Fl G-reatest and Most Costly Fire in the City's History Burned for Several Hours During Friday Night. LOSS MAY REACH $3,000,000 More Than Two Blocks in the Center of the Town Are Destroyed by the Fierce and Furious Flames. More than $3,000,000 worth of most valuable property went up in smoke Fri day night in the most disastrous confla gration that Sioux City , la. , has ever sustained. One life is known to have J > oen lost. Approximately two-thirds of the losses sire covered by insurance. Th < > devastating blaze originated in rho li.'isemenl of the Massachusetts block at Fourth and Jackson Streets at 8:10 < iYIock. Tin' Pcllelier Dry Goods Company's = -toic was crowded with Christmas shop- JHM-S when suddenly there was heard an xjilosion. A blight flame sprung up and in a fo.w seconds had enveloped the whole front part of the building. The toys and inflammable goods which littered the > lmw windows wore soon a mass of blaze .and before the fire department could ar rive on the scene the whole building was -i terrible holocaust. The strong west wind which was blow- Ing roared through the tall buildiug and the flames soon spanned Jackson Street TO the cast , lapping with greedy tongues tall Toy building. In fifteen minutes r the inception of the fire the Toy Imilding had caught and the firemen were unable * to cope with its terrible fury. Fanned by Uiu strong wintry wind it would not denied. It seized within its liot grasp that magnificent structure and > ooii there was no hope to save it. To the south the devouringilaines made their way from the front of the Massa chusetts block and the apartments oc- -cupied by Brown's Business College was in its terrible thrall. The three upper floors in the rear of the Pclletier build ing were occupied by families. There wore about seventy-five roomers thoro. Tho progress of the flames was so rapid lhat many of these had a hard time in escaping with their lives. A firo escape was the friend in ucod 11 nd down this , down five stories through * smoke and flaiiio , men , women and chil drenwended their way to safetjwith tho brave firemen acting as helpers. It is thought that all of the occupants os- cnpcd. but nothing definite is known at -this time. One man was caught asleep and did not awake until too late. Tho fire escape was cut off by seething flames , lie appeared at a fourth story window. The firemen brought the net and he jumped. He missed the net by six inches. His bones crunched as he hit the bricks below. Xothiug could stay the progress of the flames. They would not be denied their prey. They lapped 'fiercely everything that eamo in sight. They leaped alleys and streets , jumping in devouring glee from one building to another. They burned brick as if it were kindling and > teel was the same as pine knots. The fire swept an area of two blocks on the south side or Fourth Streeet , be tween Jackson Street and Pierce Street , jnid the half block across Jackson Street to the east , upon which stood the mag nificent seven-story Toy building and an nex. The Pelletier store , which , was in the Massachusetts building , owned by the Massachusetts Real Estate Company , of Boston and Sioux City , was completely lestroycd. In the path of the flames stood the Badgerow block , owned by G. R. Badge- row , postmaster of Sioux City ; the Mer- nntile block , owned by T. S. and J. P. Martin ; the Lcrch block , owned by the Val Blatz Brewing Company , of Milwau- Alas ! Alack ! The fool-killer sat in his easy chair moking his pipe of clay , for he hadn't a thing to do on earth but while the tim away. But soon the fool-killer's pipe went out and then he burst into tears ; it was only a dream his regular work was behind full a dozen years. Lovesick , Perhaps. Smithinslci I notice Dr. Singleton has been calling at the home of that young widow almost every day for a week. .She mart be pretty sick. Irownovicli Not sick ; only pretty. kee ; the Bolton block , owned by J. II. Bolton ; the Commercial block , owned by Jonathan W. Brown : the Brown block , owned