Cedar Falls gazette. [volume] (Cedar Falls, Iowa) 1860-1895, 1871-10-20

Garden City. Our object was to graf
ify a curiosity to view with our own
eyes the results of the most terrible
destruction by fire on record, and
also to ascertain whether the accounts
as given US were true. In the excite
ment and settings of the past ten
days, there have been many rumort
and reports sent through the country,
that were greatly exaggerated, but
i'm what the actual realities were
during the confiagration, and the
destruction aud desolation which the
mad pillows of fire have caused. the
half has not been told and never will
be. Pen cannot describe, aud finite
mind cannot comprehend 1t. Even
those who passed through it stand
appalled, before the awfuIlness Of the
situation. Think of three thousand
acres Of earth's riches, the accumu,
lated results of twenty years of un'
paralied Industry, the gigantic fort
unes made by the skill. energy and
enterprise OF mans best intellecis,
swept from the earth al by q magic
wand.
To convey to the reader more fully
the destructiveness Of the elements,
we copy the words Of a writer on the
situation just before the great fire.
It will be remembered the twenty
acres were burned on Saturday even.
ing. The writer says:
Although the dense smoke rose
from the smouldered ruins Of this
district there vas nothing to warn
the gay city OH Sunday morning o.
the terrible doom that awaited it,
The Summer tourists had returned
to their city homes. A beautiful
Autumn day and a~flundred thousand
happy, well dressed people enter tn,
churches. In the afternoon thous,
ands of vehicles drove through ave
Dues liued for miles on either sid,
with palaces. Herculaniam and
Pompeii not more gay on tn,
morning of their destruction. Tn,
Sunday morning papers were largely
devoted 10 accounts of the prosperity
of the city. Business never looked
SO well; prospects never were 81
bright. Whole columns were de,
voted to the loEg catalogue of new
buildings that we're being erected Of
hal just reached completion. Th,
Garden City had put on her holida,
robe to welcome Prince Alexis
Theaters, Opera Houses and Concert
Halls had been ftted up Ia style never
before seen in the West. Foreign art.
lists had been usy all summer In de.
signing decorations that might de.
light the eye of an emperor. A gay.
err opera, theater, concert, and lecture
season was promised than ever be.
fore. Music, tragedy. eloquence,
comedy all We're promised by the
show bills every where covering tile
conspicuous places. The market re
ports informed us that the city on.
tanned grain and provisions enough
To supply an entire cOuntry with
food. The immense dry goods es
Establishments were full of every kind
Of substantial and fancy goods vet
unpacked. What had we To do but
20 "eat, drink and be merry"
The conflagratlon covered between
twenty-five hundred and three fhous.
and acres. On this ground there
stood some eighteen thousand build
ings-the business portion and
wealth Of the city, besides being the
homes of a hundred thousand people.
Some Of the buildings destroyed cost
over a million of dollars. Men that
were worth their millions were left
literally penuiless. We were told OF
one man whose actual loss was Q
million and a half of dollars. An
other instance was given rs where 8
man had given eighty thousand del.
lars toward the building Of a church,
who, after the fire, was compelled te
fall into, line with the poorest, ard
march into the same church fol
something TO eat.
We were told that on Monday fol,
lowing the fire the people were utter
ly paralized, and business men STOOD
in silent awe at the ruin that scenes
to- confront them. The banks ans
Insurance. companies were reported
rnined, and the pride Of the west
the wQrk Of twenty years, seemed
5Gried- amid the thickest gloom.
To get any idea of the extent o
.he confiagration, imagine an ex,
panse eight miles in length and
mile i'm width, some places reaching
a mile and a half all moved down t.
q mass Of ruins. We stood in front o
the Sherman, fremont and Briggs
house ruins, and tried to realize thai
only a few days before, these, with
thousands Of osher equally magnif,
cent structures, lowered defiautly
aud proudly toward the clouds. As
We looked over this vast waste, we
asked ourselves whether II were. poss
sible that the combined wealth, en-
ergy and enterprise of America
could place Chicago. In ten years
where 1t was before the fire, bat ere
We had ceased this questioning, q
man at onr elbow says: This will
be all built up In Ave years batter
than ever" "Do you live in Chica.
go?" was asked. "Yes, sir,n he re-.
piled with an assurance which said
Enthusiastically Chicago people never
surrender. We said to o man al an
other place There are many who
will not be able to build again. He
replied. There will be f1fty to take
every mans place who Ii not able to
build. the people have too much con-
fidence In Chicago to let It 60
under"
While viewing the dssolation ut
one point, We noticed two men meet.
near what was formerly their busi-
ness blocks. They had evidently
been quite wealthy. swell, Gene
says one, '.you got scorched.n
Yes" said he, laughing. II lost all
had" The other replied that he
mad too, and remarked, "I should
feel terribly II ! were ten years
They chstted In tins bouy-
INT strain for some time. give this
IS n sample Of Chicago pluck.
Nearly every firm is preparing to
e-establish itself. The large major
ty Of the manufacturers are urenar-
ng for business on the West Side.
while many Of the wholesale firms :
re putting temporary houses ON
very available spot, to commence
.usiness again as soon as goods ar
;,,a nho i