The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1871-10-20

North Side Hundreds were engaged in put
ting up shanties to shelter them from the
rlgors of winter, Of which tie temperature of
to day was a sharp reminder. Thus far some
two hundred OF these improVised dwellings
have been put up or been commenced, and
only a few days hence Chicago will closely
resemble those temporary towns which marked
the progress of the Pacific Railroad. 1t is re-
quired that these shanties shall not be more
thai one story high, and the requirement is
generally obeyed; but I saw three which were
two stories high. In several cases, while
the father was building the house, the mother
and children were gathered near by arranging
remnants Of household goods saved from the
flames ready to be placed in the new domcie
when finished. Only few hours are required
to complete these make-shifts Tor dwellings.
/ saw just now mother, worried by five small
wailing children, under shed quietly engaged
in cooking their MONDAY meal OF food, fur,
nished by generous nation, using shattered
stove picked up somewhere among the ruins.
Scenes like this can be encountered at every
step.
THE DEAD BODIES.
It is an impossibility for the human mind to
conceive OF sight more heartrending than
the one presented at No. Ga Milwaukee avenue,
the temporary morgue for the reception of the
victims Of the confagration. The place Is In
charge of officer Mitchell, and guarded by
strong posse of police, but despite the siren
uous exertions it is impossible to maintain
anything like system or regularity IN the eX-
hi6ltion OF the bodies. Thousands of people
are congregated thereabouts. and fairly be-
siege the building. Mothers in search of their
missing children, wives for their husbands,
and husbands for their wives and families.
children sobbing for their lost parents and
friends-all sunk to the very depth OF human
misery and desolaton. The number OF bodies
so lar brought ir reaches nearly or quite eigh-
ty but it is not possible to recognize more
than half dozen, being for the most part
actually burned to crisp.
THE LAND AND COURT RECORDS.
Next to the fearful loss oflfe and the terrible
destruction OF property the questions which
most concern the people of Chicago are those
relating to the land and court records. All
the records of deeds and mortgages
are destroyed. This includes all the real es-
tate not only In Chicago, but in Cook County,
with its numerous suburban towns. Fortunate.
ly, the abstracts Of titles In the office OF Shor-
tall g. Hoar, conveyancers, are known to be
safe. A leading member of the Chicago bar
the property in the county can re re-es-
tablshed by means oil these abstracts.
The legislature will probably pass some
enabling act to cover the case. AS to
the value Of real estate, 1t Is now en-
tirely lndeterminate, because 1t is Impossible
to divine where the future business centre
will be. The latter will depend upon the loca-
ton selected by the leading business houses,
which are already in consultation. There is
not law office nor a law library left in CHI
chago, except the few small duplicate libraries
at the residences of the leading lawyers. There
Is not paper showing that there is suit
pending in any OF the six courts OF record IN
Cook County, including the Federal Court.
There Is not an indictment In existence in the
county against any one-not Judgment, not
q petition In bankruptcy, in the Federal
courts. Even the duplicate files that the law.
yers kept in their offices are all gone. few
may have escaped by being taken to the
houses for Sunday or night work. We may
add that there are In Chicago about five hum
dred lawyers. The fire seized the upper por-
ton of the central part of the courthouse,
and sent the great bell crashing down through
the building 10 the place where the records
were kept, and the mass Of ruins thus crea-
ted made 1t impossible to preserve the
county records upon which the establishment
of proofs of ownership to real property de-
pended. Nevertheless, one fact will doubtless
prevent the confusion which must otherwise
attend the loss of these valuable papers. The
two abstract firms of Messrs. Chase, Brothers
& Co.; and F. W. Jones & Co., succeeded in
saving all of their books, which contain an
alusIon, by way OF index, 10 every pending
suit, every judgment, and nearly every execu-
ton. They have also preserved their map
hOOke