byV. . P. Manley and as sociates ; the Peavey & Nash and Dow stores , owned by D. T. Oilman ; the dou ble Schulein building and double Purslow building , the former the property of the Schulein estate and the latter the proper ty of the Purslow estate. On the side streets were the buildings of T. S. & . J. P. Martin occupied by J. K. Prugh and the Iligniau & Skinner Com pany ; the Higmaii building , occupied by \Varfield-Pratt-Uowell Company : th * AVost Hotel , owned by R. E. Purslow and leased by Frank J. Donohue ; the Leader Hotel , owned by Paul Leader ; the Selzer wholesale liquor house and .sa loon , owned by Charles Selzer. East from the Pelletier buildiug was thu stately Toy building , the home of the First National Bank and the Farmers' Loan and Trust Company. This build iug. which was owned by the State Bank Building Company , was seven stories in height and every floor was crowded , the tenants being mostly doctors and law yers. On the ground floor were the Can on drug store , the Toy block barber shop , the saloon of J. W. Kennedy and the jewelry store of Brodkey S : Good- site. site.All All the stores across the street woic damaged , the heaviest loser being Fag- ley fc Co. . Clothiers , in the Metropolitan block , across Fourth Street , north from the Toy building The Metropolitan block is owned by AA' . P. Mauley and as sociates. In the burned district were some of the finest stores of the city. In addition to the Pelletier store there were the stores of the Gillette Hardware Company. Johnson & Aronsou , clothiers ; Orkiu Bros. , cloaks ; George M. Conway , whole sale and retail tobaccos ; the Peavey it Nash Furniture Company , Dow Clothiup Company , Harstad & Halseth Shoo Company : Weld Hardware Company ; J T. Becker , haberdasher. The AArest Hotel was a complete loss and the guests sought quarters at oth n houses' . The Ideal saloon and gambling house , owned by Magner Bros. , and Carey S : AValsh , were burned with a valuable stock of 'liquors. The gambling para phernalia was removed before the flames crossed Nebraska Street. The stores in the district which was burned have brought the highest rentals in Sioux City and it was a question Fri day night in the minds of large property holders what the effect of the fire would be. be.A A miniature engine in ' 'Santa Clans' cave" in the basement of the Pelletier Dry Goods Company was the indirect cause of the most disastrous fire in the history of Sioux City. In the cave was a man made uj > to rep resent St. Nick , lie was entertaining n crowd of children by going through : i pantomime demonstrating the action of mechanical toys. He pointed to the lit tle engine which was to furnish the pow er for a toy saw mill and a grind stone. The engine was propelled by hot air. which was furnished by a city gas jet. A check boy struck < a match and touched the fire to the jet. It is said iie threw the match into a corner. It struck in a pile of flimsy material and in an instant the cave was on fire. "Santa Clans" quickly tore the beard ed mask from his face and led the way to the door. By this act the crowd in the basement got out before many on the ground floor knew there was a fire. Many families were left destitute by the fire , but only two or three persons applied to the police department for shel ter during the night. In the Pelletier building alone there were forty-six fam ilies and a total of about 200 people. There were also a large number of fami lies in the other buildings , which were destroyed by the fire , besides some living in cottages on Third Street , who were forced to leave their homes and seek shelter from the flames. It is believed that many of these peo ple found places for the night , at least , with friends. Many of them were too distracted to look for shelter and stood watching the terrible progress of the fire find. Forgot His Namo. Magistrate Why didn't you answer to rour name ? A7agrant Beg parding. jedge , but I forgot wot name I gave las' ni7ht. Fogistrate Didn't you give your own n me ? Vagrant No , jedge , I'm trarelin * incog. Audacious Tom. Ethel Did you give Tom permission to kiss you ? Clara Of course not. He didn't ask it. Ptanorn * * Weekly. * V * * * * h H - H M 4 - : KMWi January. 