Of course all fires, if neglected, will grow to be conflagrations; but there are occasionally fires where the delay of a very few minutes, or even seconds, results in wide-spread ruin. More than a dozen such fires have occurred during the year, and could be specially enumerated, which were promptly extinguished, most of them, with comparatively small loss, but which had in them, both from the character of the buildings, their contents and surroundings, or the state of the weather, the elements of a disastrous fire; and, but for the extraordinary exertions and devotion of the department, would unquestionably have resulted in a very serious destruction of property. There could be no clearer demonstration of the value and importance, especially for the closely built part of the city, of a permanently organized force, i.e., of men whose whole time is devoted to fireduty, than several of the cases referred to have been.

The following summary of fires, loss, insurance on the property, damages, etc., shows on the whole the good fortune of the city during the year, and gives gratifying evidence of the ability of the department to confine fires within narrow limits.

May, 1873, to 1874, $1,134,835.95 $2,295,546.55 $3,430,382.50 424,979.00 793,524.00 1,228,403.00

(6 1874, to 1875,

May, 1873, to 1874, $1,341,476.45 $2,102,274.32 $3,443,750.77 66 1874, to 1875, 1,758,939.00 1,918,069.00 3,677,008.00

Of the 35 buildings totally destroyed, 26 were wooden, 9 were brick, and 18 of these were barns or stables, and 3 isolated dwelling-houses.

Of the 55 considerably damaged, 32 were wooden, 23 were brick or stone.

Great care has been taken to make the tables of losses accurate, and they are believed to show a close approximation to the actual loss by fire. The records of previous years are judged to be, from various causes, incomplete, and probably understate the real losses. This should be borne in mind in comparing one year with another. Our means of obtaining information through engineers permanently employed induces us to believe that the statement of the present year is more reliable than in former years.

It should also be remembered that the city the past year included Charlestown, West Roxbury and Brighton, which have contributed their share of fires and losses. The loss by the fire on Hittinger's Wharf in Charlestown, was $159,975.00.

EXTENSIVE FIRES.

The fires on the night of the 14th of December last, on Plympton and Wareham streets, and on Hittinger's Wharf, were the most serious of the year, and were both large and destructive. They have been made the subject of a detailed investigation by the Board, in order to ascertain, if possible, not only the causes of the first fires, but how it happened that, in both cases, fires more destructive than the first should have broken out in the immediate vicinity of the first, when the former fires had been entirely subdued, and the greater portion of the force was still upon the ground; and, also, whether any blame attached to any one of the department in consequence.

The first alarm from Box 68, for the fire on Plympton street, was struck at 10.55 P.M., and was followed immediately by a second alarm. In the course of an hour this fire was got under control, although the ruins continued to burn. Five hours later (at 3.47 A.M.) the fire broke out in Wareham street, in the immediate vicinity of the first fire. The alarm from Box 68 was again struck, followed within ten minutes by a second and third, and an hour later by a general alarm. Meanwhile, at 1.20 A.M., the alarm was given in Charlestown District, for a fire in Thomas Cunningham's works, on Water street; ten minutes later the alarm was given from Box 4 to call assistance from the city proper. In the course of two hours this fire was under complete control, but about 4 hours later (at 6 A.M.), a fire broke out in the hay-shed on Hittinger's Wharf, near the former fire, and first and second alarms were given from Box 4, to again call force from the city. The fire at the South end was still raging, and it was thought best to call upon Cambridge, Chelsea, Somerville, and the Navy Yard, for aid, which they promptly furnished. This succession of fires, occurring even under the most favorable circumstances, would have been considered serious, both from the character

and contents of the buildings and their combustible surroundings, but, occurring as it did, on one of the most severe nights of the winter, with the thermometer below zero, and the wind blowing a fierce gale, it taxed to the utmost the energies and capacity of the department.

PLYMPTON AND WAREHAM STREET FIRES.

The following detailed account of the several fires may be of interest. The first fire was discovered a few minutes before eleven, in the third story of Galvin and Currey's building, on Plympton street, occupied by S. Parker & Co. as a furniture manufactory. The fire was then so far under way that a dense smoke was pouring out of a broken pane of glass in the front window. Box 68, corner of Wareham street and Harrison avenue, was promptly pulled, and Hook & Ladder Company No. 3 were warned. They went at once with their hose carriage, attached to a hydrant on Dedham street, and had a stream of water upon the fire before the alarm was struck. At that time the flames were coming out of all the rear windows of that story. In thirty-five minutes the walls fell. The flames and sparks were driven to leeward with such violence by the gale that the lumber-sheds and small buildings on the opposite side of Plympton street caught fire at once and were partly burned. Beyond these this first fire did not extend, although the high buildings on the south side of Wareham street were very much exposed and were at times on fire. By half-past one o'clock, when the alarm was sounded for the Charlestown fire, this fire was under complete control. Engine 4 went to respond to the other alarm, but there remained Engines 3, 7, 12, 13, 14, 15, 22, 23, 25; Hose 2, 5, 7, 9; Ladders 3 and 4.

Streams of water were kept constantly playing upon the ruins and the half-burned timber from Plympton street and from the rear windows of some of the buildings on Wareham street.

At about two o'clock Mr. Zenas E. Smith (Smith and Jacobs) locked up his building and went home, having satisfied himself, by a careful personal examination of it from top to bottom, that there was at that time no fire in it and no danger to it from the ruins behind. His own foreman had previously made a similar examination with the same result. And yet within two hours after Mr. Smith went away satisfied that all was safe, a fire broke out in this very building, and had so spread itself through the building and into the adjacent ones before it was discovered that it was impossible to save it or them. During these two hours the officers and men of the department were on the ground with streams of water constantly playing. The thick smoke from the smouldering ruins was driven against Mr. Smith's building and prevented the men seeing the light of the fire, which was probably burning slowly inside, and it was only from the crackling of the fire which they heard, that they were led to suspect that Mr. Smith's building was on fire. The fire quickly crossed Wareham street, driven violently to leeward as before, and caught in J. J. McNutt's new building, occupied for the manufactory of furniture, which it was not long in destroying.

Sparks in clouds were carried in the direction of Emerson's piano-forte manufactory, and over beyond into the lumber yard and planing mill (wooden buildings), on the water side of Albany street, directly opposite the factory. These lumber yards and buildings were soon a mass of flames.

By six o'clock A.M. all danger of further spread of the fire was really over, but the entire available force was required to extinguish the ruins, which still burned fiercely.

The fact that the area burned over was considerable, and the destruction of property quite large, would excite no surprise in the mind of any one who was present, and could appreciate fully the very unusual combination of the most adverse conditions. The only matter of surprise to the Board is that