Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1872-11-20

midnight, taking all the stores on thu
sOutherly side of Summer street, tn,
new block of buildings at the junction
of Bedford and Summer streets, end
ing in the destruction of the Boston
e Hartford q Erie Railway Depot. A
the same time the fire spread to the
right and left, taking as its course tC
the north toward State street. From
h the corner of Mix and Washington
streets the march of the fire was along
the sOutherly side of Milk street until
1t passed the new Post Office building,
Long before it had reached this APP
palling magnitude of tributary region
= Boston was awakened to the apparent
q doom that was upon it. Men resting
? at home from the labOrs of the day
! caught the flare in their eyes and the
) terror of its majesty in their souls
) Rich men, with the maddening tho't
) of being rich no longer, rushed from
their costly ease on Beacon street down
to where the awful beacon of their
financial destruction was rushing to
, the sky: thousands, awed and cowed
by the fearful spectacle, pressed upon
the Gordon the police were forming
with brave persistence, but not with
perfect success; men who had some
thing TO snatch away-boOks, paper,
merchandise and mOney-were seen
| with teams, or without them, as
need commanded, carrying off the lit
tie that was portable at such a time,
furtive-eyed thieves, like the foul birds
that pick out the eyes of the dying
lion, warmed themselves in amid the
furry. Who at such time could tell
honesty from dishonesty, as both
staggered out ladened with their
property or other plunder? When
the fire worked down relentlessly to-
ward the water, where were some
dwellings of the poor, scenes of agony,
of misery, were witnessed, which it
is one of the few blessings left that
they were not on an extended scale
If the flames called the wind to its aid
and was answered with hurricane,
MAN SENT A CRY ALONG THE WIRES
for aid, and from all the cities round
it came. almost instantaneOusly COM
pany after company of firemen, with
their engines, and went gallantly to
work. As the great buildings fell
around Winthrop square, along Dew
Onshire, Federal, Congress and Pearl
streets, it became evident that all that
region should be abandoned, and all
efforts were made to stay it at Wash
ington and State, to which latter,
although it never fully reached, it
was rapidly approaching.
A GRAND AND FEARFUL SCENE.
Shortly after midnight 1 gained the
roof of one of the highest hotels in
the city; it commanded a view of the
| field of demoniac desOlation. l can
not say If in such moments, where
exceptional emotions arise, one should
| feel ashamed to confess himself aWed. |
| AS 1 clambered upon the roof, some
| four blocks distant from the utmost
limit of the fire, and felt the flush of
the internal heat upon my face and !
the wild glory of the eXulting confla- |
grafton swim in its miraculous bright |
ness before my ewes, my heart leaped /
with a throb which had in it some |
thing of a horrid, JOY which all hu-
manity and all reason could not quiet. |
The tossing ocean of vivid, Tengeful |
fire, breaking around and submerging |
everything, had in it all the grand /
emotion of the ocean, but intensified /
u the soul in a manner altogether in
describable. Here the riOting fire
waves broke against tall building,
anon they rose above it like the tide,
then with a reverberatiOn, as the
building fell crumbled and frittered
beneath it, it sent up a deluge of
sparks like golden spray. There was
a wealth of sublimity in the picture
which, like all things sublime, caught
the mind at once. All this time brave
men were struggling against what
seemed doom. Preparations were be-
ing made to fight fire with fire, as
water had failed. The marines from
Charlestown Navy Yard, in their
blue overeoats, came to the aid of the
city authorities as guard upon the
property. The circle of the fire was
Toped around, and sentiDels forbade
the thief to enter or escape. Great
masses of incandescent debris lay
heaped through all the burning dis
trict; places unscathed, but threat
ened, were emptied of their valuables
as rapidly as pOssible-all this while
the transfixing sight was before nv
eyes. Among those who stood beside
me little was said, and that in low
tones, save where youth, with all ,,
youths irreverence, talked silly jokes
to unappreciative ears.
q
and a mass of acrid suffocating smoke 8
was carried into our faces, causing the [
eyes to run with water, as though t
Heaven had sent an angry breath to
tell US that this was a scene for tears '
and not for idle gazing and raptdred q
wonder. l descended to the streets, {
but found them impossible. Every O
shade of fear, horror and terror was {
visible in the strange, weird looks i
and abstracted, nervous action of the d
thousands who hurried to and fro. =
After endeavoring fTuitlessly to pick 8
my way in the direction of the fringe 5
Of the fire, Washington street, 1 re- d
turned to the hotel. l met a thin i
laced, gray whiskered old gentleman {
1t the door, who was smoking cigar.
He seemed the coolest man 1 had s.
seen, but he was a loser by the calam- il
ty to the amount of some hundreds
IF thousands. While talking to
group in the hall was startled by I
Oud detOnatiOn. We rushed out me- Ii
but of course learned moth r
ng for the moment. S
THE FIGHT OF FIRE WITH FIRE p
lad begun; houses were being mined 81
md blown up to make the gaps wider y
yer which the fire would have to y
tride if it would go still further. Z
Bold and determined as was the effort 1
t did not succeed, save in one spot, y
lear the water, at the angle of Broad y
treet. The wind towards morning h
rev weary of its help to the flames 7,
nd died away. Some great buildings, 4
ike the almost finished Post Office, n II
TODD boldly out, sheltering their v
,rethren in the rear. Water, too, was IL
Ioing yeOman's work, and the flames Ol
lost their violent sway.
Along Washington street, from Sum q
ner to Milk street, two blocks on the
southern side were laid in ashes. VI
Iere the firemen worked like heroes U,
D chain down the fire. To the north q
ay the portion of the city 1 have spo- al
zen OF as containing the dwellings of P'
he moderately well to do. This was OCnN
prize worth winning from the -: ~
ames, and heroically was it wrestled ~ ~
DR.. Men trembled as they thought u.
f what might be if the fire once "a
saped that street. 1t did not. On os
he corner of Washington and Milk VI ~,
Lreets was another prize for which -.
be fiercest fight was made; on the ~
ther side of the street il was a strug- III
lie for home; on this it took a color OL
{ deYotedness which will not be W
TrOngly stated as patriotic. Us