2 All Chlenpo theaters closed. In conse quence of Iroquols Theater holocaust of Dec. 20 Death of Gen. Jumcs Long- street. 4 Congress reassembles and hears spe cial message from President on Panama question Fire destroys north whig of Iowa State capitol. 6 Thirty killed in Rod ; Island wreck near Topeka. Kans Boiler explosion on British cruiser Wallaroo killsU5 persons. 9 Death of Cm. John 15. Gordon Steamer Clallam sinks in Straits of Juan de Fuca ; 32 lives lost Chinese Emperor ratifies treaty making Mukden and Antnng open ports Death of Hon. Chas. Foster of Ohio. 13 Death of Col. Chas. Denby of Indi ana. 14 Death of ex-Governor Asa S. Buslinell of Ohio. 15 New government takes hold in Pan ama. IS Death of Goorpe Francis Train. 22 Tornado in Jtfoundvllle. Ala. , kills 37 persons and Injures over 1 < > 0 Floods along Indiana and Ohio rivers. 23 Anlesunrl , Norway , destroyed by firo. 25 One hundred and ninety miners en tombed In mine near Pittsburg Ver dict In Iroquols Theater fire case returned in Chicago Mrs. Florence Maybrick re leased from English prison. 2G Fifteen lives lost in mine accident in Victor. Colo Conviction and suicide of AVhltaker Wright , English promoter. li'clirnary. 2 Death of ex-Secretary of Navy William C. Whitney. G Russia and Japan break diplomatic re lations. 7 Great conflagration in Baltimore. 8 Japan lands troops in Korea. 9 Japan wins naval victor } ' over Russia at Port Arthur. 10 Japanese destroy two Russian ships at Chemulpo , and capture 2,000 Russian troops near that city Russia and Japan de clare war. 15 Six hundred Russian soldiers frozen to death on Lake Baikal Death of Senator M. A. Hanna. 22 Japanese take four Russian torpedo boats off Port Arthur. 23 Panama Canal treaty ratified by U. S. Senate. 2f Great fire in Rochester. N. Y. 27 Burning of Wisconsin Statehouse la Madison. March. 2 Collapse of steel frame for 11-story hotel In New York ; 14 people killed. (5 ( Japs bombard Port Arthur. 11 New York and Hudson River Tunnel Co.'s tunnel under North River completed. Five-hour naval battle off Port Arthur ; Russians abandon the town. 14 United States Supreme Court hands flown decision adverse to great Northern Securities Company merger. 16 Russian torpedo boat destroyer blown up In Port Arthur harbor. 18 Daniel J. Scully , cotton king , sus pends payment ; panic on New York Cotton Exchange Leonard Wood confirmed as Major-General by Senate. 21 Earthquake shocks felt In New Eng land States Tornado damages Iligglns- vllle. Mo. 23-30 Destructive flooods in States of Middle West. 24-Death of Sir Edwin Arnold Five nesroes lynched by mob at St. Charles , Ark. 20 Two more negroes lynched at St. Charles , Ark. , making 13 lynched In one week Tornado kills six persons near Caruthersville , Mo. 31 Big strike of Iowa miners begins. April. 4 Russians driven from Korea by Japa nese advance. C President of Mormon Church Issues or der prohibiting polygamy. 12 Russian battleship Petropavlovsk sunk off Port Arthur ; Admiral Makaroff and 700 others killed , famous painter , Verestchagin , among them. 13 Explosion on battleship Missouri kills 29 men. 19 Great fire In wholesale district of To ronto. Canada ; loss , $10,000.000 House passes Oklahoma and Arizona Statehood bill. 20 Death of Grace Greenwood , once pop ular writer. 22 Cam-barn bandits , Neidermeyer , Marx and Van Dine , executed In Chicago. 23 Japanese routed nt mouth of Yalu River. 27 Ownership of Panama canal property transferred to United States. 30 Opening of Louisiana Purchase Expo sition In St. Louis. May. 1 Japanese rout Russians at end of five- days' fight on the Yalu Death of An- toiiiu Dvorak , Bohemian musician 100 lives lost by hurricane in Cochin , China. 2 Death of Edgar Fawcett Japa nese capture Newchwang. 5 Death of Marcus Jokai , Hungarian pa triot and novelist Death of Franz van Lenbach , Bavarian artist. 