GRANT COUNTY HERALD—Extra.
The Destruction
of Chicago.
Complete Narrative
of the Great Con
flagration.
Scenes and Incidents
During the Fire.
The Ruin of the City
Nearly Complete.
Fearful Loss of Life.
150,000 Persons Ren
dered Homeless.
Partial Lisi of the Lo-sts
ami Insurance.
t HH Vt.rt l\ KI INS.
A G«ueri«l Ifexunie of I tic Work ol
Itesitrnet ion.
I he city of Chicago, the great commercial
ineiropolu of the N rthwe-t, is in rums. The
tire fiend has done its w< rk fearfully and tlmr
aigh'y- ’’ar heart be* with sympathy tor
thi. sufferer.* as we I vgm the recital ot the great
calamity tbe gre.iti t that li.t- ever befallen
..ny city in thu hi.-tory of mir globe.
The entire ab.vuce ot run tor several week*
pn.-t rendered everything mil num able in aud
ebuut the city, and prepared it fi>r the trerneu
dou* e i.il.igriiliuns that ensile i. On Saturday
•lie Until uit.,a bunded Warehouse and other
pni, ert.y, value I at $.*00,000, was destroyed.
Ocher smaller fires occurred during the Week,
and <m .-I'iturdiy, evening oct. 7th, another
great tue touk place, eoinineneing with Lull Ot
Holmes’ planing mill, on Jacksou street. Other
property on t lintoii, CaiiiG, \un Buren aud
Adutu* strei ts was included in this great ruin,
it.a total area burned over covering about
twenty seres, which wa* by fur thu m<>«t exten
sive tire which, up to that tune, had ever visited
tbe city, the losses of which amounted to over
une million of dollar*.
But the gre ite. t calamity the n o t destruc
live that hi- ever deva-talei any city, coin
menced on Sunday uight, and pitilessly burned
and destroyed whale* r eaiue within its onward
march throughout the Monday following, and,
for aught we know, is -tiil g ang un in its mad
drier, uuehcvked and almost uu<q posed, at the
hour at ahicli we write.
This last and greats*', conflagration com
menced on the corner nf I'wolftb and De Koven
streets, at 9 I 2 u’ubck, occasioned, it is said,
by ae >w kicking over a lump. The wind was
blowing a hurricane fr.an the .South at the tune.
The fire spread rapidly in an easterly and
l. rtheastcrly direction to Jefferson street and
t'lintun, and from Clinton to Canal. Onward it
swept ero-sii.g Canal street to the river, every
thing going duwn in its terrible p ith, until it
reached iu Buren street, where it ceased be
tween those streets, and burned to the rivrr.
Everything on the river front from Taylor
sireet to Van Buren street was burned. At
three o'clock the great National Elevatoi caught
tire and was consumed, throwing n lurid sheet of
fire high into the heaven*. 1 lie raging ele-
ment crossed the river about twelve o'clock into
tlie- .South division, near i'nylor s reet, and
with it- fiery tongue licked up its il it w re u
lea t, as it iidvanctd. whatever came within it.-
reach. Still onward it marched, right through
this portion of the doomed city, northward and
eastward to Harrison street, thence north to the
river and lake, consuming all the principal
t usineas portion us the city upon Van Buren,
J ick-oii, Adams, Monroe. Madison, Washing
ton, Randolph, Lake and South Water streets,
aud upon .Market, 1 rauklin, Well.*, LaSalle,
Clark, Dearborn, Suite, Wabash and Michigan
avenue*.
All this portion of tbe city, wherein wa* its
vast wealth and most beautiful ai.d costly struc
tures, lull of merchandize and valuable prop
erty of every de.-crq tii n. w hich made it the
pride of our we-tern world, went down in the
general havoc ai d ruin.
Crossing 111 W Ils ,-trcet bridge, the fire fiend
sped onward, taking a north ea-teriy direction
t<. Lincoln i'aik, lull two and a hall miles from
this last point, it Volling all that portion of the
city east tv the lake in total destruction. And
our latest dispatches lott the consuming
•eourge creeping westerly towards tbe North
Branch, u)vn which are large rolling mills, tur
nne.* tanneries, distilleries, lumber and coal
yards.
1 lie hole of thi* great c .iifi igration covers
over two thousand acres of ground us the uio.-t
vuiuoble portion ot Chicago and involves a loss
ot at lea-t t u otii'.oiai, and many persons esti
mate still higher'
Hie loss ot lite must have been considerable,
and among th* number it is feared that David
A “age. l -q-, I the .-hernnm House, was one
of the vivtiuia, lusii g hi* lite, a* is supposed, in
hi* heroic eflorts to save the gue.-tsof his house.
Diose grand an.i magniticei t structures—the
Court Hou.-e. with all invaluable records,
tbe Custom House ami I'. dice, Chamber ot
l\ mrneree, M.erm-m I■ u.-e. u ,r.i H use.Pa
c.fie IL tel. Pa mer liu.-e, field, Leiter 41 Co.,
tribune building at. w.rk-, six large ele
valor*, with many uiijlivt« f grain in them
with numerous other magnificent structure.-
•11 gone'
lhi» great and ..virp wering calamity ex>*e<4*
any de.cripioii that wur 1. can eouvev an.l we
Iraven to the imagination, uh eh only m n-
Wildest hghts can fully realize.
I'riiiiiliient lluiliiiiigM IturneiL
U.e ui.ik uucements thus tar furnished hid
prepared our j .q., v tor anything which might
.line, but when it was knuwu that Field. Leiter
A Co. dry gvod* I. u-e, the Turnout the
Irilm.e bmtdiig, tbe Pust-.ffice and others
were g tie tie sensation was not great,
ihe water works, t,... were swep away, and
tl.e city had to depend elitin v upon the lake
and the river. Il.c wh. )e central, eastern and
north side lusii ess portion- of (he citv were
eviisun ed, and the fire w.i, still under headway;
si.d b>L re ekveti o’»■!. k tbe Hock owned by
.Nelsot Munger, Armour ami 11. H heeler and
ti e Gulrna elevator were completely destroyed.
At this time the tire reached 1 rum Fourteenth
street, un th* Suatb Side, toCbicigo avenue on
th* North Side.
THE NIGHT OF FIKE.
Siaieiueiit of an Eye-wHuiM.
