illiland Grand Hotel Fires

aron Von Lodge was the head of a small country known as Lilliland near Switzerland. The time was the early 1900s.

Lilliland was well known throughout the world as a fine place to visit for skiing, sailing, hiking, and sightseeing all year long. The seasonal folk festivals are events that everyone looks forward to with anticipation.

During a weekly meeting with his advisors the Baron asked them to see if the small room fires in the Grand Hotel, the finest in Lilliland, were unusually frequent. The report from the hotel management and the owner indicated that the small room fires numbered about one a month.

Since the Grand Hotel was the largest and oldest hotel in Lilliland any damage to it would greatly affect the country's tourism and vacation business. The Baron was reminded that the hotel was built as a stone and wooden structure that could easily burn to the ground.

The Baron asked his chief advisor Professor Hamblin to register at the hotel as a guest and quietly investigate the matter first hand and report his findings. As the Professor would be fitting right in with the social life of the large hotel he would be able to make some casual observations.

Professor Hamblin reported that he had a marvelous time as a guest at the Lilliland Grand Hotel. Everything was as it should be. There was nothing unusual that he noticed that could cause fires in any of the rooms. The only exception he discovered was that the mattresses were not treated with a fire retardant and once they caught fire, they would burn rapidly. It seemed that the rumor was that most of the fires were caused by people smoking in bed. They would light a cigarette after taking a sleeping pill or having a nightcap and would fall asleep before they put out their cigarette.

The Baron followed the Professor's report and spoke to the fire marshal again to suggest that all mattresses be replaced with mattresses that were treated with fire retardant so they would not burn. The Baron asked the hotel people to designate the lobby sitting area, the scenic porch, and the dining room as smoking areas. In other words, guests could no longer smoke in the rooms.

The following year a report was made and the fires in the hotel were down to just two - a kitchen grease fire and a bedroom candle were the causes. Everyone was able to enjoy their vacations more without worrying about fires.