Juniata sentinel. [volume] (Mifflintown, Pa.) 1846-1873, 1872-11-13
The Great Fire In Boston.

drv goods house IN the city OF Boston
Fifteen hours it ragged with unabated
fury, and in that time destroyed hun
Greds of the costliest and most substan-
tial warehouses in the country, and tenn
porarily paralyzing three of the leading
mercantile intesests-the shoe and lea
ther, wool and dry goods trades. 1t Is
sai0 that there is not one wholesale shoe
and leather establishment left in the city.
The wool trade has suffered in an equal
degree, and the dry goods and jobhing
houses left are few and far between. The
whole length and both sides of Summer
street, across Federal street and nearly
down to Drake's wharf, and thence on
nearly direct line to Fort Hill, along
| Hamilton and Battery march to Kiiby,
as far as Lindall and Central streets, and
! from Milk to Summer street is in ruins.
In an area of nearly seventy acres every
building is consumed Gnnpowder was
used in blowing buildings to pieces to
arrest the progress Of the flames. The
fire was got under control about o clock
on Sunday afternoon. The loss is now
estimated at $50 100000 to SSO,000.-
600. and the insurance at Sl0,0OO.0OO to
sl2,OOO,OOO. Many persons were injur
ed and several killed.
1t il the greatest fire ever known III
New England. 1t equals the Chicago
fire in the amount of money lost. but it
does not equal it in the extent of ground
burnt over, or in the distress Inflicted on
the inhabitants, for the Boston fire was in
that portion of the city almost exclusive
ly used for business purposes, and de-
stroyed comparatively few dwelling
houses, whereas the sweep of the Chica'
go fire comprehended the dwelling places
of thousands of families. and turned
them out into pitiless winter entirely
destitute of the necessities Of life. One
year. one month and two days. almost to
the hour, elapsed between the Chicago
fire and the one now occupying the at
! tention of the whole civilized world
Both broke out between the hours of S
aud 8 o'clock in the evening, the first Oh
Saturday evening. October 7. 1871, and
the second on Saturday evening, Novem
Der 9 1872.
The Philadelphia Inquirer says: Bos-
ton is city 50 vast in its wealth that it
can bear more easily than Chicago her
losses. Besides much of the capital jus.
destroyed was supplied from abroad. and
from abroad much will come to replace IL;
In the matter of insurance, we think it
will be found that the Boston policies
were placed to very large amount in
British companies. The loss upon the
New England and New York companies
will probably be heavy. for Boston sci
dom cared to go west Or south of New
York for her Insurance. rrefsrring thos"
of Old and New Eng land.
The sudden recurrence of another dis
asier of such immensity from the flames,
is calculated to lead men to question if
means cannot be devised to render our
great cities safer from destruction than
they at present seem to be.
What the effects of the disaster are to
be upon the finances of the country it is
too soon to conjecture; but We cannot
believe they will be as disastrous as they
were following the fire in the city of
Chicago. Embarrassments in business
circles may reasonably be expected. No
country is so rich in ready money that
its mercantile community Will not feel
the immediate loss Of two hundred mil.
lions of its capital, or even the half or
fourth of such sum. Should a panic
similar to tha. which was the result OF
the Chicago fire set in TO morrow or the
next day, Or the next, clearly it will be
the duty Of the Treasury of the General
Government to come to the rescue of the
country by letting loose its locked up
millions of greeuba cks. The Secretary
of the Treasury holds the tens of mil
lions Of gaeensbacks idle in the vaults of
the government, in trust for the people
Should financial panic be one of the
sequences of the Boston conAagration
The shortest, easiest and best way to end
it will be by the Treasury releasing its
retired greenbaeks. President Grant has
just been shown that he has the absolute
confidence Of the nation When he
made his appeal to them he received the
answer that he desired. Let him now
demonstrate that the people in their pos
sble need have the confidence of the
administration, and that their demands
for means to recover from the effects of
the Boston calamity is one with which
the administration can sympathize. II
ever there was necessity for setting free
those boarded millions of retired green
backs, We believe the time is now.
On Tuesday the 5th a mrn named
Hamill. in McConnellsburg, Fulton coun
ty, threw stone at Captain Skinner,