The story of the great fire nt Chicago will
never he told. Language is impotent to p« r
tr.iy the horror* of that one night of Harne that,
in the rhort space of twenty hours, reduced
one of the wealthiest and proudest cities on the
We-tern continent to one bleak, black mass of
ruins, and her most affluent citizens and mer
chant princes to a condition of beggary. But
one week ago it would have been regarded
as the dream of a lunatic, had any one predicted
the fearful devastation that has been wrought
by the fire-dem»n in the great Western metrop
olis. Devastation »o terrible, ruin so complete,
never ha* been seen since the palaces and the
mosque/ of Constantinople were swept from the
face of the earth by the terrible scourge that
marked an era in the history of the Middle
Ages. And it is to be doubted if even that
scourge was marked with such wide-spread de
truetion, such awe inspiring sublimity, and
such paralyzing results as characterized the do
-truction of Chicago. Il has been reserved for
those who were tn that city on the
night of bunday lu-t and the sue
feeding day, to Witness the most dazzling and
appalling spectacle ever beheld by mortal eyes;
a spectacle that will be held in remembrance as
long as memory holds its sway. Boe must have
had a conception of such a night when be wrote
his famous stai za of “The Bells"
“Hear the loud alarum bells—
Brazen bells!
What a tale of terror, now, their turbulency tell*
In the startled ear of night
How they scream >ut their attiigbl
Too much horrified to eak,
They can Ohly shriek,shriek,
Out of tune,
In clamorous appealing to the mercy of the tiro,
i i hi id expostulation with the deal vnd tiaut o
Hie,
U'lpiig higher, higher, higher,
W .th a de-pi late desire
And a resolute endeavor,
Sow—-now to sit or never,
I y ll.side of the pale-sac. d moon.
Oh, the bells, hells, bell*,
H bat a tale their terror toll*
Of despair.
llo.v they chine, and clash, and roar,
What a horror they outpour
On the bosom oi tlie palpitating air
The Fl rat Fire.
On Saturday night the immense lumber and
coal yard- lying on the west side of the river
between Van Buren and A lams streets north
and .-otitL, and between Clinton street and the
river ea t and west, comprising four entire
blocks, Were devastated by tire. In addition to
the lumber and coal yards the district contained
from tilty to sixty small frame houses, several
manufactories and a freight house belonging to
the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne and Chicago Rail
r Hid Company. The fire was checked at Adams
street through the almost superhuman efforts of
Hie firemen, who labored until late in the day of
Sunday. The conflagration had been one of the
in >st destructive in the history of Chicago, but
it proved to be but a slight foretaste of what
w. in tore for her.
The Alarm
Scarcely had the engines returned to tin ir
to u-es and the wearied firemen sought a lit
th; re*t ere the Court House bell pealed out an
alarm of lire from a section of the city but three
Moek* south of th* one on the previous night.
Five minutes later, at half past ten o’clck, a
general alarm was sounded, quickly followed by
a second and a third. Few of the citizens hid
retired to re’t.aud the lurid glare that lighted
the sky in the direction indicated by the alarm,
gave them warning that the horrors of the pre
vious night were likely to be far surpassed.
The fire department was promptly on hand at
the scene of the conflagration. It was ascer
t lined that it originated in a barn at the corner
ot Ib Koven and Jefferson streets, and was
spreading with frightful rapidity toward the
north and northeast. A high wind prevailed at
tbe’ tne, ami carried the burning emher* far
into the heart of the city. The small frame
hou es in the vicinity were soon wrapped in
tl uv's and went down in a aloud of smoke and
lire with a rapiditv that almost surpasses belief.
Ihc firemen had stationed themselves north
war I of the fire, but were driven from their
I options time and again. Scarcely could they
find time to bring a stream of water to bear
upon the buildings ere the flames were
upon them, and they were obliged to
retire still further. Stubbornly they
i fought every inch of ground with the fire,
but that element, which is so faithful a servant
but so relentless a master,hud gained the upper
I bund of them and they soon found that it was
useless to contest the ground in that direction.
Every energy was then bent to prevent it*
spread. It wa* hoped that when the district
turned on the previous night was reached, the
lire would die out ot its own volition; but no
fears were felt that it Would leap the river to the
south side. House after house wa* swallowed
up by the fiery monster, pile after pile of lum
ber was transformed into a heapof living flame,
and the firemen, baffled at every point, were
obliged to fly for their lives.
The Leap of the River.
All teemed lost on the west side, when a
new horror presented itself. A huge tongue of
flame leaped across the river at Van Buren
street, and almost simultaneously a large row
of frame buildings was enveloped in flames.
At the same instant the gas works, on Adams
-treet, ought fire and in le*s time than it takes
to tell the story the old armory became a huge
I yr. uii<l of fl nne. The grand old structure, that
had stood the perils of many a year and had
been un ever-procut menace to evil-doers,
■rumbled to fragments beneath the touch of the
fire demon and disappeared from sight forever.
The NpectHtore.
By this time probably a hundred thou
sand spectators had assembled in the
vicinity ot the lire, hurrying hither and
thither, and gazing with awe-struck faces at
the terrible devastation spread out before them.
It wus a grand spectacle, although calculated to
in-pire the gloomiest forebodings,
Um Progr«**N.
From the armory and the gas works th* flame*
Spread to the wide expanse of shanties and
frame buildings in the far-famed and odorous
neighborhood of Conley’s Fateh and Wells
street, licking up every thing in its track with
its insatiable maw. Liken deadly simoon the
Cinders, smoke uud fire sped along the street,
around corners and over the business part of
the city. LaSalle street, the financial head
quarters of the city, was reached, and building
after building hurst out in fl lines. Like a tor
rent ti e mad demon sped onward. Ono after
mother of the gigantic granite piles crumbled
I dust and fell crashing into ruins. Bryan
Block, the Insurance Building, Oriental Hall
the finest Masonic building in the world and
Farwell ILill, caught fire.
The Dealh-knell.
Then the Court House bell pealed forth.
Clung clang went the mammoth bell, its tones
rising far above the din ot the streets, the roar
of the devastating demon, and the howling of
the wild tornado. Peal after peal rent the air
striking terror to every heart, for we then knew
that all was lost; that Chicago,
the proud -st city of the continent, was
I .oiu-d to destruction. Louder and louder
rang the bell and taster and faster sped the hell
nt tiro. Men, women and children rushed
through the streets, frantically endeavoring to
save a few of their personal effects from the
devourii g element. Ail was confusion and up
r..ar and fl ime. Every face was blanched with
terror as the rapacious monster leaped and gal
lop, d forward, destroying with a breath the
finest creations of human ingenuity, devouring
it one tell swoop the strongest and most dura
Ide granite walls, an toying with a hideous
playfulness with buildings that had been built
xpres-ly to resist his utmost power.
I Rs'leMe oi the Prisoner*!.
