The Portland daily press., 1866-09-06
The "Pertiand Relief Association, Of
O. Buffalo

Buffalo
1t will be remembered that few weeks
since committee of ladies and gentlemen.
sent by the Portland Relief Association" of
Buffalo, N. T., visited this city for the purpose
of making personal inquiry into the needs of
sufferers by the fire and of ascertaininr how
Usaoy might most -Aav-~.arrTbnte to the
aid of these unfortunates. These visitors were
received by the members of the Aid Commit
tee here, and were shown the details of that
vast system of measures of relief which it has
been found necessary to organize, and were
able to form for themselves some idea Of the
amount of effort which has been required to
prevent or relieve the sufferings of SO many
stripped in moment of all they had in the
world The ladies and gentlemen composing
the. Buffalo committee have returned home
and the report made by them to the Associa-
tion which sent them hither is published in the
Buffalo Daily Courier. 1t is deeply interest
ing paper, and affords another of those evi-
dences, of which our people have received so
many, of the generous kindness and sympathy
awakened everywhere by their terrible calam-
ity. After detailing some incidents of the fire,
and of their visit here, the committee say:
Out of the unutterable confusion and dis
tress Of the next day, the citizens of Portland
had, after six weeks of unceasing labor, brought
comparative order and comfort; had fed, cloth
ed and very nearly housed the sufferers in the
simplest and most expeditions manner sun
plying the bare necessities and these 0nly of
10000 persons. The General Committee, ap-
pointed by the Mayor, consisting of ten of the
most influential citizens, have labored day and
night, entirely setting aside every other inter
est and perfecting a system which has fully
satisfied all committees who have carried to
their city valuable contributions from every
part of the country. Every means that human
foresight can suggest has been brought to bear
upon their work, and we can conscientiously
assure you that everything entrusted to their
hands is used in the best way possible to give
the greatest assistance to the greatest number
A visit to their rooms gave us some insight
into their innumerable duties. We saw ra-
tions distributed and a case of fraud being in
vestigated, while the Chairman was hearing
claims for assistance in building, each one re-
quiring and obtaining the careful investigation
and consideration of the whole committee
They painfully feel the responsibility of their
position, in distributing the large funds en-
trusted to them, SO as to be perfectly just to all
classes of sufferers, setting aside all other con
siderations Brought in contact every day
with thousands of persons all in urgent need.
and many OF them their own personal friends,
their feelings and Judgment are taxed to the
utmost, and they feel that only through the
special strength given them thew have been
and can continue to be supported in their
work. For the end is not yet. Through all
this incessant labor, as we have said, only the
bare necessities have been met The auxiliary
committee of seventy ladies have daily sought
out every one possible, and furnished them
with certificates of their needs, which all come
| under the eye of the gentlemen of the general
committee. The rations given are Simply
ons IN ana sma sGlp tea
Families have been moved from tents to bar
racks, provided with q stove one or two beds
table and chairs; then if the head of the fam
lily was able to work they have been cut of
rom all further supplies. The rations have
been reduced from 5000 to 300, the committee
feeling it absolutely necessary to save all that
is possible of their fund for the coming winter
The laboring classes can at present get work
and pay sufficient to feed themselves.
The report concludes with a touching appeal
to the benevolent people of Buffalo to contin-
ue their efforts in this work of humanity and
kindness. May He who has promised that the
reward of Heaven shall not fail even to the
giver of a cup of cold water, bestow on them
the recompense due to their generous and
Christian kindness. U@pA
A STRAW. = From "Dixons report in the
Dooton AufcTIiSef, VI tne proceedings III Iinnt'
delphia on Tuesday, we take the following as
indicating the set OF the popular current:
The most significant event of the day was
one that occurred in the convention hall, just
as that body adjourned. The Press telegraph
ic despatch of this morning, Announcing that
General Grant and Admiral Farragut had
withdrawn from the Presidential electioneer-
ing party Immediately after the affair at Cleve-
land, was read from the platform, and created a
scene that no one in the hall will ever forget
The effect was instantaneous, ,and spoke the pop
ular feeling in language that could not be mis-
understood. Two thousand men sprang to their
feet at once, thousand more jumped upon the
benches, a hundred voices called for cheers, a
round of nine mighty hurrahs was given for
each o1hcer, hats were tossed toward the cell
ing, men embraced each other in a frenzy OF
delight and for ten minutes three or four
thousand persons testified by every pcssible
kind of wild and exaggerated action the in
tense qualification that swelled in every heart
No trick of words, no eIoquence of Language
can portray the great incident. 1t must stand
solitary and unique in each mans memory.
FRED DOUGLASS ON A "WAn OF Races
Frederick Douglass made speech in Philadel-
phia on Tuesday in the course of which, allud-
ing to the idle fear of war of races. he brought
down tbe housn nv saving +bo+ AZ x,,or n,