6 Japanese capture Dalny. 7 Death of Andrew McNally , Chicago publisher. 10 Death of Henry M. Stanley , African explorer. 12 Illinois Republican convention meets and deadlock developes. ir Japanese battleship Ilatsuse strikes Russian mine off Port Arthur and sinks with 441 men ; cruiser Yoshluo rammed by Knsaga and 210 of crew lost. IS Japanese army driven back to Feng- waupclieng with heavy loss. 20 Illinois Republican convention ad journs until May 31 with deadlock uu broken. 122 Explosion of fireworks factory In Find- lay , O. , kills several employes Japa nese lose 15,000 men in land attack on Port Arthur ; Russian loss 3,000. 25 Ten miners suffocated In tunnel at Williamstowu. Pa. , in coal mine Yazoo City , Mies. , destroyed by fire with $2,000,000 loss. 20 Boilers of towboat Fred Wilson blow up near Louisville , Ky. . killing 13 persons. Russians defeated by Japanese in Ta- tung pass Japanese capture Kinchou and drive Russians from Nansuan Hill ; heavy loss of life on both sides Rus sians burn , loot and abandon Port Dalny. 28 Death of Senator M. S. Quay of Penn sylvania. 29 ? 5,000,000 fire in piers and shipping In Jersey City , N. J. June. 3 Illinois Republican convention adjourns after ll-day session. 4 Fire In Corning distillery In Peoria , 111. , destroys 14 lives and $1.000,000 worth of property. 3 Mob wrecks amphitheater In St. Louis , when bullfight is stopped. 6 Fifteen non-union miners killed by dy namite explosion at Independence , Col. 9Deatu of L. Z. Leiter , Chicago multi millionaire. 10 Death of Laurence Hutton , lltreray man. EJhort News Notes * Fire destroyed the Children's Home of the Sisters of Mercy in Loretto , Pa. Sixty orphans in the building escaped unhurt. The steamer Henry D. James of the Rutland Transit Company , plying be tween Ogdensburg , N. Y. , and Chicago , burned at the former place. Loss $90- 000. 000.John John Allen , who in July. 1903 , shot and killed his wife near Luther , Ok. , was fouud guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment. Mrs. Katherine Clemmons Gould and her husband , Howard Gould , are defend ants in a suit in the Supreme Court of New York brought by two dressmakers for $5,760 for gowns for Mrs. Gould. Fire at Columbia , Tenn. , destroyed the feed mill and elevator of the City Grain I and Feed Company , with thirty care of J ear corn and about 50,000 bushels of ' shelled corn. Loss , $72,000 , insurance i 142,000. 14 End of r.trlko of lake captains. 15 Burning of steamer General Slocum in East River. New York ; 1,000 persons per ish Vladivostok squadron sinks two Japanese transports , destroying 1.000 Jives. 18 American Derby In Chicago won by Highball. " 0 Five thousand Russians killed and wounded at Halchenjj. 21 Republican national convention opens In Chicago. 23 Roosevelt and Fairbanks nominated In Chicago. 2G-27 Japanese defeat Russians In two- days' fight at Dallu Hill. 28 Death of "Dan" Emett , composer of "Dixie. " Nine million acres of land thrown open to settlement In Nebraska. 29 Steamer Norg lost in North Atlantic Ocean ; over 700 persons perish. July. 3 Twenty persons killed In Wabash wreck at Lltchlleld. III. T People's party national convention nominate ? "U'atson and Tibbies. 6 Democratic national convention meets in St. Louis Heavy rains cause great Howls In Kansas. J ) Democratic convention nominates Al ton B. I'arker for President. 10 Henry ( ; . Davis named for Vice Pres ident by Democratic convention Mar- blehead , Ohio , wrecked by explosion 17 killed and fK ) injured In train wreck at Mid- vale , N. , T. 11 Thirty thousand Japanese killed or wounded In attack on Port Arthur. 12 Strike of 50,000 packing house em ployes begins in Western cities Death of Mayor S. M. ( Golden Rule ) Jones In To ledo. 0 2 < K ) lives lost in cloudburst and flood near Manila. 13 C. & E. l. excursion train wrecked at Glenwood , 111. ; 1M killed and 72 Injured. 14 Death of Paul Kruger. 