Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1881-09-16
THE MICHIGAN FOREST FIRES.
APPALLING DESTRUCTION or
LIFE AND PROPERTY.

lie and property by forest nreB In Mlcnlgan
prove to have understated the case, and the
disaster becomes more appalling with each
new report Whole counties have been swept
by tho flames; quite a number Of villages
and settlements have been completely de-
stroyed; and at least 1900 families, repre-
senting population of 5000 or more, arc
not only homeless, but reduced to complete
beggary, their crops, houses, barns and stock
having been consumed, and their farms burn
ed over and blackened by the flames What
is still worse the loss of life has been terri
BILE. The lowest estimate places IL at 200,
and as reports come in from remoter points
the number is sure to be considerably in
creased. One traveller through the burnt re-
gion asserts that he counted over 100 bodies
charred beyond all recognition, and in a
number of cases, whole families were over
taken by the flames and persisted miserably.
The survivors are, in many instances, blind
ed and manned; but worse than ALL they are
destitute of shelter clothing and food. Hun
dreds of square miles, lately dotted with ham
lets and villages, are now covered with moth
ing but blackness and ashes.
Huron and Sanilac counties on the western
shore of Lake Huron have been the principal
theatre of the greatest destruction and suffer
ing. An eyewitness states that darkness and
a copper-colored sky preceded the approach
of the FIRE Later the sky changed to deep
red, and Monday afternoon, 9th inst, 1t be-
came so dark that lanterns were necessary for
people to find their way. This condition Of
affairs continued until about 8 o'clock Wednes-
day morning, when the wind shifted from
west to north, cooling the air and bringing a
slight relief. The high winds that prevailed
cut off nearly every avenue Of escape, and
large burning masses would be lifted up bod
lily and borne along for great distance. In
many instances these burning masses started
fires in fresh places. The skill and courage
of man seemed impotent TO combat with
such flames, and the fleeing people were
caught in tue fre-traps and roasted. One
farmer who was blowing with his oxen few
miles from Sand Beach perceived the Rp-
preaching darkness aud started for the house
On reaching home he found that his wife had
gone to a neighbours house. He then took
two of his children, his eldest daughter TAX
ing three others. Before going many rods
they found themselves cut off by the flames
The farmer then turned in another direction
and escaped with the two children. His
daughter and the other three children were
found next day, all in heap, charred beyond
recognition.
In Paris Township many are missing, most
of them Poles The whole settlement-buid
ings, fences, crops-was swept clean. In
Delaware Township, from the lake saven miles
back, there is hardly anything left-no one
house to the square mile. The residents
were new settlers and had small clearings,
and the FIRE swept them like hurricane.
They lose all they had and owe for their
places. Many of them fed TO the lake. The
shore line has been crowded with human be-
ings, cattle, and everything that could get to
the water. Eye Witnesses from Forestyille
say that the utmost confusion prevailed.
Many could not see. North of Sanilac the
fire on Monday night was terrible, sweeping
almost everything but II seemed to leave the
houses The people here did not know any
fire was near them till it was on them, and
had to run for the lake, and it being only a
short distance away all reached it safely. A
man on the road from Monday to Wednes-
day reports seeing ZIG burned bodies at one
place he saw four wagons bearing eight cof-
fms, with one man walking behind all alone.
1t was his family. Another man was follow
ing three collins. On Wednesday night the
burning district between Deckersville and
Sand Beach was visited by a rain storm, which
put out a large portion of the fires and cleared
the atmosphere.
A despatch from Fort Austin. at the top of
the burned peninsula, sums up the general
destruction as follows The loss of lives by
the forest fires on Monday and Tuesday il
estimated at from POO to 800. The following
villages were burned: Bad Axe, Verona, For
est Bay, Richmondville, Charleston, Ander-
son. Deckersville, Harrisonville, and Sandus-
ky. Minden and Ubly were partly burned.
The great loss in villages is nothing to that in
the country, where the losses are too numer-
GUS to be named. Reports from Saginaw,
Tuscola, and LApeer counties, one tier back
from the lake, while showing much destruc-
ton Of property, do not approach the losses
in the shore counties. The losses by fire
were much less sweeping aud general, and
the loss of life was small. But in each OF
these more favored counties hundreds of
thousands of dollars worth of property have
been destroyed. Men who have Travelled
through the burned district report that the
fires are mostly out, and the inhabitants sit
ting about the ashes of their burned houses,
many burned and otherwise injured. They
are disconsolate and almost bereft of their
senses Provisions, clothing. bedding and
other necessaries are being forwarded, and
men are travelling through the burned re-
gions distributing supplies and taking the
names of those who are in need.
In some cases the intense heat killed the
fish in the streams and they rose to the sur
face by hundreds. In Eckland a COW making
for the river became mired, and was so thor
oughly cooked that she fell to pieces when
the attempt was made 10 pull her out. The
vast expanse of Lake Huron in the vicinity OF
the burned district is reported as covered
with a smoke 30 dense as to make navigation
difficult and dangerous. Hundreds of dead
forest birds floated on the surface
As typical instance of the ruin wrought
TO the farmers in the older settled districts a
New York Herald reporter quotes the case OF
a farmer named Carr He had large, rich
farm, with over 100 acres cleared; large
barns, with stone foundations; a handsome,
we'll furnished house. half dozen horses, a
number of cattle, sheep, hogs and poultry, q
fine orchard, 1000 bushels of wheat, nearly
dozen stacks of hay, plenty OF oats, corn
and potatoes. In short, he was what is called
rich farmer, with farm 20 to 80 years old,
with every convenience and comfort He
and his wife were past middle age, with
grown children. They had everything nee
essary for a prosperous, quiet, pleasant old
age, but of all this prosperity there is moth
ing left save ashes. Houses, fences, barns,
cattle, tools, orchard, grain and hay, every.
thing except the burned, bare ground are
| gone. The rich man and wife of yesterday
must begin life over again tomorrow, with
nothing but their bare hands and their fire
swept land.
Rev. ]. N. Elwood, presiding elder of the
Port Huron district of the NJ. e. church, gives
a sad picture Of the ruin wrought in the far.
thest away villages. In a few instances iso
lated houses or barns are left, but usually ey,
erything is gone. Large orchards have been
swept away, the very ground is baked aud nc
living thing of the vegetable world is left
Occasionally he would see the mother and
one child or the father and one or two chill
dren out of what had been large family
poking about among the ashes in dazed
sort of WaV hardly knowing what thew were
doing, trying to find some keepsake from the
ashes of their home Here and there would
be found two or three houses, the remains Of
a settlement of 80 or 40 houses. The houses
that were left were places of refuge and hos
pitfalls crowded with women and children. In
one schoolhouse hundred persons were
huddled together with few articles of furni
ture such as two men could carry, and scarce
any provisions. A few COWS gave a little
milk though they must soon be killed OIL
starve, as there was nothing to feed them
i 7 doNu ~ 20 IS hS