Miscellaneous, Fire at Guilford, Incendiary Blaze, 1893

Fire at Guilford

An Incendiary Blaze - Early Wednesday Morning

Norwich Morning Sun, Sept. 1, 1893

 

About 2 o'clock Wednesday morning some malicious person set fire to the dwelling house occupied by A.R. Brown's family in Guilford.  It is believed that before the match was applied paper saturated with some inflammable material was placed under a pile of kindling wood close to the house and that the clapboards were also pretty thoroughly sprinkled with oil.  Since the failure of A.R.Brown & Co., Mr. Brown has been doing business in Binghamton.  He still retains possession of his Guilford cottage and in it his wife and son reside during his absence, which is never more than a week at a time.

 

Long after midnight, as the rain was spending its force and the wind was shifting to the westward, some cowardly malignant spirit was crouched in a dark corner of the fence or in the brush at the rear of A.R. Brown's house planning to commit the most atrocious crime of which man could be guilty--the burning of a building in which human beings were sound asleep and caring not for the consequences which might involve besides the destruction of the property, the loss of life--the burning to death of a woman and an innocent child--and watching for an opportunity to perpetuate the awful deed.  The opportune moment arrived.  The kerosene was thrown on the side of the house almost beneath the sleeping inmates bed, the match was applied and as the flames blazed forth the would be murderer disappeared in the darkness.  But the smoke entered Mrs. Brown's room on the second floor through an open window and aroused her.  She realized at once that the house was on fire, for the dim light of the lamp which burned on the table was hardly discernible through the cloud of smoke.  She called her son and gave the alarm.  Dr. Grant and several of the neighbors were quickly at hand.  By this time the blaze had lighted up the heavens and reflected  it lurid colors on the adjacent church and the surrounding buildings.  somebody rang the church bells, which had the effect of bringing a crowd of willing hands to the scene of the conflagration.  Some set to work fighting the flames, others saving the furniture.  Finally a hose pipe was brought into requisition and the flames were extinguished. The loss sustained is about $200, fully covered by insurance. 

 

After the fire everybody set to work to discover the cause of the conflagration.  All kinds of theories were advanced.  But there remained not a single point to disprove the theory of incendiarism.  Mr. Brown was telegraphed for and arrived on an early train from Binghamton and found his wife suffering with nervous prostration.

 

Mr. Brown was asked if he had anybody in mind upon whom suspicion might rest and he answered in the negative.  But several persons were heard to say that they knew who did the job but were not at liberty to tell.  This is a clue which, within a few days, may lead to an arrest.