When it seemed, inevitable that the Court
House must tall the door* of the prison in the
I'.iri iiient were thrown open, and the criminals
there confined were released. Like devils in
earmite they rushed pell rnell into the street
.Klin g arni cur-ing with the utmost fiendish
i.. Hastening to the district threatened by
tie cunt, igration, they commenced a seriei of
U'rige-aim t uiq.araneled in the history of
er me. Rui.forowd by all the lawless element of
tlie gr .it ity they spared nothing that attorded
portunity tor plunder. House.* and stores
wen broken open and rifled of their valuable
content-; men and women, carrying oft goods
tr :n their homes, were astaulted and robbed
•mi others were knocked down and relieved
ot their watches and pocket-book*. The etner
gi t eyt at called tor the release of these men
was great, and much m the oeople suffered
tr iii their depredations, they have no word of
complaint to offer against tbe authorities who
chose rather to turn them loose than to suffer
MONDAY, OCTOBER 16, 1871.
i
them to meet a horrible death in one h r.nd
funeral pyre.
The Stu ruing ot Ills Court llouor.
From Farwell H ill the flime* darted over an
entire block, communicating with the dome ot
tue Court House. Almost immediately it was
a mass of fire. The flames leaped, and danced,
and caroused about, darting fur into the heav
ens. The imagination cannot conceive a spec
tacle more grand. Words fail to express its
sublimity, and, once seen, it can never be for
gotten. In ten minutes the entire structure,
built in the most massive style, presented the
appearance o’s a mimmoth furnace, superheated
with the fires of hell. At seven minutes before
two o’clock the dome was seen to sway iu the
wind. It rocked to and fro for a few momenta,
and then fell, down, down, three hundred feet,
into the heart of the building, with a deafening
crash that resounded all over the city.
O«her I'rniiiiiirnl Itui Idiugu.
In the meantime the dre-king raged with un
abated fury elsewhere., The block of buildings
intervening between the Court House and Fir
well Hall had been seized upon, and were rapid
ly devoured. Pope’s Block, the Id. ard of
f ale building, Smith Nixon’s hall
and other enormous structures of stone and
brick were speedily reduced to ruins. On the
West side ot La Salle street the immense insur
ance buildings shared a like fate.
A Dvapernte llemedy.
At this point, it having become evident that
all ordinary moan* of fighting fire were useless,
another destroying agent, gunpowder, w.i*
brought into requisition, in the hope that by
leveling a few blocks to the gro rnd the course
ot the destroyer would be stayed. Half a dozen
barrels of powder were placed under the Union
Bank Building, on the corner of LaSalle and
Washington streets; an explosion followed, and
it was razed to the ground iu an iustant. But
the remedy, desperate as it was, had been np
plied too late. The fl imes had already reached
the Merchants’ Insurance building, iu which
the tel<graph office was located, and, before the
heroic men who were so fiercely battling to sub
due the tire could change their base of opera
tions, had extended over the entire block, and
reached far toward the main river to the
northward. From that point nothing could be
done to impede its course, and the entire dis
tance west of LaSalle street, and from Harrison
street on the south to the river on the north,
was a gigantic sea of fire. Every structure was
under the dominion of the fire-fiend, and fell
into dust and ashes at the magic touch.
The Mierman House.
From the Court House to the Sherman House
was but a step, and long before the dome fell the
latter structure was afire tr im roof to founda
tion. The gut*ts had all escaped, some of thim
carrying their trunks upon their shoulders,
while others had barely time to esew with their
lives. Thus* w'ho remained, in flu vaiu en
deavor to save whatever of value remained in
the house, hid to fly for their lives before the
tornado of fire, and not a few, it is said, I*'-
ished in the awful holocaust. Onward sped the
conflagration,licking up everything in its track.
The Tremont House, the Adams House, the
Great Union Depot, the long blocks of palatial
stores on Lake and South Water streets, Mike
went down before the awful judgment fr< m
Heaven. Nothing was left in its track but the
charred and smouldering walls of what had
been less than twenty-four hours before Chi
cago's proudest boast.
The PaciHe lliviel.
While the conflagration had been raging in
(he track indicated, those located further south
had not escaped. Another current had swept
further east, that was quite as disastrous. The
uew Pacific Hotel, nearly completed at a cost ot
almost a million of dollars, and located on the
corner of Jackson and Clark streets, had caught
tire and was burning with terrible fury. The
edifice was eight stories in height, and built of
Cleveland stone in the most substantial manner.
It occupied an entire block, and was calculated
to accommodate, when Completed, nearly 2,000
guests. As the flames rushed through its open
corridors, m tinted through its floorsand pound
out of its thousand windows the spectators gazed
speechless with awe. What a splendid spectacle
it presented, and how forcibly did it illustrate
how futile were all appliances of mm when op
posed to the all cou-uming element! The flames
roared with the noise ,ot Niagara, mounting
higher and higher, twisting and eddying iu
the wind, shooting hither and thither like the
outbursts of the infernal regions. Dante, in
Ids Inferno, never pictured a scene more appal
ling or harrowing than that which was spread
out before the upturned gaze of the gathered
thousands.
More De vnatat Ion?
The new building of the Lakeside Publishing
Company was the next to fall a prey to the
fiery element. It was hardly finished, but its
walls tottered and crumbled and fell within a
few moments. Away to the north rushed the
torrent. DeHaven block, the new Bigelow
House, just completed and about to be occu
pied, the two magnificent marble building* of
H. H. Honore, Lombard block, the Post Office
and Custom Ilou.-e, the offices of the Times,
Post, Staats Zeitung and Union, one after an
other fell, burying beneath the ruins countless
thousands of dollars’ worth of property. From
Van Buren street down to .Madison the fire
confined itself to the west side of Dearborn
street, leaving Sheppard block, the Tribune
building, Anderson’s European Hotel, McVick
er’s Theatre, and a large number of business
blocks to the eastward intact, and it was hoped
that the line thus marked would be saved. But
all such hopes were doomed to disappointment.
From the Times office the fl imes stretche I
across the street and enveloped the Dear
born Theatre, the popular home of min
strelsy, from thence passed on east and north,
carrying everything before it. From Portland
Block, on the corner of Dearborn and Washing
ton streets, the tongues of slime reached across
to Crosby's magnificent Opera House, that had
just been redecorated at a cost of SIO,OOO, and
in less than twenty minutes it was numbered
among the things that were. The St. James
Hotel, and the long row of six-story marble
stores fronting on both sides of State street for
a distance of three blocks, followed in quick suc
cession.
Field, Leiter A Co.’n Store.
