The States and Union. [volume] (Ashland, Ohio) 1868-1872, 1871-11-01

home.
1 noticed on my way home, a man
with a spade, digging in an open lot;
and the thought of burying our goods
in the Garth was suggested to my mind.
L hurried home, procured a spade and
set to work and with the help of NJ.
and Dot who carried all the dishes
and other small articles into the back
yard, 1 had neatly buried, under two
feet of earth, by about eleven o'clock,
what proved to u surprise to be a
good two-horse wagonload of chatteis.
While this vas being done Maggie
had packed two trunks, one with
clothing of the heavier kind including
my new suit and her own dresses with
three of Dots best mes and the 9TH
er with un~derclothes, sheets, handkcr-
chiefs and summer clothing. We now
began to feel the heat and to think Of
being off. We had been looking for
a wagon to convey SOM of things
to a place of safety; but every N
had been engaged before the middle
of tho forenoon and the drivers were
apparently quite deaf. So the ques-
ton of how W. were to 60 came upon
us with a force which was not to be
dallied with. We thought We could
not leave all to burn and felt certain
we could get no one to help us, SO
bidding my wife and Dot take a light
load-hats, furs, &c-and walk up
Sedgwick street to the northward,
keeping on that street unless it got
too hot for them, and in the latter
event crossing the river to the West
Side, I remained long enough to put
the cook-stove in the middle of the
back yard and set the trunks on the
sidewalk; then gathering up the pill
lows and bed-clothes which Maggie
had tied into two bundles, I started
to overtake my family. 1 travelled
mp Sedgwick st. half a mile, and not.
finding my wife I left my load in a
front yard and started back. On my.
way 1 met Maggie with another loadf
which she had just brought from the
house, having left Dot. and the first
load at a certain house, the number
of which she gave me She told me
that if I hurried back 1 might yet saves
the large trunk. 1 did hurry, and
saved both of them temporarily by.
Harvesting myself to them with the
clothesline and dragging them over
the sidewalk quite a distance, where L
met a neighbor with an express wagon,
who had returned for another load of
his goods and finding his house too
hot to get anything more out, 1 offered
him ten dollars to put my trunks on
his wagon and take them somewhere
out of the way of the fire. 1 then
made all possible haste to where
Maggie said she had halted and could
find nothing of her nor learn that she
had been there. When I reflected
that the!las thine / had see my wife she
CARRYING was q load much too heavy
for her, and that she had already been
laboring excessively over six hours
and under great excitement, and also
that she had been quite i'll the day.
previous. I began to be much alarm
ed for her safety and then to what as
surance had I that my little girl but
| six years old would remain faithfully,
where her mother had placed her,
while every N else was hurrying away
I think I travelled up and down that
street pretty fast for an hour or so
and looked farther through a whiri-
wind of small gravel and brickbats
than lever did before or hope to again.
1t was now near the middle of the az
ternoon. The fire was about half a.
mile north of our house. 1 had been
from the fire to the northern limit of
Sedgewick street and back almost into
the jaws of the flames several times
The lost ones were not On Sedgewick
street, or if they we're, they must be
in some house-probabiy my wife was
too i'll to be on the look out for me-.
Possibly they might have been run.
over and left too. 1 thought I sboald
60 and look in the Park, they might
have gone there. It's a large Park
more than n mile long, and went
through it twice pretty thoroughly;
then I went west near TO the river
then I went north a mile or more and.
it was dark. Dark outside apd dark
inside. Dark back towards the fire,
although it was still burning brightly,
and dark on towards the future, and 1
was tired. I guess my body could
have endured another day if it had n
motive for endurance, but my mind
| was tried. I rested till about nine
o'clock, II en- walked back with a faint
hope of meeting them, but I only met
the fire about four miles from where
it had started twenty-three hours be-
fore, and nearly spent for want of
fuel. I then returned to the house of
a Mr.. Williams who had kindly offer
ed me the inequalities of his house
and remained till morning.