The Shasta courier., 1863-07-25


the moment fancied myself transformed BY
some magic into Russian lord, who had
only to speak to find himself surrounded by
willing slaves.
But the fire of which l have spoken, was
still raging, with increased fury, within sight
from my window; and as the wind began 10
rise and carry the flames across the street to
other buildings, the possibility suddenly
struck me of the confagration becoming gen
eral and that ere long the destroying element
might force us to leave our princely quarters,
to return to the ignoble miseries of the sell
dier's camp.
1t was fearful night, the first and last
spent within the walls of Moscow. Nv
princely bed served me only once. | went
to sleep with the fire raging in the distance.
but awoke to see the angry flames leaping
near me. The wind had changed, and was
now blowing strongly toward our quarters,
and the fire had advanced so rapidly that my
window felt the heat, and I could see the
burning cinders dropping thickly around US.
and knew that the noble building. which
had hoped wodld have been my home for
months to come, must soon become fiery
furnace, like those in sight. and then black
and desclate ruin. To be prepared for the
worst, hasteced TO put on my clothes and
look after the few valuable things | had al
ready collected; and scarcely had got every
thing arranged for q sudden departure, VIXEN
the alarm was sounded that cur mansion was
really on fire.
On reaching the street which I did in COM
pany with some Of my brother officers, | saw
that the building had caught on the roof,
and that from the headway of the fire all
around us, nothing whatever in that locality
could be saved. Asw FASTENED away from
quarter no longer safe, | became witness of
scenes OF the most terrible description. In
marching into the city, and along silent and
deserted streets, we had formed the impress
ion that nearly all the Inhabitants had fled
but as we now found them abroad by thous-
ands-men, women, and. .children-all trying
to make their escape from the surrounding
horrcrs-we knew that these must have beer
saereted in their dwellings, shops and stores,
till driven forth by their merry foe.
But they had now fed from one danger,
only to encounter others as fearful The sol
ders. no longer under any restraint, were
giving themselves up to the widest excesses
and, half erazed with liquors, which they got
hold Of IN the course of their general plunder-
ings, they were now prepared to rob the de-
lenceless citizens oftheir money and jewels,
and even murder them in cold blood when
ever such deeds suited their hellish inclina-
tons. Putting no restraint on their beastv
passions, they became the especial terror of
the female sex, and tore shricking wives
from the ar..,s of their husbands, and inno-
cent girls from tie nocks of their mothers,
10 dishonor them with q brutality seldom
witnessed even in the land Ct native sayages.
70 see whole streets bprnin g-the flames
leaping wildly upward to the black, rolling
cloud OF smoke that stretched over them like
funeral pallAto see these same streets
crowded with human beings, some trying to
escape with life, some with plunder, and
others reckless of consequences, bent on the
qualification of the vilest passions-to hear
the shouts of triumph, the oaths of blasephe-
my, the shsie1s of terror and despair, allcom-
mingled with the awful roaring Of the flames
to zee these sights and hear these sounds,
filed the sympathetic heart with horror
which no language can portray.
And everywhere as we pushed on through
the burning city, the same appalling scenes
were before US, behind US, and about u.s.
What the amount of human suffering then
and there was, within that devoted city, can
never be known. Thousands on thousands
perished, and both the couquerors and con-
CURED often crossed the threshold of eternity |
together. The retreating foe had filled the !
hospitals with their wounded and left them |
to their fate, and that fate was to be conslm-
ed in that dreadful confagration, whose ut
ter devastation no earthly power could stay. |
In vain did they shrek for succor-there |
were none to save. Palaces and novels, |
churches and prisons, stores and dwellings, |
the richest and the poorest, the grandest and |
the meanest, alike went down in one COM
mon ruin and everywhere there was a sac
rifce of hum an life, by weapon OF by fire. |
Frenzied by liquor, horror and passion, men |
fell upon each other and fought to the death, |
or lifted their murdsrous hands against every |
human being that crossed their path and of |
those that escaped, hundreds left their trails |
of blood and CHASTITY corses for the advan-
oiag fire to obliterate OF the citizens, some |
died of grief, some of fear. some were mur-
dered. some slew themselves in despair. or
because Of their own sense of shame and de- |
graduation, some were overpowered by the |
flames, some went insane, and of those who |
escaped from the burning city, many per-
ished of cold and hunger, or from diseases |
engendered. | had witnessed the horrors of |
war in almost every phase. but this so far
overshadowed all l had ever seen. that even |
now it stands out as the darkest and most
dreadful memory of my life.
Il was my fortune 10 escape from the perils
that surrounded me then-to live through
the dreadful suferings of our subsequent |
memorable retreat-to have since enjoyed |
many year of peace and quiet-but the re
collection Of the burning of Moscow. above |
all others, will haunt me to my grave"
WELCOME TO TRAIToRs Sacranneto