Day had now broken, but only served to ren
der more apparent the horror of the scene. For
a L>ng time it was supposed that the large store
ot L leld, Leiter Co. would survive the terri
ble •rdeal. The buildings surrounding
it on every hand were burning
fiercely. That alone seemed to stand
superior to the fire. For an hour and a half
hundreds of brave men put forth every energy
t save it from destruction. Scores of line* of
hose were employed to quench the flames that
ever and anon caught about it. As the walls of
the building adjoining it fell all danger was
supposed to have passed, and a shout of joy
arose from ten thousand throats. But alas
about this time the water works on the north
side were burned, the supply of water gave out,
and the building had to be abandoned to its fate.
That fate Soon overtook it, and, together with
almost its entire contents, consisting of goods
valued at nearly three and a half million dol
lars, it went down just as thousunds of less pre
tentious building* bad gone down before.
From here the course of the carnival of fire
was untrammeled. Along the line, as fast
a* the gunpowder could be carried in,
buildings were blown up remorse
lessly. The detonations were beard in
every direction, and each explosion told the
fate of some stately pile of brick and mortar.
But yet the infernal fire raged, all efforts to
check it* progress being as impotent as would
be the effort of a fly to stop the speed of r rail
road train. Ail northward and northeastward
of the building was leveled to the ground,
scarce one stone being left above another to
mark where the most prevention* structures
had once stood. At last it died, for there was
nothing more to burr, every vestige of the
lower part of the city having disappeared in
smoke and a*hes.
Another Current of Flame.
As I have already mentioned, the last cur
rent of the fire had passed down the west side
ot Dearborn street to Madison, and thence east
ward, leaving a still valuable portion of the
city unscorched. Great was the rejoicing
among the owners of buildings in that vicinity
at the escape of their property from tbe awful
•courge that had swept all before it. But their
rejoicings were of short duration. The tire to
the south had extended a-ross Clark street at
Harrison to Fourth avenue. Here a brave band
of men assembled and worked hard to stay its
progress, but in vain. A single engine, had
water been available, would have sat ed millions
of dollar*' worth of property at this point.
Despite all efforts, it crossed the street, and, re
doubling its fury, it ran shrieking across to
Stat* street, «arrying down the Orient and i
Howard Houses, and crossing over to the av
enues. From theqpe northward its course was
un.mpeded. The Palmer House presented a
splendid objective point for the ffimes, and it
wa* soon wrapped iu its winding sheet, its mag
nificent apartment* furnishing tine quarters in
which the remorseless demon could revel. Still
bi* appetite wus not satisfied, and, crav
ing for more, he sped forward. The fire proof
Tribune building seemed to be but tinder; Mc-
Viekvr’s splendid thespian temple furnished one
of the grandest spectacles in this most tearful
tragedy, and went off in a blaze of glory, but
tbe audience went away wiih the sad conviction
that the scene enacted was a terrible reality and
uot a mere baseless fiction of tbe dramatist's
brain. W hate ver bqildiugs had escaped destruc i
tion from the two tornadoes of fire that had
swept northward before fell a prey to thi* one.
and not a building remained standing north of
Adams street.
Agialiint (lie Wind.
But a'though all that lay iu the natural
cour-e of the fire on the south side had been
destroyed it was not consumed. From
Adam* street, on Wabash and Michigan ave
nues, the lire commenced to burn southward
against the wind. Its progress was compara
tively slow, and yet it traveled with a rapidity
that was terrifying. For two blocks it swept
all before it. Trinity Episcopal Church fell in
the general crash. The Sisters of Mercy lost
their school; the Catholic cathedral was burned,
and long rows of palatial residences wire hugged
iu the greedy embrace of the tire and devoured.
Gunpowder was agiiu resorted to to stay the
flames, and this time with better effect. A
row of marble fronts on Wabash ave
nue, above Congress street, was blown to frag
ments, and the flames subsided. Terrace Row
occupying the entire block between Van Buren
and Congress streets, on Michigan avenue, 1
caught tire at the lower end and threatened to I
involve a still larger district in destruction. But 1
galant men, disregard!'ul of their own lives,
shouldered barrels of gunpow ler and carried
them through the scorching heat and Hying em
bers into the southern part of the row, and tbe
explosion that followed le.eled it to the ground,
and the Michigan Avenue Hotel and Congress
Hall were saved. This ended the pri
ress of the tiro ou the south side, 1
and the city again breathed free.
The North Hide.
But the most painful and heart-rending por-
tion of my narrative is yet to come. The north 1
side ot the river, containing a population, ac
cording to the last census, of over 78,0(10 souls,
was visited m *st terribly. Shortly after two 1
o’clock on Monday morning the slimes were
Carried across the river on the high wind. This
section of the city is mainly Composted of wooden
buildings, and is occupied for the greater part
by mechanics and laboring men as residences.
Over this region the Bro sped with the speed of
the wind. These who attempted to save
their worldly goods met with but poor
By far the greater part
their lives, while hundreds
found a winding sheet of slime. The first sec
tion swept was that between North Clurk street
and the river. The houses were but sparsely
settled, but notwithstanding this fact the entire i
sectiou was a mas* of ruins before tbe sun had
risen. Among the prominent buildings con
sumed were the Rush Medical College, St.
James’s Church (Rev. Hugh Miller Thomp
son’s), the New England Congregational Church,
Unity Church (Rev. Robert Collyer’s), the Clar
endon, Humboldt, Revere and Huber Houses,
several grain elevators, the Water Works, and
numerous public charity building*, and minor
religious and educational institution*.
But it was to the west of Clark street th it the
the tire was most disastrous. Here it sped with
appalling rapidity. Hundreds of men, women
and children were overtaken in the streets by
tbe tongues of tiro tint swept their homes
away, and as they tie I through the street he- I
fore the mad flames, they were hemmed in.
Many an agonized cry for help went up to heav
en, and tlie poor victims tell upon the pave
merits, charred, blackened corpses, nnrecog- I
nizable save by Him who had so suddenly
called them to account. Ou one street alone, on
Tuesday morning, I counted
These had all met with death while flying be-
fore the tire. The entire north side, with the
exception of a small strip on Kinzie street, was
swept with the besom of destruction, and hut
one building, the residence of Wrn. B. Ogden
on Franklin Place, remain* of the 22,000 'tint
covered the area of two and a hilt square miles.
The Low of Life.
At the present time it is almost impos ible to i
compute the loss of life. Thus far over 230
bodies have been recovere I, and as yet the ruins
have not been examined. All that have been
discovered have been those who were cut off in
the streets or were found above the mas* of
debris. Competent judges estimate that not
less than 800 souls were burned to death in the I
bell through which Chicago ha* passed. It is
possible that the number may exceed 1,000, al i
though m iny will never be missed and never
found.
The Homelem*.
