New-York tribune., 1871-10-21
CHICAGO.
EPISODES OF THE FIRE.


world Of course mean world, the world OF society,"
Of white kid gloves and resplcndcnt wedding cards.
that proper people In good and regular standing Ill tno
kid glove churches, pop Into snothers houses um
yIted and quietly dOmieiilato themselves for Wcek
exciting by this conduct no comment wtnteVor ana
creating no surprise do hereby solemnly ssssFera'e
that I am not Boheman-nor q fugitive snve-h0ra q
rat and yet that did, jnst week ngo yesterday morn
ing, drop down upon house whore hal never boon
before and TO whose inmates I had never been intro
duccd, and there have stayed u week. AS We nVed
In North Chicago OF course VIC wero burned out, ana
having been routed out IN our nightclothes ana
drcssIng-gowns at 3 o'clock In the morning.
equally OF courso could secure neahcr
carriage nor wagon, horse wheebarrow, where
others had been aeeng l night At first We took reu0e
far up Lasallest where expected Of course to DO
saie But there 1t fate TO regular success
sion OF streets up TO that streets as repre-
sonted by the friends who lived in tbem and 30 we ac
ay watched the progress Of the fire by the succesVe
refugees 1t seemed as the phanoms Of those unhappy
and districts stalking wallng, and sobong
northwards and rejecting the awfu sceDes they had
witnessed In the scared and paud faces OF their human
| representatives.
At las after seeing Eriest Huron, Superior Chicago
Avenue, and all the streets up to Gethe and Schiller
come sweeping up, again, and We fed for
the second time through crowds Of rearing horses and
and weary people toward ncoln Park. There, ut
leost said, shhll be safe. But OH the sights We
saw in passing Ono famy of friends remember whose
altered aspect nearly broke my heart. We had spent
Saturday evening with them ut their sweet and cheerful
homo, where had gaiy compared. plants nowly
housed for the Winter, and teased zach other about tho
comparative merits Of terrcoba vases, wire-baskets,
and jardnls The old father Of my particular friend
the young lady daughter, interrupted our nonsense by
declaring that had Lived In that house eighteen years.
and there had been this fuss about flowers every
WINTER but that he had seen their flowers live I'LL
Spring yet and he did not believe ho ever should
"wen, you'll this yesr father we don't all burn up
first" laughlngly exclaimed his daughter HOW
strangely that talk oil came back to me, rs
sew the OH father pass slowly by on that
cruel Monday morning, looking as though he had had
mortal blow, while his usually gay daughter with an
old w0oen shawl wrapt round her head tried TO distract
his attention and persuade him that all was not or might
not be- lost. Poor old mani ! know he had piodded
fsithtHy through long life Of extremely moderate sue
cess below tho average OF Western men, only to see him
sclf ruined now when brighter prospects hal begun 10
come to him. Then saw o grandmother, VINO knew
had been bodrdden for years. hobbng along supported
by her faithful and daughter; but knew by her
that the could not DO for Long and that there
would be further fear Of flame or flood for her.
But, although you may think am long In
coming at that which promised, must tell you
come Of the ludlcrous features OF the scenes which
spread themselves with ncessant Kaleidoscope
changes before eyes. Tho curious inequality OF
value Of the property saved struck our sense or the
udicrOus, IN the mdSt terrOr ol
fugitivcs One walked along apparently perfectly
Lappy lugIng out Of danger in one hand kerosene
lamp, and in tho other ornamental cOloGnebotte
Hero struggled an enormously fat German woman, who
held by the middle cord to which attached at one
end little kid, aud at tho other terrier dog On the In
sane behavior Of that unwlngy and unnaturay unitod
coupled With what wonderful ingenuity they succeeded
n entanglng the legs Of unwary and absentmnded fu-
gitiycs Till one unhappy man, who was laooriOusy
escaping with part OF glshxture and an umbrella
fairly succumbcd to this obstacle, and measured his
length on the with his treasures, while the dog
and kli pranced' wildly over his prostrate body We
had to laugh though the cruel wind. already fearful
gale from tho northeast, and incredibly strength
ened by tho Ere, beat upon us and almost
blinded us, and blew scorchlnR cioudS
of sand into our which hurt like redhot iron
filings; still we stopped In the street and laughed like
idiots But at last all the fun was waked and soorchcd
and out OF and reached tho lower gate OF the
Park fairly gupng for breath, and still pursued by the
fierce mpacabe wind which seemed to think that the
fire could not drive us ont OF life fast enough.
What n sight the Lake Drive" was Imagine lovely
sweep OF clear bright sand, three miles long, with beau
tifu Lake Michigan for its oceanborder Imagine It's
usual gay panorama Of lovely and gayydressed women
Chicago's best and brightest, with their children IN
every variety Of pretty ald tasteful vehicle from mag
nfcent four-horse barouche to tho lttlo basket
chaise in which Chicago has especially de
lighted. I do not believe a serener scene Of
innocent pleasure has been than our drive on
sunny days and stop this buest Of all blue Mon
days and look, IL this wind viii let you, at the
same water the sand Down below ut the foot of
superior-st., had been unhappy families by hund
reds who deuded by the idea of water, had rushed to
the edge of the treachcrous food only to find themselves
between two Deaths and driven by the cruel pursuing
flame and smoke into the pltllcss water Here delicate
mothers held babies Of weeks days. and even hours DID,
alternately choking with smoke and drenched with
WATER Hero was q young husband who, finding 1t i'm
harn x-if
sand except her head then between her and the
water soaking his pockethandkerchief TO lay over her
mouth. One infant, whose parents among the
weathest people in Chicago lay In his feeble mothers
arms from Monday at dawn till Tuesday afternoon,
without food, and then rescued, and strange to
say, still lives. But must not dlgress shall
have DONE My only excuse is that when think Of
that time incidents press upon my mind they
told then and aferward till 1t as If could
stop writing In the Park along tho drive, then
was such motley crowd collected In
pleasure garden, thuk. before Every sort Of vehicle
from the heaviest reiEhtwagon to the ghtest ponycaT
rage-peope in the first, goods in the last cice
but all crammed. Carriages with six, eight and ten peo
pe and everything FROM silk dresses to kitchen
pans piled In beside; German grocers, who seemed to
saved nothing but cheeses but who would not part
with pound for love money, though my brother and
offered them large prices in order to improve
cracker diet. 1t estimated that there 10000
people who slept those chilly sands that night and 80
babies born the prairie before morning Many
Of the laboriously. saved goods burned they
stood IN the Park Itself, and o few days |
afterward Q gentleman pointed out to little heap
Of ashes in the road. "That Is my furniture" said ho
" four loads"
As We tugged along gazing at the frantic crowd, and
almost choked by the hot wind, my companion ejacu-
lated &C, don't you think may well die at n"
assented, but still, inconsistent mortals will,