’ which has no lack of volunteers, 50 names being down on the list; and when we learn that a committee has been appointed, viz., W. C. Webber, Esq., Messrs. T. Othen, D. Woolferstan, W. N. Packham, J. Simmonds, Wm. Joves, and James Etherington.
We now rest with perfect confidence upon the liberality of the inhabitants of our town and gentry of the neighbourhood to be up and doing, well knowing what they have done in the last 20 years. We also rely with confidence that our young men would advance to the front to wear the honourable uniform of the Volunteer Fire Brigade.