Not les* than 150,000 persons were deprived
of their homes by this awful scourge. The-e
were for the most part persons who could not
afford to lose even the little they possessed, al- I
though many who on Saturday counted their
wealth by the hundreds of thousands were re
duced to beggary and suffered for want as
keenly a* the poorest among them. Fire as n
livelier has asserted his equality with death,
for rich and poor alike were obliged to depend
upon charity for food and raiment.
The Sceur-s,
I will n d attempt to describe the scenes con-
nected with thi* great calamity. The mosteL
quint tongue cannot picture with half the
vividness of reality the thousands of heart
rending scenes of which I was a witness. The
very remembrance of them makes me sick at
heart. Thousands of families werr rendered
hou eless, tew saving anything except what
they carried upon their buekt. With no pros
pect ahead but starvation, it is no wonder that
many gave way beneath the accumulated hor
rors of the fearful night of tiro. The majority,
however, acted with a heroism that gave one a
higher aspect for humanity. Those who had
not been left entirely destitute cheerfully
shared what they had saved, with their less
fortunate neighbors, and went about seeking to
relieve the sufferings of others. The many
deeds of noble charity that were developed in
unlooked-for quarters would fill a volume.
Relief.
As Soon as the news of Chicago’s great afflic
tion wa* known abroad, relief came abundantly.
Every city in the country contributed liberally
both in money and provisions, and the destitute i
were speedily provided with the necessities nf 1
life. The homeless were gathered into all the I
churches and schools that had been spared by
the fire, and made as comfortable a* circum.*tan-
ces would permit. The ladies of Chicago who
were not themselves dependent upon charity,
were foremost in the good work of relieving the
distres-ed, and many a sad, despondent heart
was made glad by words of cheer and encour
agement. Those who have contributed to the
relief of Chicago may rest assured that their
generosity will never be forgotten. Hundreds
of thousands of grateful hearts call down the
blessings of Heaven upon the generous givers,
and will hold them in everlasting remembrance.
ITilctigo am Nile In.
Imagine nearly three thousand acres of black,
dreary ruins twenty-five thousand houses,
churches, schools, manufactories, warehouses,
hotels and business house* with nothing to
mark their locality but a mass of smouldering
brick, limestone and timber, and you have a
picture of Chicago as *be is to-day. But one
b ink escaped the scourge of fire. There is no
theatre or public hall; no first-class dry goods
or grocery house; but a score or so of churches;
halt a score of school-houses; no news
paper save a few copies of the seven by
nine sheets that are all issued from the
same job printing office half a dozen
second class hotels and an inexhaustible supply
of too thoroughly burned brick, that can be
bought at an enormous reduction from the
original cost. From 5100,000,000 to $500,000,-
000 worth of property is destroyed, including
the larger part of the winter’s supply of fuel.
The greatest privation, however, is thetempora- I
ry loss of the water supply; but this is not as
great as it would have been before the purifies-
tion of the river, the water of which can be and
is used in culinary and ablutionary purposes.
The water work.* will be repaired sufficiently
within a week to supply a limited amount of
pare water to the citizens, while the supply
trim tbe various artesian wells iu the west di
vi»ion will shortly be directed into the mains.
The public records are mostly destroyed, in
cluding the records of title to real property.
The indices, however, were saved, and au en- j
abliug act of the Legislature (which has been
called together in special session) will legalize
all titles ascertained from them, and the records
ot the various abstract offices, which were
providentially saved from destruction. It is
thought by those well-posted in real estate
matter.* that a complete record of the title to
every lot of land in Cook county can be ob
tained in this way. It is also expiated that the
Legislature will relieve the city from the pay
ment of the taxes levied the present year, and
will perhaps relieve her from the payment of
taxes for several years to come.
The Future.
Those who expect Chicago to lie down and
die under the weight of her great calamity,
overwhelming as it may appear, will be greatly
disappointed. That energy and perseverance
which, iu the short space of forty years, built up
one of tbe largest aud finest cities in the Wui-ld
in the face of appar nt insurmountable obstacles
us nature; that has constructed the vast lines ot
railroad from every section of tbb continent
centering there; that has tunnelle I Uie lake for
a distance of nearly three miles for a sup
ply of pure water; that has diverted the
natural course of the waters of the river, over
turning anorder of nature that has been in ex
istence ever since the creation this enterprise
and pluck, I any, will not be crushed out by
this disaster. Indeed, tbe busy hum of prepa
ration is already heard, and buildings are rising
on every hand. They are temporary
structures as yet, but will be *ncceed
ed at no distaut day by substantial
and enduring edifices. All the leading busines*
men have already opened stores, —some of them
in sheds and barns—and their agents are
thronging every Eastern market, purchasing
new stocks of goods. Although many of her
merchants are not worth a dollar, they
have unbounded credit, and will ere long build
up colossal fortunes upon the ruins of
those they have lost. The country at large
cannot afford to let Chicago die, nor can rail
roads afford to divert their lines to other marts.
Milwaukee and St. Louis, her more immediate
rivals tor the trade of the Northwest, are alike
interested in her prosperity. Phoenix-like she
will arise from her a.*bes,and I have no hesita
tion in predicting that in ten years—perhaps in
halt that time -Chicago will be more than she
was on last Saturday, and will still be the great
commercial and mercantile emporium of the
West. Wm. Innes .Martin.
TWO I>AYS AMONG THE KI INS.
Origin of the Fire.
It is generally conceded that the origin of tbe
fire was the burning of a stable on the west
side of the river, caused by the explosion of a
kerosene lamp. Owing to the combustible na
ture of the structure, it burned furiously, and
large pieces of ignited shingles and boards were
borne on the high wind across the river and
ignited buildings on the east side. These in
turn kindled rapidly, and, fanned by the gale,
soon sent their firebrands on the wing* of the
wind to kindle other conflagrations uh end, and
in an hour or two the whole business portion of
the city was a roaring hell of slime. So rapidly
did the fire work that there was no opportunity
in most instance* to remove valuable papers
even, to say nothing of stocks of goods, and
vast numbers escaped from the burning buildings
without taking anything with them except what
they had on. Some, indeed, succeeded in get
ting out a portion of their good* or bou.-ehold
furniture and depositing them in an open space,
secure, n» they supposed, from the ravages of
the tire but the heat was so intense that this
property was licked up by the devouring ele
ment. and nothing but a heap of ashes marked
the place where it had been.
The Romulln.