22-24 Ritous times at Bouesteel. S. D. 24 Russians evacuate Newchwang after two-days' battle Russians sink British steamship Knight Commander off Izu. 27 England protests to Russia regarding sinking of steamship Knight Commander. 28 Drawing for Rosebud reservation land begun In Chamberlain , S. D. Anjjuat. 1 Death of ex-Governor Robt. E. Pattl- son of Pennsylvania. 2 Illinois Central train robbed near Har vey , 111 Death of Mrs. Nelson A. Miles. 3 British expedition enters Lhassa , the "forbidden city. " 4-S Japanese attack Port Arthur. 7 Wreck on Rio Grande railway near Pinon , Col. , causes 100 deaths. 0 Death of ex-Senator Geo. G. Vest of Missouri. 10 Former Premier Waldeck-Rousseau of France dies Naval battle off Port Ar thur. 13 Turkey yields to demands of United States In regard to American schools. 14 Russian Vladivostok squadron defeat ed by Japanese in Straits of Corea. 10 Mob burns two negroes at stake in Statesboro , Ga Death of Hon. Perry Hannah at Traverse City. Mich. 19 Tornado in North St. Louis Gen eral attack on Port Arthur. 20 Tornado In St. Paul , Minneapolis and vicinity kills 1C persons and causes $3,000- 000 loss. 21 Russian cruiser Novlk beached after two days' fight Russians win battle at Port Arthur. 28 Cable line to Alaska Is completed. September. 1 Japanese take Lalo-Yang. 3 Big fire In Memphis , Tenn. 4 Tenement house fire in New York ends 14 lives. I 8 Stockyards strike in Chicago Is ended. Death of Rev. Geo. C. Larimer. 11 Russian cruiser Lena arrives in port at San Francisco. IS Death of Prince Herbert Bismarck. 19 Two million dollar wharf fire In Hal ifax , N. S. 21 Peter Karageorgevltch crowned King of Servla. 24 Sixty-two persons killed in train wreck near Knoxville , Tenn Mt. Vesu vius in eruption. , 2G Death of Lafcadlo Ilearn , author. 28 Japanese capture Ta Pass. 30 Death of Senator George Frisble Hoar of Massachusetts. October. 1 Death of Sir William Vernon Har- court. 4 Death of Frederic A. Bartholdl , fa mous French sculptor Postmaster-Gen eral Henry C. Payne dies. I 10 Robert J. Wynne appointed Postmas- ' ter General Missouri Pacific wreck near Warrensburg , Mo. , kills 29 people. 11 Steamer Call sinks off Priuce Ed ward's Island ; 19 lives lost. j 14 King George of Saxony dies I Famine in Swedish province of Goteburgj j "onus Russians lose great battle near j Yental. 13-17 Great battle south of Mukden. ' 22 Russian Baltic fleet fires upon English fishing boats and sinks two of them. 24 England dema-uls reparation for sink ing of fishing boats by Russl in fleet. 26 Russia sends note of apology to Eng land. 27 Mrs. Rae Krauss confesses murder of stepdaughter In Hartford City. Ind. 28 Ex-Governor Geo. K. Nash of Ohio drops dead England and Russia agree to refer North Sea affair to arbitration court Twenty-one miners killed by mine explosion in Teroio. Col. Novemb-r. | 3 French steamer Glronde sunk in col lision off llerblllon , Algiers , and 100 lives lost. 8 Roosevelt and Fairbanks elected by unprecedented majorities. 13 Gale sweeps Atlantic Coast States. 10 Russian torpedo boat destroyer Ras- toropny blown up in harbor of Che-Foo. 18 Explosion in mine at Morrissey. Man. , kills 14 miners Gas explosion in Chi cago kills four men. 19 Burning of Missouri building at the World's Fair ; one fireman killed W. C. P. Breckinridge ( lies. 20 Twelve persons lose lives in burning of Brooklyn , N. Y. , tenements $700,000 fire in business section of Cincinnati. 23 Steamer Elpis lost In Black Sea , with 77 persons aboard. 29 Death of Madame Janauschek , famous actress. December. 1 Louisiana Purchase Exposition In St. Louis closes Seventh Inauguration of President Diaz of Mexico Haley GIpe found guilty of manslaughter at Newcastle , Ind Peter NIssen. inventor of c roller boat , dies In contrivance on Lake Michigan. 2 Death of Mis. G. H. Gilbert , veteran iff ross 5 Death of ex-Postmaster General James N. Tyner. . . . . Opening of last session of 58th Congress. 8 Japanese wipe out Russian fleet at Port Arthur. 13 Big fire In Minneapolis. 