Yesterday, at 11 a.m., an alarm of fire was raised in Harborough-road, Rushden, the outbreak having occurred in some out-houses at the back of the premises occupied by Mr. Chas. Pettitt.

  It appears, from what we gather, that Mr. Pettitt’s next-door neighbour, Mr. Whitbread, and his family are about to emigrate to Canada.  Mrs. Whitbread had collected a heap of papers and other rubbish at the bottom of the garden, and made a bonfire of them.  She left the fire before it was quite out, and on returning in a minute or two found that their fowl-house was on fire and that the flames had spread to Mr. Pettitt’s out-houses.  She at once gave the alarm, and a number of the neighbours were quickly on the scene, by which time the fire had spread to the adjoining out-houses in the occupation of Mr. Maddock.

  Every effort was made to extinguish the flames by means of water from the pump, and the Fire Brigade were sent for.  Captain Fred Knight, Vice-Captain Ernest Bayes, Engineer Colson, and a number of firemen were quickly on the scene of the fire.  They attached the hose to the hydrant in the street, but the supply of water was utterly inadequate to cope with a conflagration.

  Luckily, however, their services were not required by this time, as the people in the neighbourhood had worked with the utmost energy, pulling down a lot of woodwork and so preventing the flames from spreading to other property.

  Some fowls were kept in Mr. Pettitt’s hen-roost, there was a pony in the stable, and three pigs in the pigstye.  The fowls were quickly rescued, and the pigs were removed.  There was some little difficulty at first in getting to the pony owing to the flames, but fortunately the animal came out of the stable at the call of Mr. Pettitt, and it escaped with a slight singeing.

  The damage done included the destruction of Mr. Whitbread’s hen-roost; the stables, pig-styes, fowl-houses, and corn barn in the occupation of Mr. Pettitt, besides a set of harness, a bicycle, stable utensils, gardening tools, &c.; and two pigstyes and a hen-house in Mr. Maddock’s garden.  Mr. Maddock’s outbuildings had recently been re-roofed with corrugated iron.

  None of the property was insured, and the total loss will be about £50.