Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1892-09-09
NAILS At A DOG TROT
n roox 1weNTy-FouR DAYS From
NEW YORK TO CINCINNATI

- 49,
NEW YORK TO CINCINNATI
~.u s..,,e. Is,s rA.. sixty Ts.ss 49,
A. Interesting Account Of the BIG 80
r.rk Fir. Of 1855 fro. - osA Lsss3
written NJ the Tine.
II ia hard 10 believe that only nfty-
seven years ago. . time WITHIN the mem
ory Of many old residents of this city'a
letter took tysenfy four days In TRANSIT
between Neav York and Clnctnnan
Here Is a letter addressed to "NicnoaAs
Carroll, Esq. Cincinnati, ONO. post
marked New York. Dec IL, ana also
marked cincinnati. Ohio. Jan. IL, the
difference between the two dates being
tbrs, weeks and half. The letter WAS
.fservsrd forwarded to New YORK,
scare Of Messrs. Gideon Lee q Co., NO.
IN Ferry street" The name Of this nrm
vill have a familiar sound to some
leather merchants still doing business In
1.-THE swamp
In addition to the interest which thus
old letter has as a curiosity OF the mails,
!, contains the account Of an eye wit
ness az the great fire Of 1885. 1t is writ
ten upon a full sheet Of foolscap paper,
and was mailed, after the fashion OF
that time. without an envelope. the ad-
dress being written upon the blank
fourth page and the whole sealed with
wafer. There is no stamp Of course,
but the postoftice department has marked
il with a pen, .'2p 1850" The post
marks, in red ink. are much larger and
palmer than tl,4e'of the present.
The letter Is dated New York, Dec.
II. 1885. 1T is with the deepest feeling
of regret" the writer says, that l Try
TO give yo,i Z. faint idea Of the horrible
calamity li.at befell our city last night
II is indeed one Of the greatest disasters
that ever visited this country, or prob
ably any country since the memorable
confagration of Moscow. Almost the
whole business part OF the city Is one
heap Of ruins.
about S:i5 o'clock last evening fire
was discovered breaking out III two Or
three places il the stores i'll Pearl street,
lust below Wall street, on the side near
est the exchange. There was almost
gale blowing from the northwest, which
immediately drove the flames across
Pearl street, where they developed ten
or twelve stores, and III few minutes
the fire was driven through TO Water
street. and thence To the East river,
sparing nothing in its course on the
lower side of Wall street. The shipping
in that quarter was almost every mo-
| ment catching, and the tide was too low
to float them out into the river, some OF
| them being aground. ...
The fire continued to drive on to-
ward the Battery, enveloping the ex-
change and making steady progress
| down toward Old slip and to William
street, sweeping everything in its way
| to level with the ground. 1t then ex
| tended through Exchange place to Viii
| liam street, up William to Wall on both
| sides, then through the South Dutch
| church, taking the whole block below
| through to Broad street, except the
| stores fronting on Broad street. You
| can now imagine the whole space from
| Iflt blt9h lIpiitiiS va stIttt w" II
| to the East river one broad sheet Of fire
and rapidly moving down to the Bat
| terv. The engines had long since given
up Ill hope of DONG anything; it was
| utterly out of their power, us the hose
| froze as fast As IL WAS filled up.
| II was on the spot few minutes after
| the fire broke out and stafd Till about
| ~, Ill
was able. my friends to move their own
| and their employees books and valua-
| bles. 1t was "A bitter cold night, and
| this morning you can perhaps imagine
| my feelings, bat You cannot my looks.
| Il is now l. o'clock and have not been
| from the stove since | came from the
fire, but | hear that 1t is raging almost
| as much Us ever and has burned up
everything this side of Coenties slip.
| Dec. lS-Your letter remained I'M
finished Yesterday, rs Thought it would
| be useless to attempt to mail it i'll the
| confusion necessarily attendant upon
the removal of the po>tofiice. They
saved everything, | believe. connected
with that department., and are now
l utliltE ttNi ai' Iiir so
under and has not reached below Coen-
ties slip. They stopped It's further pro
| yress in Pearl street by hloE'Ia- up one
or two stores in Pearl street ON the
corner of Coenties slip. where, you will
| recollect. the Sip IS narrow and there
| was danger of the fire reaching across,
Among our acquuintances burned ont
l =, Lost all h1s ..lnf hal
saved Sl5, 900 CAT of $io, 900; d. Stouten-
burgh. John Birdsall, etc. People are
more cool today. and say the loss is be-
tween $50, 900 900 and ST., 900, 900"
The case now stands thus Begin on
the lower side of Coffee House slip and
come up Wall street to William, thence
diagoually back of the Phcenix bank to
the stores fronting on Broad street; then
it has made clean sweep within this
circle TO the Est river down to Coenties
slip. where it is now burning. Every
thing within this is destroyed ex-
change, postottice, a. Tappan 4 CO.
everything is gone. Everybody wears a
gloomy face this morning, and with
reason. Some of the effects will be the
failure of all ire insurance companies
IN the city. and people coming in while
| am writing say that at least half of the
merchants i'll New York must fail, and
half the banks. In short. there is no
end to the misery that will he produced.
| The loss at tue present time is variously
estimated at from $50. 900. 900 TO $780,
900. 000 in goods and property The cause
| If the fire has not been ascertained.'
People were not cool enough even on
the second day to reach rational figures.
for the loss by the great fire of 1885 was
afterward computed at $ls 0oo. 900. The
houses and stores DESTROYED numbered
64s. There was no Croton water then
to fight fire with. The Croton system
mad been determined upon year before,
but it was not opened till 1912. The
first transatlantic steamship entered the
harbor six years later, in 1871, and in
that year the first telegraph line was es-
tablished. The writer of this interest
ing reminder of half century ago was
Edwin 4. Tremain.- New York Times
Tick of the American Watch.
The United States is fast crowding
| ont ~ .be v-ot,.b vnart-nt