21 Death of ex-Senator George L. Shoup of Idaho Cougrefas adjourns for holiday recess. Frank L. Gibbs shot and fatally wounded his wife in Barnsville , Minn. , and then killed himself. The couple , it is said , had been quarreling. The naval colliers Ajax and Brutus , now on the Asiatic station , have been ordered to the United States by way of the Mediterranean for the purpose of obtaining a fresh supply of coal for the vessels of the Asiatic fleet. Superintendent Frank Leach of the San Francisco mint made good the de falcation of former Cashier Walter M. Dimmick by turning over his Oakland home to the surety company which was on Dimmick's bond for $25,000. The New York State railroad commis sion denied the application of the New York Canadian Pacific Railroad Com pany for permission to issue a first mort gage of § 25,000.000 for the purpose of utilizing an old franchise to build anoth er steam railroad from New York to Al bany and trest and north to thr ffcna- Hat , f S WAE IN THE OHLEiNT. COLD WEATHER PREVENTS ACTIVE OPERATIONS. Both Armies Occupy Substantially the Positions They Have Jleld for AVecka I' osrrcss of the Baltic Fleet Next Battle May Be oil the Sea. A Mukden dispatch says that "the extreme cold keeps things quiet along the front. " When the thermoineter is bplov zero one cannot look for active and continued military operations. There are reports of movements of Russian and Japanese Hying columns , particularly on General Kuropatkiu'a left flank , but both sides occupy sub stantially the positions they have held for weeks. If it be the intention of the Japanese to take their time henceforth about the reduction of Port Arthur it will be in their power to send Marquis Oya- rna a strong re-enforcement The low est estimate of General Stoessel's force is 4,000 men. That probably is too low , but if he should have three times as many the Japanese can safely send away a considerable portion of their Port Arthur army. In the opinion of the Chicago Trib une , if Marquis Oyama , after having been re-enforced from that quarter , does not take the offensive speedily he probably never will. Ilis army will have reached the highest point of efli- ciency after the arrival of the trained soldiers who have been lighting under General Nogi. The men whom he may receive from Japan will not be of so good quality. On the other hand , the troops now reaching General Kuropat- kin are drawn from the garrisons on the western frontier of the empire and are superior to many of those previ ously sent to him. .before long Gen eral Kuropatkiu should have at his disposal all the troops the carrying ca pacity of the Transsiberiau railroad will permit him to keep supplied with provisions. The road is constantly be ing made more eilicient by the con struction of new sidings and the sub stitution of iron for Avooden bridges. It would not be surprising to hear that the Japanese have given up the plan of assuming the aggressive for a policy less prodigal of the lives of the soldiers. In that event Marquis Oya ma could choose between holding his present position after fortifying it more extensively , or he could fall back upon some point nearer his base and await his enemy there. It is admitted that the Russian ships at Port Arthur are destroyed , or are so badly damaged as to be unserviceable. The Japanese ships which have been blockading Port Arthur have gone home to refit and get ready to meet an advancing Russian fleet , which , though superior on paper , certainly ia inferior in personnel. Naval officers of all nations have turned their eyes to the orient and are waiting eagerly for the result of the impending con test between great fleets of armored vessels. They have a professional in terest in the matter aside from tin general interest felt by all. General Stoessel has given General Nogi a map showing the positions of the hospitals in Port Arthur , so that they may be safe from Japanese fire Progress of the Baltic Fleet , It is almost three months and a half since the Baltic fleet was officially de clared to have sailed from Cronstadt for the far East However , the fleet lingered at Reval