Alter years of painstaking toil, thousands
upon thousands who had made a good start in
tbe world are left penniless by this calamity
Men who less than one week ago counted their
wealth by the hundreds of thousands, to
day are beggar*. Said the owner of
a large warehouse which had been consumed,
and pointing to its contents which were then
burning, “That is a'i i have in the world except
my homestead.” There teem* to be a genera!
feeling that ue r v alt are ruined. Insurance is
thought to be >r„.th but little; it i* a que.-tion
whether the bank have any power to pay their
depositors, and those who hold bonds and mort
gages against business men there regard th* m
as of little value. It may well be imagined
that the outlook is not a cheerful one by any
means, and yet to the credit of the business
men be it said that they bear their misfortunes
like heroes, and are disposed to m ike the best of
the situation, whatever that may be.
I.omn of Life.
The loss of life in thi* cunfl igration has been
something fearful. Noone can yet begin to
estimate the extent of it. Already over one
hundred dead bodies have been ree. vbred, and
they are coming to light on all side*. The
blackened remains of three sisters of charity
were discovered in a group; seventeen bodies
were found huddled together in one locality in
the North Division, and it is reported that the
bodies of several small children were found in
the neighborhood of Lincoln Park. No one
can form any idea as to the number that per
i-hed in the hotels and business places.
It mus be something startling. In the effort
to stay the devouring element resort was had to
the u-e ot gunpowder to blow up buildings,
and, no doubt, many perished through this
agency.
Robbery.
All history has shown that no extreme of
human misery can deter the wicked and the
bad from the e anmission of crime. And recent
experiences in Chicago prove that the
terrors there hid no effect to pre
vent rascality. Ou Monday night some
of the safes in the ruins were blown
open and the content* rifled. There were grave
suspicions that scoundrel* were engaged in set
ting new tires for the purpose of creating fresh
excitements, that they might engage in plunder.
Early yesterday morning one mnn caught in an
incendiary attempt was summarily hung, and
another was shot. So excited are the people on
this matter of tires that it is not safe for any
man to be caught in any position that looks in
any manner out of the ordinary course of eon
duct. it all his lite is worth.
lie <’lliea*O ISaillt-H.
The newspaper men of Chicago are busily en
gaged in reestablishing themselves. ThePo.t
has advertised to reissue in a day or two, and
the Journal ha* already appeared, ill the m, st
available form. The exact date of the republi
cation of the Times is not known, but the Trib
une will publish the initial number of a new
series this m< ruing.
Tbe Lvodns.
The exodus from the destroyed city has been
all that reports and rumors have given assertion
or hint to. For miles out of the city, on every
«ide, the railroad lines have swarmed with peo
ple taking their flight. Some have succeeded
in carrying away a portion of their goods for
several miles from the city limits. In not a
few instances, even after the little luggage had
been partially gotten away from the burnt
homes, the fl lines, which have spread from tbe
city to the woods and prairies, have licked them
up. Every open space for great dis
tances this side of the late Chicago has
been tilled with these weary, hopeless
pilgrims, some with a little baggage, many with
none. A more wretehed throng could not be
imagined. Dirty, ragged, hungry, penniless
mortals, of all ages, sexes and late social sta
tion.*, have flooded all the country Contiguous
to the fallen metropolis with beggars and too
sad and sufficient object* for charity. The rain
and sub.-eipient change of weather to quite
severe cold rendered their condition yesterday
morning still more pitiable than it had pre
viously been. Many must surely perish from
already suffered exposure. Last night’s passen
ger.* report that the great majority of these
poor wanderers have been gathered into church
es and school-houses, barns and private houses
by the people. Everything that mortals know
how to do will be done for these sufferers.
L'nder Martini Law.
It is understood that the city of Chicago has
been placed nnder martial law, with Gen. Sher
idan as Commander. Yesterday there was a
rumor that military companies from this city
had been ordered there, but this does uot seem
to be confirmed.
Curious Incidents.
In themselves, what we are about to relate
under thi* heading, would have no significance;
but taken in connection with the devastation of
a great city, where fire-proof buildings were
swept away like chaff, and brick, stone and iron
offered no apparent resista .ee to the fury of the
fire, the incident* are remarkable, and furnish
and almost inexhaustible theme for conjecture.
In St. James' Church, on tbe first floor, were
two gilded tablets, erected to tue memory of
gallant brother* who fell in the battles of the
rebellion. The church was entirely destroyed,
the walls crumbling and falling, an d cinders only
remaining of the handsome furniture within.
But the record of brave deeds by Godly men ip
the fight for freedom remained intact. The tab
lets were left standing, and seem not to have
been scorched by the conflagration ,as if destruc
tion itself refused to harm these monuments of
Christian sacrifice.
The residence of Mahluu D. Ug len, on the
southwest corner of Oak and North Dearborn
streets, a frame building, is now standing It
is the only one in the North Division remaining,
the flame* hiving consumed everything else to
Lincoln Park.
Terrible Fhcln.
Figures of speech are de«titute of power to
indicate tbe general destruction and thecomiuou
suffering, not to speak of extreme instance*.
Plain language will not* tell it —speech is not
tilted to the task of conveying the terribleness
ot the Chicago situation. One of the worst
features, it there can be a worst in this empire
of destruction* is the separation of families.
Thousands of families, so suddenly and hope
essly rendered homeless, lost knowledge of some
of their dearest members in the tumult and con
fusion of the woful hours. Parents have been
eut off from children, children from parents,
brothers from sisters, and all possible separa
tions and imaginable ones are here true in fact.
Such heartrending icenes are general ex
periences, and mere loss ot pr< p rty
i he exceptional ones. We hear
how even infants have been lost in the
surging crowd and little children lost sight of
by friends among masses where discovery again
were almost utter impossibility. A rough en
tered u tine residence just before the slimes
lapped it and shot dead the husband and father
ot a noble wife and highly promising children,
and rushed away with the crowd. The wife
was crazed, anil as she and her born were
dragged away by the crowd, mother and chil
dren were, by chance, even ren to separate aud
be swept on apart. Those that kuew them have
not since seen or heard of them. It i.* but one
instance where there are thousands like or
worse ones. Strong men have been seen crying
like children, women were wringing their hands 1
and tearing their hair, driven frantic with ter
ror and excitement. Many families
happy in unity on Saturday are
divided and in the depths of
woe now. There will be broken circle*, in in
numerable cases, even when a reasonable time
shall have brought al! together that time and
device can collect. Friends sometimes meet by
accident, but rarely, indeed, by fixed search. We
cannot sketch it. Let the most imaginative
fancy the wor.-t that they themselves might pos
sibly realize, and they have pictured but faintly
bitter facts to some one else. Let sympathy ft.w
from the depths of the tcuderest heart, and it
scarcely ean meet the demand. Types can con
vey but little of what there is to learn in this
connection from circumstances of the past two
days.
