Lamoille newsdealer. [volume] (Hyde Park, Vt.) 1860-1877, 1874-07-22
The Chicago Fire.
DETAILED ACCOUNT OF TUE DISASTER.

as fire originated was the large DITCH OH
20 finery of Fitch brothers, the interior
II which, with its large tanks Of oil, was
Ia abIaze before the arrival of the second
I. CINE. The heat emitted b. the burniI
,r of the its nfamable ecuten;s was intens
A and when the walls fell but few mnut
/. after the FIRST stream began to play upC
e it the whole neighborhood for radius
:. thirty rods around seemed TO burst fort
n in Simultaneous blaze. just north of tn
n rag shop was a story and half barn file
with hay, which blazed up in an instan
the flying wisps of burning hay lightin
f on roofs nearly block away. With sue
rapidity did the fire spread after it wa
! discovered that two horses 10 this bar
were burned to death. Eight or ten en-
r gies in the first district were speedily o.
the ground and most of them took ihei
stations on Clark street. When Marsha
Beurer attempted to check the northern
spread of the flames. No. 81 and one othel
: were stationed on Fourth avenue, and {
vigorous fight with the advancing foe wa,
commenced at this point. Ten minute,
after the first alarm the pine shanties
stretching eastward toward Fourth avenue
were all in flames for nearly halfa square.
At 4:40 o'clock, eleven minutes after the
first alarm, Assistant Marshal Sweeny
turned on the second alarm, and engines
from the greater part Of the South division
and from several Of the West side engine
houses were soon at the scene of peril.
The heat arising from the half acre of
burning pine shanties was terrible, and as
the breeze stiffened the heat increased,
bearing destruction to the dry roofs that
lay in its path Of the destroyer for rods
ahead
A large part of the augmented fire
force was concentrated on Fourth avenue.
half way between Taylor and Twelfth
streets where they worked with terrible
energy to stay the progress of the advance
ing enemy. In twenty minutes after the
first alarm the roofs of buildings on Fourth
avenue were all afre for the width of a
dozen buildings north of No. 2S5.
AT 4:30 o'clock, eleven minutes after
the second alarm, general alarm was
sounded by Assistant Marshal Betere.
This last warning brought to the spot the
entire fire force of the city. At the time
Of the alarm seven of the West side en-.
5lnes were at small fire on the corner of
Ashland avenue andTwenty.scccnd streets,
md they were thus retarded by it nearly
,alf an hour.
La less than half an hour the engines
hat were posted on Fourth avenue direct.
y in the path of the Gre we're compelled
o retreat, and all succeeded in getting
way except engine company No. 81, the
olored company ofthe force, who delayed
minute too long, and the flames bursting
pon them before they had attached hor-
cs to the engine they we're compelled to
bandon it, and the handsome steamer
'as warped and twisted into a mass of
ron and steel, bali melted in the frery
lrnacc.
The fire had swept diagonally across the
lock, to the corner Of Taylor street and
'ourth avenue, and was rapidly eating its /
'ay through the remainder of the block {
'onting on Clark and Taylor streets The 7
larshal stationed number Of engines on (
lark street, and every effort was made |
stay the northern progress Of the flames
long that thoroughfare, but the shanties a
ON which poured forth swarm offallen '
omen, laden down with wardrobe and I
lrniture, were ripe for destruction, and a
sooner had the torrents of water OK. v
ngulshed the fire IN one building than S
he roofs OF the tinder.boxes still further |
} the north would burst into flames. But s
ost OF the marshals attention was 81. a
'cted to the front Of the fire and eyery f
'ergy was exerted to stay its eastward t
arch. At the corner of Taylor street fl
I'd Fourth avenue every effort was made tt
keep the fire on the West side Of the o
'enue, but the driving wind was laden j,
lth burning brands which lit on roofs be- v
md and kndled them in an Instant. The Il
livct Baptist church was the first build. O.
g to 60 on the east side of the avenue. ii
a little ever an hour after the FIRST 81
arm the fire had swept over the space IL
twcen Clark street and Third avenue Il
ID had reached Polk street GU the north. tt
10 southern boundary Of the burnt dis. lie
let extended east in almost a straight hi
re, running nearly parallel with Twelfth II
'eet, and about three hundred feet north pl
it. The aim of the marshal was still
fight the fire front and to contest as ably of
possible its onward narch toward the a,
tier built portion Of tho city. The Fir
mt line of the fire was nobly battled in