and Libau for over a month after that , and the real be ginning of its voyage must be dated from Oct. 1C. It covered the first 2,200 miles of its 17,500-mile journey at the average speed of about four miles an hour. Then , at Tangier , it divided into two squadrons , one of which , under Vice Admiral Rojestvensky , started around the Cape of Good Ilope and the other , under Rear Admiral Voelkersam , went by way of the Suez Canal. Rojestvensky's squadron is now coasting along German Southwest Af rica. In forty days , since leaving Tan gier , it has covered about 5,200 miles , at the average speed of five and a hall miles an hour. Voelkersam's squadron has left Jubutil , in French Somaliland , with a speed record up to date of about three miles an hour. The Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean are generally assumed to be the rendezvous for the fleets. At the pres ent rate of speed Admiral Rojestvens- ky should be there about the 15th ol January , the distance he has to cove * being something less than 4.000 miles. Then , assuming that the second squad ron has arrived and that a third squad ron which left Libau in November hai caught up , he will be ready to take up the serious part of his adventure. It is G.GOO miles from the Chagos Islands to Vladivostok by way of the Tsugaru Straits , or , for a fleet aver aging five and a half miles an hour , about fifty days' steaming. The fleet ought to cover this distance , it is true , in thirty to forty days , but experience up to date is sufficient to show that if it ever approaches Vladivostok at aJi it will not be till the month of Marcfc at the earliest. War News in Brief. The Japanese cruiser Saiyen was sank by a Russian mine in front of Port AT- thur. i Japan is preparing to dispose of Rus- sia's Baltic fleet when it reaches Asiatic waters. The Japanese cruiser Adsama is re ported to haTe been blown up by a Rus sian mine. i i The Japanese blew up Ribling HiD Fort at Port Arthur , killing several hun dred Russiamt and rendering twenty got * UM'tSS. i IS ! 1 S ? as > Wl In the Senate Thursday n resolution providing for "proper action" on tho charges against Judge Swnyne when ar ticles of impeachment are presented by the House , but fixing no date for the be ginning of the proceed ings , was adopted. The urgency deficiency appropriation bill was passed without debate. The Philip pine administration bill was taken up and amendments were offered by Mr. McCuniber striking out the provision for the guaranteeing of interest on railroad . bonds to 2 2 P < ? r cent providing that they be guaranteed by the government of the United States , and prescribing method for taxation of railroad receipts in the Islands : by McGomas empowering the Philippine commission to amend the tariff laws of the islands. by Mr. C'ulber- son granting 20,000 acres of Philippine public lands for every mile of railroad constructed , by Mr. Bailey giving : the Philippine government authority to reg ulate the charges of the aided ronds and by Mr. Spooner restricting the authoriza tion of municipalities to contract indebt edness to promote local improvements. By agreement the bill and the amend ments wi'l ' he voted on Friday. Mr. Per kins introduced u bill appropriating $1- 100,000 for n federal building ; at Hono lulu. Mr. Berry presented n memorial from the Cherokee Nation , asking that Indian Territory be allowed n delegate in Congress. In executive , session extra dition treaties with Hayti and Cuba the latter amendatory were ratified and ordered made public. In the House a resolution discharging elections committee No. 2 from further consideration of the Reynolds-Butler contest from the twelfth Missouri district because the contestant had not com plied with the law in regard to time in which testimony should be taken was adopted. The day in the Senate was principally- devoted to debate on the Philippine civil government bill , which finally was passed by a vote of 44 to 23. Mr. Beveridge , from the Committee on Territories , re ported the