The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1891-11-27
RosHNnAuM BROS.
IHE' | ABq'FS sTonr.
Herniniscences OF the Great Fire
at Deadwood, S. D.
Courageous Men Carrying Powder Kegs
Through Blazing Strcets-Camping i'm
the Senator's Yard-How tho Best
of Order Was Maintained.
Especial Washington Lcttcr.l

Especial Washington Lctter.l
81 read with interest an interview
with my late colleague, Senator Petit
grew" said ex-senator Moody, of South
Dakota, this morning. ~ was particu-
larly interested in his graphic dcscrip-
ton of the burning of Dcadwood; but
he did not tell you all about it. Tho
heroism of those people in that frontier
town was unparalleled. They rose to
the occasion and evinced independent
characteristics which surprised even
me, although was their ncighbor and
friend"
"Pleose tell me some of the incidents,
senator"
both during and after that dreadful
fire they manifested courage and fear
lessness which were truly heroic.
From my home on the hillside saw a
score of determined men carrying kegs
of powder through the burning streets
to place Of safety. Over n ton of pow
der had been stored in what was be-
Geved TO be fireproof vault, but when
adjoining buildings were burning some
of the men feared an explosion, SO they
entered the vault and carried the pow
der. in kegs, through the streets, while
on each side of them for two or three
blocks the fires were raging most terri
bly,"
"Was there only one powder house in
the city?"
mo, there were several. One of
them was filed with giant powder,
which was used in blasting by our
miners in the hills. You know giant
powder cxplodes only by heat and con-
cussion. Well, the house in which the
giant powder was stored burned to
ashes, the boxes containing the giant
powder were burned, and the powder
itself burned without an explosion.
There was no conclusion, and hence no
explosion. But, in another vault, which
was presumably frcproof, there were
more than two tons of giant powder,
which could not be removed. About
five o'clock one side of that vault
cracked with the heat, few of the
bricks fell in on the powder. and the re-
sultant explosion threw the debris of
the building over three hundred feet
into the air. My residence is about two
hundred feet above the town, on hill
side, and the white bluffs opposite arc
nearly four hundred feet high. could
see the embers, bricks, timbers and
flooring sailing away up the white
bluffs nearly to the top of them"
"How did the great fire originator"
sit started about one o'clock in tho
morning in a bakery. The flames cx-
tended to an adjoining drug store,
which soon was wrapped in flames.
Some chemicals and oils exploded, and
when that occurred knew that the
town was doomed. could sec the peo-
pie running out of their homes holding
little pieces of wearing apparel or
blankets in their hands; while some of
them, almost wholly naked, carried
little children and hurried to the hills
for safety. My premises were crowded
all night, and at least four hundred
camped in my yard. fed over three
hundred at my breakfast table, in fact
fed everybody who came until my pro-
visions were exhausted, and then sent
for more"
Were there many people killed."
"Not single life was lost. The
alarm was sounded. the bells rang, and
citizens rushed from house to house
looking after their friends, SO that
every body escaped"
"You say that when your provisions
were exhausted you sent for more.
Were not provisions pretty high just
then2"
ION the contrary, not single COM
modify was increased in price by the
circumstances of the calamity. Flour
would have easily brought fifty dollars
per barrel, but nobody thought Of rails
Ing the price OF anything. we sent
feamsters across the Sioux rcservn-
ton, distance Of about two hundred
miles, to bring provisions to us. Our
merchants were obliged to get every
thing by teams in those days, for we
had no railroad nearer than Pierre, on
the Missouri river. They soon had