SERIOUS FIRE IN RANDOLPH

The east wing of Randolph Hall was partially destroyed by fire early yesterday morning. The exact cause is unknown. The fire was discovered shortly before 4 o'clock in the middle room on the ground floor. The flames spread quickly up the staircase, and by the time the fire apparatus had arrived the entire wing was blazing. The occupants of the rooms made their escape with little difficulty, but with no time to save anything. Within less than two hours the third and fourth floors were entirely gutted. The walls separating the rooms were burned away, and in places the slate roof had fallen in. The rooms on the first and second floors were only slightly injured by the fire, which skipped from the room in which it started to the third floor. The contents of these rooms, however, were almost totally destroyed by water. The firemen were greatly hampered by the cold, which froze the water as it fell, and by a high wind which lent a draft to the flames.

All during the fire it was necessary to spray Apthorp House with the hose apparatus belonging to Randolph, in order to protect it from showers of sparks. Apthorp House is an old wooden building not more than forty feet from the blaze.

As soon as it was possible workmen began clearing out the interior of the burned rooms, preparatory to commencing repairs. The walls are perfectly sound, as are the steel floor beams, and in most cases the floors. The frame-work of the roof is badly charred. The partition walls on the fourth floor must be rebuilt. All other repair work will consist of putting in new windows and doors, and the refinishing of walls and woodwork. It is expected that repairs will be completed in five or six weeks. The damage done is estimated at approximately $25,000.

While these repairs are going on, the occupants of the damaged rooms will be lodged by the agents in other dormitories. Following is the list of men who were burned out: R. T. Alger '12, Y. Arai '12, M. Belmont '14, A. L. Bliss '14, J. A. Bryan '14, T. Buel '13, F. V. Burton, Jr., '14, W. M. Carson, Jr., '14, W. F. Cogswell '13, K. Deane '12, J. C. Devereux '14, E. Dodd '14, W. L. Fox '14, H. B. Gardner '13, L. Godfrey '13, J. L. Handy '14, H. R. Hilliard '14, T. A. Jenckes '13, J. A. Milholland '14, C. E. Miller '13, H. C. Morgan '14, R. T. Pratt '13, R. B. Romaine '13, A. F. Sortwell '14.