The lloteln.
All the pr uninent hotels of the city are in
ruins- the Pacific, Sherman, Tren nt, Briggs,
Palmer, Bigelow, Metropolitan, Matteson—be
sides dozens of oth r smaller caravanseries scat
tered over the East Side from the river to the
lake, aud from Van Buren to Water street.
Tbe destruction of property is most terrible,
and the scenes to be witnessed in the streets are
heartrending. Business, of course, is entirely
suspended, and everything on wheels which cun
be made available for purposes of moving
are pressed into service for getting goods
out if the reach of the devouring ele
ment. Wabash and Michigan avenues, as far
south as Twenty second street, are lined with
househould g ;ods and merchandise, and guard
ed by weary and weeping women and children.
Thousands of families arc already rendered
homeless, and at this hour (9 a. m the fire is
rapidly extending southward from Like street,
on the east side of State street and it seems
more than probable that the entire district
north of Van Buren and east of Clark street
will be destroyed.
The hamber of ('ommeree
building, which stood the heat for a long time,
came in for it* place among the list of suffer
ers, and soon after the fall of the Court House
this handsome building lay a mass of smoulder
ing ruins.
The Western L’nlon Telegraph Office
building was destroyed, as was also the whole
block adjoining on the north and west of the
same.
INCIDENTS OF THE FIKE.
Narrow Escape.
Could the thrilling incidents of the recent fire
in Chicago be grouped together they would form
a volume of more absorbing interest than the
wildest tales of fiction. Une has been related to
us cocci ruing the family of Mr. Ambridge, who
recently married the daughter of Dr. Ashley, of
this city. They had just got comfortably set
tled i i their new home on the North Side, Mrs.
A. hiving been assisted io her work of getting
to housekeeping by her sister, Miss Ashley. Un
last Sunday night the family wa* awakened by
hearing the tire alarm, and seeing tbe bright
and constantly increasing light, went out on a
balcony of their residence to watch it, not
dreaming of personal danger. They continued
to watch the progress of the fire some time,
when, upon looking around, they discovered
th ir own house was in flime*. Not a moment’s
time was left them for saving anything, and not
even for completing their toilets. They
rushed out into the street*, after hastily gather
iug a tew valuables, and started for a place of
safety. But the raging flames pursued them,
and it was not until after a journey of seven
miles in a zig zag course that they escaped from
danger. The party reached this city only half
dud, and in a forlorn condition. This case illus
trates the rapidity with which the tire spread,
and the dangers which environed the people on
the burnt district.
The Reporter*!.
Mr. William I. Martin,of the Chicago Time.*,
furnishes a number of incidents of the confla
gration. Not a reporter tor the Times saved
anything except what was on their persons.
They had all been working like beavers for sev
eral days, and were nearly exhausted; but when
the general alarm of Sunday uight was rung nil
we urines.* was forgotten.
Early Monday evening, while one of the re
porters was coming down Kinzie street, with a
valise, an umbrella and an over«nat on his arm,
he was set upon by a party of thieves who con
tented themselves with taking the overcoat af
ter some resistance. No arrests were made,
though hundreds of persons were near nt the
time. The excitement was so great that no re
dress could be had.
More Tlileviojr.
Ji.hu D. Toby, of No. 262 Wabash avenue,
after seeing all of his boarders’ efleet* saved,
brought out his own trunk last, containing all
the valuables be and hi* family possessed.
While left temporarily near the house it was
stolen, thus leaving them with clothing barely
sufficient for covering.
liifciitlinrieN Shot.
Tuesday afternoon, about two o’clock, a negro
was caught in the act of firing a stable in the
alley running between Clark street and Fourth
avenue, and near Taylor street. He was taken
in custody by some citizens, but broke loose
from hi* captors and ran. A pistol ball stopped
him. On his person was found a bottle of kero
sene. fi
Our informant telle of another case, where he
had drawn a revolver to kill a man attempting
to sot fire to the West Side, but a policeman had
sighted the incendiary first, and shot him dead.
The Tribune of yesterday morning eontaius
the following
A boy attempted to help on the conflagra
tion by igniting a clothes line saturated wuh
kerosene and throwing it into a building on
Thirty-second street. He received his deserts
at the hands of the firemen, who saw the act,
and” now sleeps in the valley.”
A man, name unknown, was shot by a negro
at the corner ot State and Thirty-secon 1 street*.
His offense was that he set fire to a building to
obtain better opportunities for pillage.
Bridget Hickey was arrested for setting fire
to a barn in the rear of a house on Burnside
street. By some mistaken i lea us clemency, she
was not hanged.
Two men, who were caught trying to set fire
to the Jesuit Church, ou the West Side, were
disposed of without ceremony, and the lookers
on were pleased to say. Served ’em right.
About noon yesterday, a barn on the corner
of Burnside and Twentieth streets was observed
to be on fire. Knowing that it must have been the
work of an incendiary, the neighbors united to J
extinguish it, filling their coats and bats and i
everything they could get hold of with sand.
The fire wa* extinguished in good time, and a 1
man found in there captured. It is stated that
he was shot.
At about 11 o’clock yesterday forenoon, a
man also residing on Fourth avenue, caught u
man iu the basement of his house, number un
known, armed with hay and matches. He gave
the alarm and the incendiary was caught and
stoned and battered to death.
At one o’clock yesterday afternoon a colored
man, name unknown, observed a white man
sneaking round a house on Fourth avenue. Ha
tired the barn in the rear of the house, and was
instantly shot dead.
Another man was shot last evening by a po
lice officer, who detected him in the act ot at
tempting t fire the Jesuit church on Twelfth
street.
An excite 1 crowd gathered around tbe West
Division police station, about 5 o’clock yester
day afternoon, intent upon making an applica
tion of lynch law to a man who wus alleged to
have tried to set fire to a house on Milwaukee
avenue. Three or four ropes were flourished
vigorously in the crowd, and several speeches
were made by parties, urging them to rescue
the incendiary from the hands of the police, but
the latter were firm, and at la>t accounts the
man was still a prisoner in the cell.
Mr. Whiteomb, of tbi* city, states that he saw
the body of an incendiary suspended from a
lamp-post in the vicinity of State street, on the
South Sid*, tni* miming. The man was hung
by infuriated citizens yesterday afternoon.
A negro special policeman, named Dick Cos
tello, brained a luukpr-on near Hubbard Court
yesterday afternoon, and narrowly escaj ed be
ing lyr.cheu. He is in prison.
These are probably but few of tbe cases where
the-e wretches received their deserts.
Saving tlie llwokM.
