rry
out the scheme the Reid Contract was entered into.

We are now reaching a period when the leading parts are played by
persons still or recently living, and the story must therefore be
continued with the reserve proper to one who is not himself an
inhabitant of Newfoundland. Particularly is this true of the much
discussed Reid Contract, the circumstances of which are reserved, from
their great importance, for a separate chapter.[46]

It is unfortunate that the ensuing stage of this short narrative
should be marred by so much trouble, but, in fact, the last ten years
of the nineteenth century have been among the most disastrous in the
history of the island. In 1892 came the most destructive of all the
fires with which St. John's has been afflicted. The fire broke out in
a stable at five o'clock on the afternoon of Friday, July 8th, and
lasted until nine o'clock on Saturday morning. It came at the end of a
month's draught, was helped by a powerful wind, and found the town
with a depleted water supply. Arising in an eastern suburb, the flames
were carried right into the business centre of the town, and finally
reached the rich warehouses of Water Street. Eye witnesses describe
the heat as so intense that brick and stone offered little more
resistance than wood. A mile of wharfage was destroyed, and Water
Street completely gutted. "Over a vast area," wrote one who noted the
effects, "nothing is now to be seen but tottering walls and chimneys."
It was computed that 10,000 persons were left homeless, and that the
total damage exceeded 20,000,000 dollars, of which less than 5,000,000
dollars were covered by insurance. The Savings Bank, the Hospital, the
Masonic Hall, and the Anglican Cathedral, alike perished. To complete
the misery of the sufferers, it soon became known that the food supply
remaining was only sufficient for ten days. As in 1846, the sympathy
of Canada was promptly and warmly shown. The day after the fire 4,000
dollars' worth of provisions were sent over, and military tents
sufficient to shelter 1,200 people. In England, a Mansion House fund
was immediately opened by the Lord Mayor of London, and its final
amount fell little short of L20,000. Sir Terence O'Brien, the
Governor, and Lady O'Brien, happened to be in England at the time, and
they threw themselves warmly into the cause of the colony.

In 1894, a misfortune of a different kind happened. On Monday,
December 10th, the Commercial Bank, the Union B