Sad swansong for the Garden Palace

This is pretty much all that remains of James Barnet's 1879 Garden Palace, these gates off Macquarie Street. It was burnt to the ground in September 1882. It was constructed of timber, and the fire lasted 6 hours! The image from the Dome - courtesy of the National Library of Australia - was taken by Charles Bayliss, as part of a panorama, in 1880. It affords splendid detail of the buildings along the west side of Macquarie Street. Who would blame a resident for torching such a massive building that eliminated one's spectacular views of the harbour?