Weekly commercial herald. (Vicksburg, Miss.) 1884-18??, 1886-06-18
ONE SHORT HOUR.


Loss Of Llre--Ten Bodies Reoov-
cred.
WESTMINSTER, B. c., June 15.-The
city of Vancouver, situated at the Pa
cidc end of the Canadian Pacific rail
way, is in ashes, not half a dozen
houses remain out of five hundred,
and the worst of all there is a large
loss of life. Ten bodies have thus far
been recovered, and a number of per-
sons are missing, and are supposed to
have persisted. One short hour did IT,
whole work. The property saved is
Insignificant. A clean sweet describes
the situation. A thousand men
are at work cleaning up the
debris for the railroad company.
Twenty contracts for rebuilding have
been already let. Many men lost their
all, but are determined to start in
again. The property lost falls directly
on the Pioneer clement of the city.
Hundreds of people are camped out.
There are meagre facilities for relief of
sufferers, but people of this city are es-
pecially open-handed in their efforts to
relieve the destitute. Prompt aid
from the Canadian Pacific railroad is
expected. Families were compelled to
abandon their homes at a moments
warning and flee for their lives. Bust
ness men 10 search of valuables were
forced to rush through flames and
smoke or perish. A number of per
sons sought refuge in the water and one
man was found in a well where he had
lowered himself to escape the flames.
Few of the people have more than
the clothes they stand in. Of the ten
bodies recovered, three have been
identified. Most Of the burned frame
bui .dings will be replaced with brick
structures. Contracts for a large
hotel and other extensive buildings
representing a half million dollars were
let just before the fire.
PORTLAND, O., June 15.-The Ore
gonian's Victoria, L. c., special says:
'All day Sunday there had been a
steady wind from the Northwest and
the brush clearing fires on the Cana
dian Pacific railroad lots were famed
to such an extent as to fill the Terri
torial town of Vancouver with smoke.
Nobody, however, had any idea of dan
ger. Shortly after \ pm. several
persons began to consider the situation
threatening, but the smoke was so
dense they found it impossible to d.
rect their steps to the exact location of
its source. Soon a stable near the
Colonial hotel was seen to be on FIRE.
An alarm was given, but so skeptical
were The people that they paid no at
tention for some time. The wind by this
time had increased until it had
famed the stable into a mass
of raging fire. OF the first
buildings to go was McCarthey's drug
store, followed by the office of the
Vancouver News. The flames shot
across Abbott street with astonishing
rapidity, and almost before the people
could realize it, the whole of the west.
ern portion of the city was in a blaze.
The excitement was now intense.
Water street was filled with dense
smoke and flying cinders, and people
were hurrying, with what effects they
could gather in their haste, to a place
of safety, the general direction of the
flight being east, though many run
to the elevated ground owned by the
Canadian Pacific railroad company.
Others again made for False creek.
Those who endeavored to save their
goods were so wrapped in their object
as to appear needless of the danger
they ran, and it was found especially
necessary to compel women to relin-
quish their efforts to save their lives
In some cases there was only just time
to place them on u%nprovistd Rats
which were pushed out from the shore
beyond the reach of the flames, which
literally seemed to fill the air.
La l-ss time than it takes to des cribe
it the fire had reached Carroll street
Some merchants in this vicinity
and in Ferguson block en-
gagged in conveying their goods
to a place of safety, but so rapid
was the conllagrat.on chat before theiT
horses were ready the teamsters them.
selves were obliged to fly for Their
lives. All hope of saving any con
siderable amount of property was now
abandoned and each cont4nted himself
with hastily putting together what he
could carry in his hads, without seri.
ously impeding his speed, and hurried
from the spot, but even after leaving
the houses the danger was not over
for every road had become an avenue
o~fGire, the falling timbeIs and stump'
GA each side of the road glowing with
with fire and proving as serious {
menace to the tugitives as the burn.
ing houses Of the doomed city.
nurinO tho oonfnsiOn which Orp