Sacramento daily record-union., 1889-06-08

All the brick buildings were costly and
substantial. The area ueyasted comprised
ninety-four acres. thickly built, the bound
ary of the fire on the north being Univers-
ity street, on the west and south Seattle
harbor and on the east Second and Fourth
streets.
There were about 500 wooden and fifty
brick buildings The wooden buildings
were mostly old, and being in the fire limit
if they alone had DWned, no regtei would
have been felt, but
EVERY BRICK BUILDING
In the towns gone except three One
Of the latter was the Boston Block contain
ing the postoffioe, and snOther was an un-
finished building But two of these sur
wives, and they were much Injured
When the sun set last night all the rail
road property in the city was DESTROYED
Every bank, theateT, engine house, tele-
graph office, newspaper office is gone The
City Hall, with its records, was lost. and
the big Occidental Hotel and nearly every
wharf. The electric light and gas works
were lost, and the electric and cable roads
disabled.
The fire started at half-Dast , in the
afternoon, when
STRONG NORTH wIED WAS BLOWING.
Which increased until about O'clock.
when the flames were driven at the speed
of a prairie fire.
The first row of buildings attacked were
OF wood, built on piles, and the fire de-
voured them with incredible speed. and
then reached out on all sides, licking I'D a
big saw mill three wooden blocks. and
Fries Opera House, a four-storv brick.
The supply of water was insufficient, and
the firemen were unable TO accomplish any
thing. In a half hour after the fire started
people hall mile away began TO move
their personal effects and to tear down
buildings, in the hope of checking the
flames, but the
FIRE LAUGHED AT THEIR FEEBLE ENDEAv-
oRs
And stopped at water on one side and the
steep hills on the other
At 7 o'clock the people on the hills
looked down on ninety acres OF flames.
The fire spread with the wind. leaping
streets in a second Many of the brick
buildings were four stories in hight but a
few minutes sufficed for their destruction.
On reaching the Whitechapel district. in
South Seattle, the fire spread so rapidly
that people were glad to escape with their
lives. Little effort here was made to fight
the destroyer.
As soon as the citizens could rouse from
VIGILANCE COMMITTEE WAS FORMED.
Two companies of militia were called out
and 200 special policemen were sworn in,
but not too soon, for the thieves were
abreast of the fire pillaging stores. A Jew
elry store was cleaned out at one rush.
Several men systematically began the work
OF plunder, and these were reinforced by an
army from Tacoma, who came by train.
Fifty thieves were arrested before mid
night. Families and merchants who saved
their goods took them up on vacant lots on
the hillside and there remained with them
all night.
The militia patroled the burned district
and permitted no entrance while the DO
licemen chal"nged every suspicious char
acter- The streets we're crowded up to
midnight. The sight from the hill was
grand, the night being clear and the view
sea of red pillows tossing where a few
hours before stood Seattle's commercial
quarter. AS the night wore on
THE HOMELESS PEOPLE
Lay down to sleep in the open air in blan-
kets. Probably five hundred men, women
and children slumbered on the ground A
reporter early this morning made a tour
among the camps. Nobody was awake.
The women and children slept as peaceful
as in comfortable bed. When the day
broke the camp resembled that of the Okla
homa opening. Tents and wooden build
ings were hurriedly erected. Every vacant
lot was covered with stands of some kind.
All the banks were running in improvised
quarters. Notices were staked among the
ruins, which announced that business
would be resumed on this site shortly"
The fire companies from the adjoining
cities worked industriously to
QUENCH THE sMoLDERING FIRE,
But with slow progress. The work of re-
moving the debris will be begun to-mor-
row. Tottering walls rise here and there
in the wide waste of ruip, and visitors are
excluded. 1t is impossible at present,
owing to the destruction OF books and
papers. to ascertain the loss and insurance.
Yesterday it was thought the loss would
be less than $I0.000,000 but to-days esti-
mates exceed that, and the underwriters
estimate ii is between 5000 600 and Sl6,-
000. 600, and this probably is correct The
insurance averages % per cent. of the loss.
THE LOSS OF LIFE WAS FOUR,
The fire bug previously mentioned, the
fireman named Derby, crushed by the
falling walls, and two unknown men seen
to enter Chinese store just before its col
lapse.
Relief is coming in generously.
The Governor has issued proclamation
calling for relief, which is being responded
to generously. Tacoma sent in $40 900
and provisions. Spokane, Port Townsend,
Portland and other cities are also respond
ing literally.