The southern press. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1850-1852, 1852-07-15

Toe ef0oe H8o ~ nooSYo0s
The Montreal Herald, of the OH inst, give
various details OF the terrible ccofagration il
that city, from which we CLEAN the following:
Within half an hour after the commencement
q hundred houses were on fire. They were gen
orally the dwellings, of POOR artisans and labor
ers, and it was the most heart rending spectacle
to see the poor people gathering their household
goods together, and carrying them perhaps to
some place where the f,nes would reach them
in few minutes, after carrying them, as they
thought, to u place of safely Frequently, by
the time they had removed one load, it was too
late to return for more. In many instances the
poor mother had just time to grasp her infant
from the flames and rush to III adjoining field OF
garden, and sink down, despairing and exhausted
upon the little remnant Of property which her
husband or children had been able to bring there
From the MAN, or st. Lawrence street. the
fire burned everything before IL along st. Cath
arine and Dorchester, and widening its pathway
up towards Cote a. Baron and downwards to-
wards Craig street. AS it went along in ST.
Dennis street, notwithstanding the most strenu
Gus exertions to save them, the splendid build
ings known az Cornwall Terrace were consumed
The fire having caught in Ellalie's wood. yard
and nothing but wooden buildings intervening
between it and the Montreal General Hopital
that institution was in imminent danger from
about O'clock till about half past 8, and most
strenuous exertions were required to keep the
fire from reaching it.
The Union company did good service here
and drew large quantity of water from the
large cstern on the hospital ground. Some
buildings and fences were also torn down here
and the fire was checked in ST. Dominique street
On the eastern side of the hospital the fire ran
down below Dorchester street to near Lagauche
tere street. Above this i. made clean sweep
up to the vacant ground which skirts Cote
Baron, and extended. eastward along Dorchester,
Catharine and Mignone streets II made clean
sweep TO st. DENIM. street, which was burned
from one end to the oher.
The Bishops church and palace fell prey to
the fame. The greater part of the palace h,d
been newly erected, and was splendid cut stone
building, with beautifully flnted columns before
The st Catharine street front
The fire ran down st. Catha'ine street to the
house of Mr.. Coffin, joint prothonotary, which
was consumed
The buildings on Viger Place, including the
cattle market, &c were destroyed and here the
Fl Q was arrested.
On the lower side, at Elizabeth street, and
i
in one or two houses of Craig street
The loss of personal property it is impossible
to estimate. Many poor working mectanic4
and laborers have lost their little all, and few
of them, we fear, have taken the precau ion to
insure their furniture. From El5.OOO to E2O,-
0)0,we think moderate valuation of these losses,
exclusive of what ha. been lost in the church
and palace, the wood yards and the shops, which
will probably be 100000 The total loss we
should set down at E42O,OOO.
Upwards of 5000 persons must have been
homeless last night, and many of them have, to-
day, no means whsrewith to procure new
shelter for themselves.
The hremen did all that men could do who
had no leaders for a part of the time, and for
the rest, hid to work without water. They
worked at their engines and upon the roofs, in
the demolition of dangerous buildings, from
morning until night, in the midst of fire and
smoke and under broing sun, with temper
allure in the hade of more than 80 degrees.
After the foregoing was written we went to
take last look ut the ruins. II was mournfu
as we drove along the site, Cotea- Barron. The
large vacant field extending from the main
street to ST. Dennis street, lying just under the
Cote, was filed with groups of men, women
and children, and their little piles Of furniture
and goods, while all around and below them
was smoking wilderness covered with chin
neys like burned pine forest, with its scahed
and charred trees, and the Champ de Mars and
Viger square were similarly occupied with
heaps of goods
The above does not include an account of the
second fire. which laid in ruins the Hayes House,
and nearly all that part of the city known as
the Quebec and st. Louis suburbs.