David Forbes, a young Scotchman, at tbe risk
of his life, entered the store ot J. Mclntyre,
corner ot State and Jackson street*, at five
o’clock Moi.day morning, an 1 saved the books
and consiuerable of the stick. The latter were
eventually burned, but the books were saved.
ileitlli of n A'oiiug Thief.
In the forenoon of the same day one of the
clerks of J. V. Farwell Co., while guarding
the goods of the firm at Peck Court and Mich
igan avenue, discovered a young thief making
eff with a lot of fancy goods, and, as the latter
ran,shot him, it is supposed fatally.
Murders.
A Mr. O’Grady, a saloon keeper on Cai al
street, while walking past nn Italian saloon on
the same street with a friend, who was slightly
the worse for liquor, was thrown again.-t tl e
window and broke it. He paid the damages,
but, his comrade remonstrating rather noisily,
the bar tender seized a knife and plunged it in
to tbe heart of O'Grady, killing him instantly,
and then commenced slashing at his companion.
The murderer escaped during the excitement,
but O’Grady’s relatives are on the lookout for
him.
A letter to Hon. E. I). Holton says seven
policemen were murdered during Tuesday nigbt.
<To*>ing the Salooua.
Ou Tuesday, the special police, acting under
instructions, issued an order tor the closing of
all saloons, aud the order was pretty generally
obeyed.
David A. Gage.
The report that this gentleman, proprietor of
the Sherman House, was burned to death, is
incorrect. So we are informed by a gentleman
who arrived here from Chicago yesterday.
Marine Lotnei*.
Fox it Howard lost one dredge, (the largest
in the river) eight scows, two pile-drirvrs
office, etc. Their three tugs, however, were
saved.
Goodrich's propeller Navarino, bark* Ulen
benlah, Fontanelle, A. P. Nichols, and Valetta,
schooner* Stampede and Alnwick, and two
barges belonging to the Peshtigo Company,
were also burned.
11. D. Childs, Jr., A Co
steel engravers at 117 1-2 Randolph street, lost
their stock of tools to the value of SSO 000.
They expect to resume business within a week.
I>va«l Bodies.
A telegram from our special correspondent at
Chicago, dated at a quarter past lour o'clock
yesterday, states that the ruins were being over
hauled, and that ninety dead bodies were found
on Clark street.
The Tribune contains the following in relation
to the loss of life
Six men were working on the corner of Clurk
and Madison streets, top of J. B. Chambers’
i store, and when the fire caught the lower part
of the building were unable to get down, aud
equally unable to e-cape to adjoining buildings.
They tell through the roof and were totally co:
sumed.
As ter tbe flames had consumed the store of J.
H. Ross, State, near the corner of Washington
the walls were left partially standing. An ex
press wagon wus passing a short time after the
conflagration,and reached the front of the build
ing just iu time to receiie the falling wall
Five men were in the wagon at the time, and
all were crushed and killed.
An unknown woman was eaught in u build
ing on State street, near Taylor, and was un
able to get out in time. She had no chance of
escape,and fell back into the building, wheru
she was, of course, consumed.
Chet Morehead was last seen struggling man
fully with a large box containing the books ot
Heyburn, Hunter Co. The flames and
smoke overpowered him, and h« is certainly
lost.
A drunken man tried to run south from ti e
base ball grounds on Michigan avenue, and wa*
caught ami killed by the flames.
Jacob Wolf was roasted to death iu his
house, No. 95 West Harrison street.
A Tribune reporter, wandering among the
ruins on Ontario street, discovered, i the rear
cellar us the dwelling ue’Xt east of u Histor
ical Society’s building, tbe charred rank of a
human body, lying amid the ruin of many
wine bottles and the apparatus of a water
closet.
A man jumped from a fourth-story window
of Speed’s block, during the progress of the
tire, and w is instantly killed.
H. F. Whitcomb, of this city, informs us
that he counted twenty-three bodies in one
street on the North Side, this morning, which
had been recovered from the ruins.
So little idea had the people living near the His
torical Society building ou Ontario street, between
Dearborn and Clark, ot the terrible and utter ruin
which the fire would work, that, snatching up
what valuables they could, they sought shelter in
its cellar, whichwraa unfortunately filled to a great
extent with inflammable material. According tu
tlie statement of the librarian of tlie Historical 3o
ciety, william Corkran, who was there at tin time,
the following persons certainly sought refuge
there: O'd Col. Stone and his wife, Mr. and Mr*
Able and their datiughters, Mrs. De Pelgrom,
teacher of French, Mr. and Mrs. Carpenter, musi
cal people, Dr Freer mid family, the former hav
ing with him $4,0U0 worth of personal properly be
longing to Kush Medical Coll- /e, two p.ulenis from
the hospital In Mi. R cbarda’s place, ami John II
Girard arid family. Mr. Corkran had hold ot
one end of a trunk ami Mrs. Gebler of the other
Her dress took fire, aud be left her and run for the
etairs leading from the cellar up stairs. He is cer
tain that old Col Stone suffocated, and, from the
sudden Inrush of dense smoke, theie is cause to
fear that nearly all the oth< rs who were in there
shared the sariie f.te, bewildered by the fumes,
and unable to find their way out of a building with
which they were unacquainted.
As early as three o'clock in ihc morning of Mon
day tbe people on th.- North Side, or many of them,
began to get a little nervous. Slill they did not, at
that arly hour, entertain any serious apprehen
si< r feeling confident that the river would be an
impassable barrier, amply sufficient to prevent any
spreading of the conflagration. By daylight, how
ever, thing* were in a somewhat d ft'erent position.
The fire, moving northeastward, had gotten to
Rush street bridge, which was crowded wit.i peo
pie. In order to prevent this aiding the lire in
crossing, it. was turned, but the only result was tbe
destruction of the people who were upon it.
Encouraged by the aosence of policemen, the
roughs along on Kinzie street broke into the sa
loons there, and bega i seizing and drinking the
liquor. Many others, at tbe very moment they
most needed all •he self-possession they had,
fuddled themsvl .es, ar d In many cases were sur
rounde I by the tl lines and stifled by the smoke.
Some were found lying on the sidewalk, and,since
no one paid any attention to them, they met their
fate there. Some women and their children who
lingered too long, were either lost in the houses or
compelled to jump out of the windows, aud re
ceived injuries and remained where they fell.
It is reported, but not on the best authority, that
fifteen men were lost at a blacksmith-shop on Rush
street.
I fluiMii, the Hunker.
A rumor prevails, and Is by some believed, tha
Henry J Oilman-, tbe banker, was murdered, fn
steadof having been suffocated by fire. His body
was found near his banking-house, which h« had
evidently just left with hit money and valuables In
h‘» arms.