Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1875-11-03
THE FIERY element.
Further Particulars Of the Vir
ginia City Confiagration.
Ten Blocks Laid in Ashes. lnclud'
Ing Extensive Quartz Mills.
Ten Thousand Homeless Per
SONS Subjected to the Pierc-
ing Mountain Blasts.
THE TOWN OF AUSTIN, NIiASIsSIP-
Pl, BADLY SCORCHED.

SAN FRANCISCO. Oct. 26-Owing to
the destruction of the telegraph Of
flee il has been difficult To obtain con-
nected information concerning the
Virginia City fire, which broke out
about daylight. in Il dwelling in the
southwest portion of the business and
'hickly settled part Of the city. II
spread quickly. extending eastward
towards ii rayinc i'll which are Situat-
ed the works and mills of several
prominent mines. The flames cover
ed q space of about ten blocks, COM
prising the best buildings in the city.
The offices of the Chronicle and the
Territorial Enterprise were burned.
Piper's Opera House was next in
flames. The water supply was mad
equate and the engines were of little
Use, and blowing up buildings was
resorted TO save the depot and hoist
ing works, but it was too late. and
the works were soon on fire. They
were the finest on the Comstock lode.
and cost several hundred thousand
dollars. The California mine and
consolidated Virginia mill, office. and
hosting works were all DESTROYED.
which was the limit of the fire in that
direction. The fire extended south
ward from Taylor street. which is
near the plrce where it first origin
ated.
The branch of the Bank of Califor-
MIA, the Wells. Fargo Il Co. express
office, and everything else in its line
were consumed. Nearly the entire
business portion of the city is in ash
es. Hotels. churches. county build
ings. newspaper. telegraph and ex-
express offices were all swept away.
Over 10000 persons are homeless.
The wind is piercing, and much suf-
fering is anticipated before tempor-
airy shelter can be prepared. Ii is
impossible at present to conjecture
the loss.
The destruction of mills and hoist
ing works above referred To. will
probably entail loss of one million
of dollars within radius of a few
hundred feet. Fortunately the shafts
of both the Ophir and the Consoli-
dated Virginia were bulkheaded. and
the fire was kept out of the mines.
The Ophir men say that possibly their
loss may be less than mt first suppos-
ed. as tile building was light frame,
aud might burn without DESTROYING
the n,sScty;,,es:s. v,S Yes xse S,,s,t5iin.a q
and inercfandisc in the city must be
very great. although covered to a.
great extent by insurance.
Ii is not known to what extent the
mills and hoistin@ works were IN
snred. In the ease of the Ophir works
the loss Is placed at 100000 to $500
oGo; insured for 10000 in this city.
The news created great excitement.
Contradictory rumors and telenrams
were spread. and newspaper offices
We're besei9cd with anxious people.
Stocks fell in the excitement, and
Ophir sold as low rs 3Si,. Cunsoli-
dated Virginia dropped TO , 10. Talk
on the streets was gloomy at first. hui
subsequently the tone OF the markets
and feeling i'll business circles recov-
cred their buoyancy. Inquiry dcvel-
opes the fact that though many insur-
ancr companies lose heavily. they will
come up maufully and pay all de-
mands.
A large portion of the insurance i
with foreign companies well able to
bear it,. and other companies also
claim that none will 20 to the wall.
1t was given out by those known TO
be insiders that the Consolidated yir-
ginia would pay Il dividend rs usual.
though probably at reduced figures.
All these considerations had the cf-
feet 10 turn the tide of feeling. aud
now the general impression is. that
"a IN "a Lao. tl1,
disaster. its effects ON the financial
Interests of California will be but
limited and temporary.
Wells. Fargo Il Cos. agent in this
city has instructed all agents on the
coast that contributions will be sent
free to Virginia City.
The Board of Brokers have sub
scribcd $1,000 for the relief of the suf-
fcrcrS.
The amonnt of Insurance in the
burnt district is not a~certained, but
il is supposed that it will reach one
million of dollars. No reports of
losses have vet been received from
agents, and it is impossible to state
the proportion OF losses to risks. A
rough estimate places the total loss AT
T-.pDV.tNFl. No lp~N Ol 'lit \ " EtEltEt-
ell.
The number of people reported
turned ont OF doors by the fire in es-
timaied at ten thousand. This is ac-
counted for by the peculiar mode of
life led by the large population en-
gagged in the mines. who work the
shafts day and night. In many i'm
stances the same lodgings are occu-
pied ut different hours by numerous
tenants, and at no time are the house
hold accommodations equal to the
demand of the population. Nearly
all the lodging houses and dwellings
occupied by miners were in the track
of the lire. its northerly course be-
ing the Immediate neighborhood of
the mining works. The lire ha, now
burned ont OF danger.
SAN FRANoIsco, Oct. 21.-Addition-
al dispatches from Virginia City say
at present it is impossible to state the