New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1871-10-26
sHREDs AND PATCHES.

SHREDS AND PATCHES.
STORIES OF THE DARK DAYs-CoNFLICr1Nd ELE-
MENTs IN THE NEW CTTY-EPIs0DEs.
IFROM A SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT OF THb ThboNnl
CucAco Oct. 1.-THE world stops no moro
for the loss Of city than the loss OF Datte or an
Whoeyer has had the good fortune TO look upon nese
Or,evous acres Of dssoAtion Enc0 the re must have
en moved to this somewhat trte reflection. Hint this
to your energetic neghbor at the dnnertable who mas
lost block in the center Of the city and palace on the
nvenue Prom experience know what he VIII say
Let them mourn who can't do better; ve moan TO go
ahead with New Chicago greater than the other I'VE
have learned how to make city" the universal strain,
land to try our hand again." The entire tone
Of press and people the quntessence OF Pluck and In
the words Of Robert Collyer whose utterances Of
Sunday have strengthened not only his hearers,
but the whole city every man and woman is bound Tor
the next Eve years to do his or her "leve best" This
the "stR upper lip" story There i Of course another
quite CHARACTERISTIC, but am bound to say not 90
general influential. "But we have been 30 years
growing and budngthe great city Of stone and mortar
and that could be destroyed IN 80 hours how shall we
trust In stone iron again. even II we had strength
and years to build another city The strongest building
in the tOwn-the Custom House-stOod wrecked from
three minutes of fire the hundreds OF roncad reproof
buildings fell before the breath OF the flame, without
waiting for the fire itself marble hotel represent
ing q million OF money, sunk into ashes in three
minutes Where then, mad men and vain, Is the wisdom
Of png up costly edoes here for the wind to blow upon
and the flames to smother in their hot BREATH The
conditions must always exist on the nhospitabe
shore of the lake, the rghtful winds Of Autumn and
Winter continual menace, and there is no safety
for our homes on this fatal spot" This is the voice OF
Of Chicago who certainly never had much hand In
her greatness But then 1t is perhaps well that the
roseae picture the sangune should be discrsety
contrasted with somber showngs lest exceeding hope
| fulness to empty-headed brag
So far the country that uprose as 1t has never risen
since Sumter to DO satisfied with the excel
lent discretion OF this enthusiastically American com
muny. While the entire functions OF law and Justice
have been suspended they have boon law-abidng and
lust While weighed down by the heaviest calamity ever
put upon a modern people, they have come mutually to
each others aid and given higher character to the civil
zaon Of the age. Three hundred thousand people are
not stirred as these have been and at set to the
rcadmi Of labor and rccuporatiOn without some indi
cations of the original Adam 1t would be well for Chicago
and we'll for the country II the Of these fiery days
we're the climax in her chapter Of sorrow.
Even now there sinister rumors Of Outbreaks by
foreign element that does not choose to fall IN line with
the new army OF workers. "The flames did not spare
the rCh" they say and IT, the ministers say they
were a visitation Of God, why should we, who shaved all
our lives to make other rich and ordly turn TO now
and help them back to their arrogant places againi
Why, when the country is rushing to aid, should we
lift hand or tho that have rolled for
their insOlent wealth without thought OF our bur
dcns and endless adversitesl If they waut they
must pay price; we are all equal now"
Groups Of sullcn men, not without intelligence hover
about the dcpos of distribution and ncc small mutncs
among the crowds that fed from these hosptable
doors. The welltOdo citizens regard them with dread
not unlike that felt for the Commune By the upper
class PaTisians.
As late as Saturday, groups Of sadeyed women tocd
through the cemetery seeking hastily-abIndoned
goods and chatels. horde OF rufans, prepared for
emergency infested the place in the thckest Of the
tumult and terror and by violence and chCane robbed
and children Of their scant possessions 1t was
not in few isolated either. There hundreds
Of cases fully recorded and Of the mscreants will
I've brought to Justice. Evidences Of barbarism and
atrocity accumulate all sides, but liquor to
have insgated the most Of the outrages. Women
| fleeing in terror before the crawling flames
| were beset by drunken hordes, who In wanton
| malice threw their alcoholic beverages their
dresses and garments, to give the flames a better
chance Great crowds Of flying women were thus beset,
and suffered badly from burns. On the North Side,
above the liquor establishments perfect orge was be-
gun when the liquors began out, and lasted far
into the night OF fire and destruction. Before dozen
saloons. mbeciles lay PROSTATE and unable to move,
even when the heavens above them seemed armament
fame and sparks. Many, who were not too far gone,
managed to reel along the streets bowling with excru
catng pain, their garments floating in red fame about
them, and their flesh soaring with the hot Goals rained
down from the clouds of fire that for hours covered the
entire city These of the detached episodes
| that eliminated In the general horror Of death
and desolaton-and two generations OF gossips
| will not exhaust hundredth part Of them. In
the South Sde in modest franc second story, woman,
with children and husband, occupy two cramped little
rooms Before the fire they felt crcumscrDed In OF
| the roOmest houses Dcarborn-st., while owning
whole block Of handsome dwellings at hand. In
the sgOnies Of that awful night little suf
located and the mother having sent the live children to
place of safety covered the little dead body carefully
and taking 1t in her arms strobe resOucly through the
fugitive that wrestled through the streets
the Lake the Park In the confusion her bun
de evidently mistaken for collection OF vauables
was rudey snached from her. and turning wildly, she
saw burly ru1an making away with her dead child
In the horror OF the moment she could get aid but
resolving follow the rufan until she could attract
help, the terrified mother darted after the rObber.
At the first bridge q dense wedged
In, and the rObber for the first time got chance
to see prize The mother at his heels and
him back with fright when the dead face be-
fore him. He flung the body into the crowd and made
of The woman preserved her dead and buried 1t de-
Gently and nOw with the possessions Of the past entirely
swept away tolls for her family and indebted to
kindness Of strangers for the calico dress that
her.
ENGLISH RELIEF FOR CHICAGO.
| ENTHUSIASTIC MEETING OF AMERICANS IN LON
DON-sPEECHES AND RESOLUTIONS EXPRESS
ING SYMPATHY WITH THE SUFFERERS.
IRON THE REGULAR CORRESPONDENT OF THB TRIDUNE.l
LONDON, Oct. 12.-No event within my re-
collection has stirred such sympathy England as the
Chicago fire. 1t hardly till yesterday that began
to measure the extent the calamity even now we