The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1872-11-21

steadily from the northwest and west. lt snouio
have carried the fire towards the bay, and oy
common calculation, if any Vulnerable point. OF
the city was to be taken, South Boston was its
direct victim. It would have been better 1or
the losers had even the destruction OF that part
of the city with its teeming dwellings had oeen
razed to the ground. But against an calculi.-
ton the FIRE relentlessly marched WIZ an 81 al
most stately and unassisted tread nearly DIRECT
Iv north. striking down the costliest part OF the
whole CITY and putting temporary enlbarrass-
ment on trade and business. No language can
picture with sufficient vividness to give the
reader who did not see it an equal conception.
of the grandness of great fire like that OF
Saturday night and Sunday morning which the
writer of this witnessed from the root OF the
Journal building. At ten o'clock, 80 much OF
the vicinity of Summer street was IN flames
that q great glare of light filled the air for
miles around and lit up the whole surrounding
country. The almost fabulous distance which
the fire was seen, as shown elsewhere, gives
faint idea of the magni6cence of the spectacle
to the beholder who was near the scene. From
the Journal Office to Summer street IS perhaps
four minutes walk. The flames were working
towards us with steadiness which was alarm
ing. The night was an otherwise beautiful one.
The air was remarkably clear, the SKY ciouo-
less, and the almost full moon looked down on
the combat of man and his terrible enemy Win
a cool comnlaisance. A mass of fame, making
the air warm about us, hung over the doomed
structures. Great throngs of people packed
the streets, dotted the surrounding house-steps,
and were hustled here and there by the hurry
ing firemen, horse cars, engines and teams re-
moving. goods from the buildings in the path OF
the fire.
THE CURIOsITIES OF FIRE.
Not one who has not gazed upon such scene
can appreciate the full force of the expression,
billows of fire. Great rollers of flame came
striding forward with steady movement,
breaking into forks of fire and rolling up vol
umes of smoke. The air seemed burned out,
and the heavens had dull and lifeless look, so
rarable above great confagration in contrast
with their closeness in the normal state of
cloudless sky. The air had singular ciearness,
which was almost unaccountable, and which.
from reference below, will be seen to have
followed the great fire. Why the flames should
have marched steadily to the windward against
ali common reason, but repeats what great cen
fagrations have before exhibited as curiosity
of fire. !,
At the Journal Office there was RIO sense of
insecurity when the fire was first discovered, and
even after Summer street was mass OF flames.
Why should there be? The wind blew in di-
rection to carry the fire away from us. There
was no cause for alarm. Still, with malig-
nant reentlessness, the fire marched towards
us against the wind. 1t is said by those who
have reflected on this singular fact that the
rarifying of the air aided by the wind creates
vacuum which is filled again by the flames and
creeps along licking up everything in its way,
and making its march really blackened one.
We leave the theorizing to those who can solve
successfully the singular problem.