One of the most disastrous fires Known for a long. time in Huchow broke out in the very heart of the city at about two o'clock in the morning of November 28. Nearly two blocks of buildings, one on each side of the street, were burned flat Besides a property loss of over '$200,000 two men who had to leap from an upper window to escape the flames were seriously injured, The burned area is in a develop. ment of the old prefectural yamen site, which had been built up. with many modern shops, hotels, tea-shops, ind theatres, and is to Huchow who perhaps the western part of Nanking Road is to Shanghai, While most of the burned. buildings were insured, the money that may" be recovered from the insurance companies wil, itis said, be very" much less than the Joss sustained. For instance, one of the burned shops, only about a year old dealing in' electric Right Axtures of all kinds and in radio sels, was insured for $8,000, but 1s reported to have suffered a loss of over $20,000, Huchow is having a season of bad luck as regards fires, Only last week another fire took place in the same part of the city" destroying fame six or ight shops. his, fre supposed to have originated in. Gefective electric light wire, but the cause of the last fire is as yet Known:
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.