Weekly national intelligencer., 1851-07-19
A FEARFUL SCENE.

A gentleman from Hallowell, who was in Wells
G Co.'s banking house during the great fire at
San Francisco writes the following graphic sketch
of the hair-breadth escape of the inmates:
came nearly losng my life in the e and lost every thing
else. The was, trusting implicitly in Wess
fire proof bc which one doubted was hre proof against
all exena fire, though finished inside with wood The walls
brick two feet thick, the roof covered with cement
thick the window shutters Of boed iron, and the wood
frames least eighteen inches inside Of the shutters People
even moved ewely and valuable papers into It during the
fire for security. Mr.. Wells Gen. James Wilson, the two
Whtcombs, Messs Norton and Sattaee, Mr. E. G. Austin,
he last five being lawyers in the buiding,)
clerks Of Wells, Cspt William L. Howard, Formerly resi-
dent in Hsllowe Wheeler, and myself shut ourselves up
ia the building after the fire had reached M neghborhood
with much water could be got from the well in the yard
outside, in buckets tus &c, intending to stick il out.
There wooden buildings nearly around the block and Dr.
RABIES large thrse-stO,y frame adjoining Wells within
four ess) the When this last got FIRE, the heat
uemsndou and the flames roarsd around the north end
Of the building. down Clay street, "a continuous sheet
the diTecoa cfhA sA snvsopns the whole OF that end
of WelIs building Ia sheet ID roaring Niagara cata
rac Of aams Il was awful 10 bhold. An the wndows
and door-shus that aide bscas heated TO white heat
almost melted and warped into ssmi-circes. The building
became filed with smoke. We thought should suocae.
The flames licked in through the window and door-shuers
in long tongSes setting fire to the woodwork inside. We
fought il like tigers. Our water gave out We forced
down STAIRS and into the bankngroom in the basement be-
low, in the northeast corner The building surrounded
Dy great WOODEN DOck on montgomery Street,
posite, in fames The scutte the roof took 6re
The STAIR all re We sought the only possible
avenue for escape the Bank door on Montgomery street.
which closed and boled the inside. Horrible
late The doors expanded with heat that the bolts
could not be started For moment fate seemed nev
table we mus. be roasted alive when found
iron bar II Norton Sa.talee had already burnt his
hands horribly the iron door in bis frantic attempts open
il. With the aid of the bar the door forced and the
appalling outside presented itself to view
Of fire opposite US, extending long distance up and
down Montgomery street, both sdes and roaring around
the corner Of Clay street. The heat whitening.
Then commenced the for life. Through flames and
smoke, binding sucsng, and scorchDg, rushed atthe
top Of speed My hands and face benumbed
My strength seemed failing, but struggled and staggered
in the only possible direction for escape up Montgomery
street, snl last passed the fiery ordeal and, half dead
and blind at last resched and engines and bathed
with oil in apothecays shop, and finally got off to Tewks
buy in the extreme north Of the city, where have been
SINCE am now able to be about the street. My wounds
healing finely. They not very deep. Every one,
excepting Wheeler was worse burnt than l. Wheeler
saved himself with blanket Wells is fightfuy burnt
Gen. James Wilson. Whicomb and Austin fell down in
the fire. and horribly burnt that neither expected
10 live. They both delrous, and the flesh hangs IN
shreds their bones. Six in neghboring build
ing burnt up in the wsy that near TO-