Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1871-10-29
THE BURNING WOODS.
Thrilling Narrative Of Wisconsin
Refugee.
A Flight for Life Through the Flaming
FOrest-Death Struggle with
Maniac-AR Rain Of Fire
The ReSene.
From the New York World.

| .# lHt hCSCucs
From the New York World.
GREEN BAY, WIS, Oct. 13.-On the
morning of the 18th of this month, just as
we were sitting down to take breakfast, Mr..
| Richardson. a neighbor of ours, came
running into the house and told Mr.. Me-
! chand that he must come ont Immediately
and see what could be done. During the
night the wind had risen, but not so greatly
as to amount to anything like gale, but
rather did il resemble the ordinary fall wind.
! Mr.. Mechand did not seem at all uneasy and
| leisurely swallowed his breakfast before fol-
! lowing Mr.. Richardson, who had disappeared
as soon as he had stuck his head into the
room and calledm husband. Mr.. Mechand
went into the woods and stayed till about
noon, when he came running back and said
! that he had climbed up to the top of Browns
| hill, where the wind was blowing gale, land
! from there he had seen the fire which was
coming toward us at tremendous pace.
Indeed | had feared as much, and had
been exceedingly uneasy all the morn
| ing, for the smoke which for days had
been in the valley where we lived had be-
| come more and more dense, and occa-
sionalfy hot pufis OF wind had blown down
over the hills, driving the smoke in dense
! cloud before it. i asked my husband if he
| thought there was any danger to be feared;
he shook his head and answered, mo-" yet
| knew by his face that he was far from
being devoid of fear. He ate his dinner,and
then ran out again, and was met by neigh
Dor, who said that the fire was advancing
with trightful speed. Indeed, the air had be-
| come Sultry as it had never been before, ex-
| cept on some hot day in summer Immediately
before the coming of a thunder storm. The
air was sitting, and the smoke got into ones
lungs and nostrilS in Sucha way as to render
it exceedingly unpleasant. Mother sat in
corner holding little Louis in her lap, and |
noticed that she seemed restless, and that her
eyes shone with light such as have some
times seen in hers in the old days when she
was about to have an Outburst of fury.
was frightened and fidgety;and didn't do anv
thing i'll the right way. | went and took
the boy away from mother, who relin-
pushed him readily; and then, as | had
| afterward terrible reason to remember, al
! though hardly noticed it at the time, she
went to the cupboard and secTeted some
| thing in the bosom of Eer dress. Mr..
! Mechand stood at the door speaking hur-
riedly with the man whom he had met, when
burning branch of pine fell at his feet. In
! stantly the air darkened, violent puff of
wind rushed upon us, and smoke poured in
volumes about the house. Then, following
| the gust, bright sheet, or rather wall of
! fire, seemed to be pushed down almost upon
us, and instantly everything was in flames.
Mr.. Mechand cried out to me to bring Louis
with me, and seized mother by the hand.
and we all four ran in terror out into the
woods ahead of us. | ran on, blinded and
choked by the smoke, and carrying Louis in
my arms. He was pale with terror, and did
not utter single cry, but chung to my neck
as hurried on stumbling and tripping al
most at every step. So sudden had been
! the rush of the fire that we had no chance
of saving anything but our lives, even if we
! had cared to do so. kept calling to my
husband to keep in sight, but, poor fellow,
| there was no need of doing So for l could
see that mother was great worry to him,
and that he almost had to- drag her along.
! She kept looking from side to SIDE and try
| ing TO break away from him; even then /
thought how terrible it would he if she
should become furious again. What on
earth could we do with her?
We must have gone on in this way for at
least three miles, and was almost exhaust
ed, for Louis was boy six years old and
! large for his age, and had been carrying
him all the way. The trees were compact,
| and in some places the underground was
! close and stiff as wire. Mother kept getting
worse, and Mr.. Mechand, who was short
| distance ahead of Louis and me, and the
greater difficulty to make her obey him.
Presently he stopped, and evidently was wait
| ing for me to come up. SO Iput Louis down
and told him to keep alongside me, at the
| same time taking him firmly by the hand.
! The fire had come much slower than we, and
! believe we must have been at least two
miles ahead of it-althOugh there was no
| telling, for L could see nothing behind or far
! before me but smoke curling like a mist III
| and out of the trees. Behind us, indeed, it
I was heavier, and looked Sullen, dirty white.
| We could not have been six feet from my
! husband when my mother broke away from
him, and with loud cry darted off into the
woods, and then | knew that what | had
dreaded had indeed come to pass, and that
| excitement and danger had brought back an
! old sickness upon her. She was maniac.
! Mr.. Mechand darted after her, and in the
| terror of the moment | forgot all else and
! followed him, leaving poor little Louis be-
! hind. must have been crazy TO do 50, but
on rushed, and soon saw that mother was
cunning enough to attempt to escape by
! doubling on her tracks, for ] saw her dart
| past the bushes at my side as she run. dag
only past me. sprang after her, and after
running for about five minutes, found to my
| horror that had not only lost her, but Louis
and his father. Madlv | tried to retrace my
steps, but there was nothing to guide me
no path, no blazes upon the trees. The
wind shook the trees and almost bent them
! double; the sultry air filed with smoke, and
all the horrors of my terrible condition
made me frantic. rushed about helplessly,
| crying and screaming, Louis, Louis, father"
! But that last word made me calm for an
/ instant, and l felt that was not alOne-not
utterly lost in the burning woods, for the
| spirit of my dead father was near, and there
were guardian angels. knelt on the ground,
I took my crucifix from my neck and prayed.
/ In kneeling down, found to my great joy
/ that my dress was wet. had knelt near a
! spring. bathed my face and hands.
and soaked my hair and the upper part or
my dress. But then my bOy-my little
Louis! | sprang to my feet, and, calling on
! the Virgin to direct me, dashed on in the
direction of the fire. had not gone more
than a quarter of a mile when | found my
darling with his head erect, and flashing
ewes filed with angry tears, trying to beat
away some wolves, which hungry though
they were, seemed bent only on fight. |
cried Louis, Louis, c'est moi, ia mere!'
and clasped him to my heart. 1t was my
boy, and he was saved. He had not seen
his father, though once he had heard a
mans voice calling but the voice seemed to
have come from an immense distance.
"Oh, Louis" said l, ''we are lost unless
we find him. We must run for our lives u
The boy began to cry, and then l was