Baton-Rouge gazette. [volume] (Baton-Rouge, La.) 1819-1856, 1842-01-01

tured by certain PRISONERS "' IL
which war. to be executed by firing the On'i'-
ings.
Tur SaNTa FE ExpEp1rIoN.-lt is but 100
,rue tina, this expedition has fallen into the
hanas Of the Mexicans. If rumors ne true'
some Of the members we're snot, while the
other-. after the most inhuman treatment
we're gmarched to Mexico. The capture was
effected through strategy. Serious appreheh-
sions exist for the life and safety Of Mr.. Zen
dali. one of the editors7of the Picayune'
F,nr.-With the view of giving correct
information to persons at ? distance anu :
MISC apoIogising for the non-appearance OF
our.shcet last Saturday, we VIII give a
hr;ef account of the accident that betel
Baton Rouge, on Thursday the I'D
December.
Near . o'clock, P. NJ, that days. the cry
.f "fre!'' was heard in our Streets anu a.
tho same instant a dense volume OF smoke
md fame was seen to issue from the dwell
l;np Of Mr.. Babin, situated at the upper
end. and ON the lower side, OF Lafaye''e
street. The buildings above, below ana
around, were old frame dry us
finder and about rs comlussinie. Ano
wind was driving down from the north
west with a .perfect rush" bearing with
il cinders. flames and fire-brands INTO Inc
,nost compact section of the city. n
result is m~oreFeadily imagined man ue-
scribcd. BY almost su%per-hnnan exer.
t;o,s on mart of the fire companies, soldiers
and citizens generally, aided by the d,a'
ponal course Of the wind, the fire. on tue
loTser side ofthe street, was arrested. ms
proved the salvation OF the city, whlch
must have been otherwise totally reduced
10 ashes.
Tbe flames, however, traversed the
street and in q few seconds the building
in which the ~post-ofice was kept, and all
around it, were in a furious blaze. M
devastation was now rapid and sure; but
one engine, mo ~ had hose sufficient to
plav from the river, and the water brought
in buckets served only TO increase The heat
of the fire. "Saurc qui pent," escape who
can) now seemed to he che motive princl-
ple of every one who had property In the
~neiohborhood. Each one worked, like a
steam engine, to get his " effects out Of
DANCER: and we believe there was nearly
as much property lost in the melee as was
,devoured by the torrent of fire which fol-
lowed closely after With tempestuous rage.
But to shorten a story in which We, are,
perhaps, too deeply interested to speak
with becoming feeling. 1--WE could never
"~ereet'' over misfortunes that touched as
personality, in the space of two or three
short hours, at most, some thirty from
buildings, with all the aIneliorations there
20 Belonging, were consumed. An entire
square, with the exception of one building
and three sides of another square, comprise
the burned district On the following MGR
ming, where the roar Of the flame, mingled
with the shrieks Of women, children firemtn
the rumb.ing of engines, sthe rapid tramp
of counties feet" and the crash of fall
ling timbers, had sent up, the day previous
n noise like the 'rush Of mighty waters
all was now still; and where the red glare
of the scorching embers had lent a scarle
red to tins moon-1it sky, a sheet of ash
es, white as fields of snow, was spread out
above which, like lonely, naked trunks o
the thinned forest in "cold, cold winter,
rose here and there a desolate chimney
The scene was grand; and the slow, sal
tread of little groups who traced their hes
itatinG way around the ruins, impressed
the prospect with a melancholy more thai
natural.
The loss to Baton Rouge by this fl
can with difficulty be estimated. Ih'
> most agreeable and most business portion
of the city was selected by the destroying
element. Many of those who owre'
property are poorly prepared, TO rcplacl
their tenements again; and many occu
pants, having lost every thing, wou!
scarcely be able 10 recommence their busi
ness. even if rooms were at command.
In November. when the fire occurred i
the p%cnitentiarv, we had occasion to speai
of the efficiency of engine No ]. 1t
but sheer Justice, and will be so consldere
bv all properly acquainted with the facts
that some public testimonial be again CIV
en- of the great service rendered by tina
engine on the Odd. The members of tn
other companies will not think us invid'
Gus in this notice, for every one saw tina
it was no want of will on their parts, tina
less was done by them than by Mol Tn
latter having a good quantity of hose
piaved from the river, and, it is believed
by numerous persons, was the means
saving all that has been saved of that RAJ
OF the city in which the fire tr.g:na:ei =
For one, we do not hesitate to affirm TIL,
for when the building next to the dwellin
Mr.. Jean Pierre Michel caught fire. Will
she heat / 4 the street was so intense tha
few, very few. ventured TO pass befor
it, we saw the foreman of No l, with Nh
Carmena and Mr.. Isett, expose themselves
pipe in hand, tothe bkstering atmosphere
and ~extinguish the fame. The pipe caugh
fire in their hands while doing this. MI
SIocumb, the foreman, st The time of thu
risking every thing for Others, lost ever
thing, even to the last article of clothing
of his own. We hear that it is the inter
tion of certain citizens to furnish hina vii
more substantial recognition of his inva
liable services than a newspaper notice ca
he deemed !; and we sincerely hope it ma
be done, for hone more richly merit it.
The citizens having made suitable n,er
tion, in q series of resolutions handed U