The Cairo daily bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1870-1872, 1871-10-12

whole central portion of the city was In
vowed IN the ruin. It were a usclcs, tas,
to essay TO deal in particulars. lndividu
ais were lost sight of in the vast surgin,
multitudes turned into the streets. 5,
particular localite3 lost all notice annie
the general ruin Of an entire city. An,
still the multitude increased along Tn,
lake shore and on Michigan avenue. No
long were they allowed 20 remain here
Inc hre iend was IN close and hot pursuit
Several blocks on tnat avenue were IL
nited by the flying fakes of fire. and Tho
great crowd was pushed further toward
| the south.
AT this tine the fire had c, ten led east I,
Wabash and Michigan avenue. and wa,
| moving north toward the river. The board
OF trade building, the courthouse. tie Met
| ropolitan hotel, the po,t-ofiice st. jane,
| hotel, Sherman house the fremont house
Matteson house and anI vast number OF
the best business houses in the very centr,
| OF the city, we're all burning. Before day.
| light the whole district between the river
| and Wabash avenue, and from jackson
| street to Lake street, wa, one great fer,
| furnace. Several blocks of magniiccnt
structures on Wabash avenue extending
east to Michigan avenue. which it wa.
thought for a time would resist the fury OF
the fiery tornado, at last succumbcd, and
was speedily made into .hapele., heap
Of ruins.
ALONG THE LAKE SHORE.
The intense heat Of the fire in IT,, city
had forced the vast multitude collected
along Michigan avenue back 20 th3 fur
thest verge Of the beach, and southwark
into Lake park and even down to Cottage
grove. The day dawn found rot fewer
than 10000 persons exposed t. the wind
and mist Of the lake, who had been but a
few short hours before surrounded b. tho
comforts of home.
1t IL impossible to describe the scene pre-.
sented by these now houseles. homcie..
and, IN many Gases, pcnn.less people
llither had been brought the. old, the IN.
firm and the sick, rescued from burnin .
homes 1t wa- indeed pitiablc sight t.
see the pale cmaciated and suffering men,
women and children, removed from COM
Portable couches, and laid out in the open
air with perhaps only a blanket or two un-
der them, and only the ,mokc.huZcd sky
for covering above them. The amount
OF suffering thus cntaled upon the help
less sick cannot be estimated.
sLEEPLEss NIGHT AND AHoPELESs DAWN.
All night the fire fieud confined its
dread work of devastation. Strangers
had been hurried from their quarters in
in the hotels and compelled 10 take their
chances, in the general chaos into which
every thing was thrown by uutoward
calamity to the city.
All night the hurrying throngs had been
driven before the fast.travelliSg flames.
Goods taken from burning houses 10 local
/ los a1 "a, ha g
gcred again, and had to be removed to still
more remote section, Of the city or obau-
doncd at last as prey 20 the flames. Sud
denly enveloped in dense clouds of ,utf-
ocatng smoke great crowds rushed into
the lake or river. The number of live,
thrs lost mn,t have been O. eat Reliable
persons state that they saw numbers of
people throwing themselves into the Lake
10 escape a more horrible fate by being
stranglci 10y the sitting clouds Of hot
smoke from the raging cauldron Of fire
on the south side of the river
Ii the night had been one Of alarms and
ceaseles' anxiety to scores Of thousands, the
dawn found them hopeless and desparing.
The wind, which had been blowing from
the first breeze that amounted almost to
gale, seemed to gather strength with .he
coming day, and careered over the doomed
city, creating whirlwinds of fire. which
seemed TO clutch every object and reach
far out in quest of more food to appcase its
insatiate fury.
No pen can adequately describe the
awful sublimity of the scene. The light
from the first buildings which had fallen
prey to the flames had not faded away,
before the advance columns of fire were
two miles away, of the North division,
leaving in its track but glowing fires and
drifting ashes.
THE EXTENT OF THE RUIN WROUGHT.
It's impossible even to conjecture the
full extent Of the losses wrought by this
unparalleled conila.ration. The track cf
the fire is Il mile and a half in width and
between three and four miles in length en-
bracing the most substantial of the once
hourishinS and great city of Chicago. All
the.great hotels, public buildings, and eX-
tensive mercantile houses are but rude
heaps Of ashes and fragments ofbricli and
stone.
SOME sTRIKING INCIDENTS
At one time, after the fire had been rag.
ing in the centre of the city and while tho
fire was raging on the south side of the
river considerable number of persons
were cut OF from crossing and could not
retreat { II account of the flames Tho wa
ter or the fire was the alternative present.
ed. Not long did they hesitate, and the |
whole party were soon struggling in the |
river. II Is not known ifall safely reached |
the shore but one brave fellow seized Il |
little girl plunged ia aud safely crossed |
with his precious burden
While the fire wa, raging in the v.cin- |
~ of Madison and Drarbornc streets. and !
when Ne Vickers theatre and the udia- /
'cnt buildings were crumblng into ruins. /
above the red furnaces, by which it wa, !
rose the dark outline Of the ,
Irbmc building, which seemed munu-
ncnt fitted to resist the licrcest onset, Of
he dcvouring element There were ruin,
all around and still it reared its lofty walls.
,eemingly s. ,cathless. But like its neigh
DJr, it too was doomed, and very soon
'amc down with laundering crash leav-
ny only Il portion OF tAc wall, near the
'Orner of Madison and Dearborn streets,
jrokcn monuments of the terrible cnlumi-
y. Men went about as if dcmentad
nor is it wonder, Who could remain
'alm ?
the GHoULs AMONG THE RUINS.
No sooner was the extent Of the disaster
,nown abroad than the ghouls of the race.
Who ever haunt scenes Of disaster and
misfortune, began t. gather. Thievc-
Mingled with the great stricken multitude
nd busily piled their vocation,
ven in that dire hour Of ca