[Danbury News - Aug 1889]
A THREATENING SITUATION.
There were three fires Saturday night and Sunday morning. In one of them a human being perished. It is extremely natural in the state of things which has prevailed in this city for several weeks that the fires should be attributed to design. There is no doubt whatever that the first and third fires were incendiary. If the second and most serious of the lot has the same cause the incendiary is a murderer also.
The situation has grown to be very queer and our citizens are coming to have a thorough realization of the magnitude of the evil that has come upon us. In the Saturday morning papers appeared the following significant dispatch:
THE DANBURY FIRE BUG.
Danbury, Aug. 9 -- At midnight an unsuccessful attempt was made to burn J.R. Spain & Co.'s hat shop.
At 1 a.m. Marcellus Voorhies barn was burned to the ground.
At 2 a.m. Henry Grayberg's house was partially destroyed.
There is an error in the third statement, but this does not affect the general impression formed outside of the situation in Danbury.
We have a fire bug here. And a very active scoundrel he is. Whether he is sane or insane has got nothing to do with the matter. He is here and he is doing his devlish work, and we are not able to find him or defeat him.
The business interests of Danbury, its living and its growth, must suffer from this. The effect is beginning to be felt already. Insurance companies are frightnened, and some of them -- standard companies -- are drawing off from us. Most of the dwellings in this city are mortgaged. A portion of the security is the insurance. When these policies are withdrawn the result that will follow can be readily estimated.
This incendiary business has got to be stopped.
It is not absolutely necessary that he should be taken alive.
[END ARTICLE]