The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1871-10-17


ing to the west side we took night walk
along State street, through the burned quarter
of the South Division, but last week the ar.
chitectural glory of the Northwest. The ourn
inc coal piles lighted the path sufficiently. The
fire has swept all that concentrated wealth and
ELEGANCE out of existence All OF the best por'
ton of Chicago has vanished, except some
rJws of elegant residences south of Polk street
through the ruins by resident of Chicago ioI
eighteen years, but in that wilderness of squat
rubbish he missed luis landmarks many times,
and finally led us square ont OF the way. One
of the most perplex!ng losses Is that of all the
records in the courthouse, and with them all
absolute means OF determining the validity OF
titles.
We have seen no disorder yet In any quar-.
| ter. The ruins are deserted tonight by all
but few policemen. The avenues that re-
main unscathed are crowded with people.
chiefly men, but they are quiet and well-be-
haved. Few have gone hungry to-day, for
wagons have heen distributing bread and hams
lies have been exposed on the prairies, but
during to-day have sought better quarters,
and the number OF those who tonight are alb
solutely without shelter Of any kind Is COM
paratively small They feared to return to
any part of the city before the fire was SUBJ
dued.
The old and leading citizens of Chicago are
benumbed by this awful visitation, but cannot
] be said to have lost their nerve. They have
T. viving faith that the insurance will pay the
o,''k of losses, and the vivid sympathy mani
| tes ed all over the Union Is reassuring and
-.eeripg. But the question is. what can be
done? Winter Is close upon US, and extensive
building plans must be postponed. II tue
ruined blocks are restored in all their former
splendor, they will again be at the mercy OF
| the wooden West Side and the prairie winds.
| The Chicago that remains Is terrible combua-
tible remnant, and there is no water to qnench
fresh confagration. If the Chicago OF the
| future Is to be secure against rulnous confia-
| grafton, the houses that remain standing
must be rebuilt also. This coHfagration has
proved the manner of the building OF the en-
| tire city to be fatal organic error. Were 1t
not for these considerations Chicago would
doubtless rise again as If BY magic, for her
own potential men stand firm, and the nation
| backs them up.
The loss of life during the confagraton Is a
subject upon which the newspaper reporters
have been able to gather very little definite in
| formation The city editor of the Tribune says,
| that at least one hundred persons were burned
on the Rush street bridge whittier they ran
| from the rooms oi the Chicago Historical Socl'
ETY., supposed to be fre-proot. Many were
doubtless overtaken asleep In their rooms oy
gale, awakening and killing them at the same
Instant by miraculous shafts of fire. If at
P. NJ. lonely dodgers In the upper stories
of Cincinnati should hear an alarm OF
fire, examine the card and hnd the
locality two miles away, tcey would
retire to their blankets reasonably Ger
tain of safety. And yet, in Chicago men
who lodged Two miles from the first building
that burned late in the evening, perished in
their beds before daylight. They were with
cred Into ashes at single stroke. Doubtless
numbers OF Geicace and aged persons perish
ed from cold and excitement. Amid the tre-
mendous confusion OF the moment the facts IN
this regard are very hard to run down. In
fire like this the list Of the missing unknown
can never be made out. Wild rumors prevail
also In regard to the lynching OF incendiarles-
nothing definite has been obtained on that
subject. The destruction Is so complete In the
burned territory that wreckers aud prowlers
are left without the slightest occupation.
There is nothing to steal except red hot safes,
The imperial Chicago OF 1871 Is gone. The
exactness with which oil its best blocks were
devoured looks like an intelligence 10 the hend
of fire, The whole business fabric Of the city
has toppled to the ground. The banker is as
penniless as his clerk, the nabob as anxious as
his seamstress. The tide OF trayeiers nna no
hotels, and are turned into other currents.
Amusements are withered on the stalk; every
theatre has gone down. Amyriad OF the blaH-
dishments Of civilization have disappeared.
The merchant prince has no grand bazaar 10
60 to In the morning, no place to return to IN
the evening. Railroads carry out motley
throng of miserables, and return without an
immigrant The Chicago River is empty OF
keels. The even balance of supply and de-
mand Is smashed out OF proportion. The In
dustries of the West Side, of the suburbs and
of tributary cities, feel the shock OF sudden
amputation. The sun Of the Northwestern
Ststes has black spot on 1t as dig almost as
Its own disc, and the whole family OF local
planets must beware of the coming winter.
Happy are they in the possession of such over
flowing granarles.
The arrivals of tents will not do much to
render the unfortunates comfortable on these
gusty prairles, and at this time, when hres are
SC essential to health and personal comfort
1t will be found necessary to transport thous-
ands Of the inhabitants OF Chicago to olher
towps and cities. There are no houses here
for them, and that settles 1t. Business will
recover slowly. Much will be indefinitely sus-
pended, much lost. Chicago will be rebuilt
Internationally, but 1t would be dreadful 10
rear 1t again on the present and past plan. VI
the kindling wood that started the conhlgra.
ton not hu1dredth part has been used, and
it cannot be rendered harmless until pulled
down. It consists OF the whole West Division,
which stands Intact.
Scenes In the Tragedy.
The future historian of the great hre of Chi
cago will have as thrilling theme as the
plague of London. Already through the
smoke OF the yet smouldering confagration,
we begin to catch glmpses Of the many cpl
sodes OF Individual suffering or daring that
heightened the picturesque horrors Of this
heavy calamity.
A HOLOCAUST OF CRIMINALS.
In the burning of the courthouse was repeat
ed one of the most painful incidents OF the
fate of the Paris Commune. The Hotel de
Vile was then consumed. and with 1t num-
Der of prisoners confined in its cells. So with
the Chicago Courthouse The jailor believed
1t to be fre-proot, and refused to let out his
prisoners, although an excited crowd clamor-
ed for their release, and even threatened him
with death. He fled. and within half an hour
the building was j. flames, and the seventy
convlcts confined in 1t perlshed by the most
hldeous of deaths. Their fate seems terrible
enough, and yet had they been released they
might have aggravated the destruction and
anarchy.
Ku-KLUxISG THE ISCENDIARIEs.
As 1t was, fends In human shape were not
wanting in the midst of this awful ruin to ply
the torch and to add robbery and murder to
the woes of this stricken people. The signi6-
cant dispatch relating that several OF these
/ - Ioo, r,N fnf skno