statehood bill and announced he will make a motion on the first day that the Senate convenes in January that the consideration of the bill shall be entered upon at once. Representing the minority of the committee Mr. Bate noti fied the Senate that he would enter a mo tion to recommit the bill for the purpose of taking further testimony. Mr. Bard pave notice of an amendment confining ; the provisions of the bill to the State to be formed by the union of Oklahoma ami Indian Territory and eliminating all ref erence to Arizona and New Mexico. Mr. Hepburn and Mr. McCuuiber sought to get up the pure food bill , but Mr. Lodge moved an executive session and his mo tion prevailed. The session of the Honsa was given over almost exclusively to con sideration of bills on the private calen dar , a dozen or more being passed. The Senate amendments to the urgent defi ciency bill were agree'.T"t j * * - - The Sennte held a session of three min utes Monday and adjtmrned until Wed nesday. Mr. Perkins ( Cnl. ) had beea designated to preside by President Tern Frye. There was a short prayer Chaplain Hale , a message from the Pres ident , a message from the House , and adjournment was taken. The House dis approved the proposition to hold the in augural ball in the capit l building. .The committee having the matter in charge had substituted for the pension building , as provided in the Senate resolution , the congressional library , but Mr. Marreil of Pennsylvania , who called the matter np. announced that the opposition t the lat ter building was so great the committee had concluded to substitute the capitol building. A storm of protests came from both sides of the chamber. The resolu tion offered by Mr. Mvrrcil was Toted down , the result being te delay action un til the next District ef Columbia day in January. The House also voted down a resolution making a special order on Jan. \ of the bill to restore to the naval acad emy three naval cadetswho were dis missed for hazing. * _ * As soon as the House met Wednesday Mr. Morrell ( Pa. ) called np the Senate resolution granting the inaugural com mittee permission to use certuiii public buildings and reservations , including. the use of the pension building for the in augural ball. Mr. Morrell explained that , the resolution was exactly as it from that body and said that after con sultation with the members f the trict of Columbia committee and in viej of the very evident desire f the that the inaugural ball shall be the pension building , it hud be < m to accept the Senate resolution entirety. The House adjonrncd to „ . , 4 after a brief session. After n session of four minutes' duration the Sennte ad journed at 12:04 p. m. nirtil Jan. 4 next. The proceedings consistad of a prayer bjChaplain Hale , the reading of the journal of Monday's brief session and the receipt of a number f aoauoations from the President. Notes of the National Capital. The Congressmen wh risked Panama favor a sea-level canaL President Roosevelt has ntviinated George Horton of Chicago for United States consul at Athens , Greece. Robert J. Thompson f Chicago is an applicant for the position f c nsul gen eral in Paris , to succeed John K. Go-wdy. Speaker Cannon declares appropria tion bills and Philippine Bieusures will consume most of the time f the short session of Congress. Postmaster General Wynne has de cided to take no action in the case of Assistant Postmaster Riley Kansas City , Mo. , recommended for remeval. Secretary Shaw transmitted to the House an estimate of $9.2:55.015 as the cost of collecting internal rerenae for lha year ending June 30 , ItXX * . Secretary Hay issued a circular note to be presented to the powers aigimtory to The Hague convention , giving the replies t * his invitation to a second wnference. The feeling in Congress is bitter be cause of revelations made in the Mormon inquiry , and matters are believed to be rapidly approaching a crisis. Senator Dnbois and other members ef ffce Smoot investigation board belirre all ( fa tkarge * teen 3tablk > h > d.