The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1871-10-14
IN EFE- WITNESSES ACCOUNT.
Statement of the Refugees-Terrfble
and Fascinating scenes.

and Fascinating scenes.
The very crude reports By telegraph cannot
begin to give an adequate idea OF the great
confagration. The story ofthe dreadful hours
of Sunday night and Monday morning, as rela-
ted by eye-witnesses, surpasses anything that
ever has been published From gentleman
who reached New York on Tuesday night
from Chicago, and who Is thoroughly ac.
qualnted with the topography and population
of that burnt city, the New York World OBJ
tains the following:
The city has for some weeks been ripe for
such disaster. Everything has been as dry
as finder. Insurance men have remarked this,
and the fire alarms recently-say for month
past-were 80 frequent that they had scarcely
any rest from constant apprehension. Satur-
| day afternoon there were several small alarms
| sounded, but none amounted to much until
about 10 o'clock. at IL we looked out OF the
windows aud saw the sky crimson with the
reflection from the flames, and at midnight
| the glare lit up the streets. and even sent out
| q brilliant fame over the lake. Everybody In
| the house (the fremont House, was up all
night. fearful of what might happen. ALI day
Sunday the excitement continued, but 1t was
not until night that the worst came. From
ed city. A strong wind was blowing at tie
| time, aud yet the flames seemed 10 70 In all
directions. like an expanding scythe moving
great and increasing swatnes with frightfu
rapidity. We could think OF nothing else but
| hell. The flames were in some places like huge
| waves, dashing to and fro, leaping up ana
down. turning and twisting, and pouring now
and then great column OF smoke and blaze
hundreds OF feet into The air, like solid, ,perpen-
dcular shaft OF molten metal. In other places
| it would dart out long streaks, like mammoth
anacondas, with bissiny fiery tongues. Then
these serpenLine shapes would stoop down
over the blazing path into the yet unburnt
| buildings, which seemed pierced and kindled
| instanlaueousy. There were also pillows OF
| flame that rolled along like water, submerglDS
everything iu Its course. Now and then. as
some explosive material was consumed, the
place would seem like the crater Of vast vol
cano, puffs Of smoke and flashes OF light, ana
| millions OF sparks and cinders being scattered
| in all directions Sometimes the air would
| be full of them. and gusts OF wind would 1oat
| them like flocks OF fre.birds hither and thther
| Occasionally there were cinders of more than
| Two feet in length Showers Of these were
alphabetically raining down everywhere
Our faces were stung, aud our clothlnS now
| and then set on fire, until we got wet umbre-
las and held them as shields over u.s. There
was a
TERRIBLE FASCINATION
| in gazing upon the scene. 1t was unearlhly,
| hideous, terrific. Oar eyes seemed riveted so
| that we could not withdraw Them. There were
miles of fire, mountains OF flame, waves OF
| light, flashes clouds, brilliant scntillations.
| With the aid Of glasses we could see lhe streets
| thropged with people flying for their lives.
| Children were carried, screaming with terror,
women were shrleking, men shouting, and all
running. We saw some old and sick and help
less carried on stretchers-some apparently
demented or stupehed were dragged along.
Close TO their heels, in hot pursuit. came the
| belching, roaring aud cracking flames. In
some places they actually advanced as fast as
man rau. The most awful OF all was the
thunderous roar that seemed TO roll upward
and outward from the centre of the huge
holocaust; now there would be report like
the poom OF distant guns. again came snap
ping like the rattle oil muskelry. Horses rush.
ed like mauiacs through the streets. OHe
splendid team, attached to coach, ran over
the Van Buren street bridge, which had
horses had passed The centre 1t gave way,
and they plunged down through The lurld glare
Into the scarlet river below. There were all
sorts of scenes happening, some horrible and
others ridiculous. Here and there, when some
tall building became sheeted 10 fame, the
walls would weaken and waver like lndla-ruo-
ber It was wonderful how they sometimes
with loud crash; then momentary dark
ness, and afterward fresh glares Of light from
some newly-kindled fire. Even those streets
that were paved with the wooden patents were
masses of live Goals. The massive granite slabs
were cracked into thousands oil pieces. All
this time the heat was very great. BY and oy
it grew 80 intense that nc one could STAND
within blocks Of the place. Over the roofs
came gusts of hot air, sometimes almost strong
enough to throw one off his feet. Our shoes
were parched, the tin roof was hot, and we
we're forced down below. The greatest sight
was to notice how t'a>fames seemed to en-
gulph the larger and more lofty Mansard roofs
they went like paper. The hotel was crowd
ed; all were excited and fearful. Every mo-
ment the reports came that the fire was near
Ing US, and finally We knew we
COULD NOT REMAIN LONGER.
Escape was the only thought. At midnight
the flaming host crossed the Adams Street
Bridge All the shipping that had not been
removed was consumed. The tar ana other
infammable stuff made an Intense light, anu
the heat can be imagined from the clouds OIL
steam that came up from the river. The kero-
sene oil stores made an awful yet sublime
spectacle, as the flames seemed TO penetrate
the very clouds. The huge iron reservoir of
the gas-worSs exploded with tremendous
force and sound, demolishiug several adjacent
buildings. Everybody now seemed demoral-
lied. The very earth seemed actually gaping
ont fire, flame and smoke, as though the
world itself was to be swallowed up In the con-
tiagralion. The rush from the fremont House,
when the word was given, was akin to o
panic. The stairways were choked, and as
the smoke from the approaching fire came in
puffs through the windows the situation seem.
ed trighlful.
In three cases persons jumped from the
windows, and two children were tied up in
beds and thrown from the fourth story wiz
dow, and landed on the pavement unlnjured.
Mr.. Jarvis had broken leg from springlns
from The second story window, and others
were bruised from the same cause. We Sc
cured a stage and drove towards the suburbs,
hoping to get away on some extra train. The
horses were almost ungoyernable from fright.
Some or the blocks, wsre impossible, being
filed with ruins. Finally We reached train
that was just being dispatched direct for help,
and by the kindness OF the conductor We were
taken along. We heard OF several deaths and
many being swallowed up In the flames. Ger
tainly there must have been loss of life. One
fireman declares that three families were sur
rounded and burnt to death in the block
bounded By Adams, Jackson, Canal and Wa
ter streets. We saw groups OF oil classes Of
people In the street, some hatless, coatless,
bare foot and shivering. Some OF these were
of the weather. class. They were shelterless,
homeless, and poverty-sLricken and broken
hearted. The agony OF mind in some cases,
where relatives were searching hopelessly for
missing ones, was pitia6le to witness. No one
saved anything There was no chance. We
threw our trunks ID the street. but there We