Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1894-09-03

heads. They
DASHED WATER OVER EACH OTHER
And covered their heads with wet cloths
TO prevent suffocation. One nnfortu-
nate man succumbed TO the smoke or
the terrible strain and fell in the water
and was drowned. So far as known
to-day this was the only trag-
edy of the gravel pit. Others
of the citizens sought refuge
in the Grindstone river under the
| aoutments OF the two railway bridges
| and the foot bridge. The exact number
cannot be known, as they are scattered
along a considerable distance. That
many escaped and some were drowned
is we'll known. Mrs. Martin Martinson
and her four little children were taken
drowned from the water this morning.
In the meantime Hinkley was burn
ing with frightful rapidty, and in a
| few hours nothing was left but black
ened ruins. The loss will certainly ex-
ceed a million dollars, with but light
insurance.
The situation at Sandstone is even
more appalling than at Hinckley, eX-
cept In point Of numbers. Or the 200
people in the town, one-fourth are dead.
Otti Stafferfeldt reached here from that
place tonight. He says the people
were just preparing TO leave when
the fire closed in on three sides and not
u single person saved thing except his
| clothing. About 100 went to the river
| and so or sixty were burned TO death.
AT o'clock this morning be saw
OVER FORTY BODIES
chsrred aud burned lying on every side.
! The people who were saved are living on
| potatoes and carrots left in the ground.
Mr.. Gilroy, conductor on the Eastern
Minnesota road, says all bridges have
been burned. One gentleman found A
| dead bodies at Sandstone, living uncov-
cred In the sun. The people are desti-
tuts OF everything.
In addition to AZ bodies at Sandstone
| there are 20 at Kettle River junction.
All the settlers in the vicinity are prob
ably burned to death.
| O'Neill Brothers had twelve camps
in the woods there and all these are
burned Most of the inmates, however,
are believed to have escaped with their
lives
There are eleven homeless families at
! Mission Creek and the same story is
true OF several other places in that
vicinity.
lis feared that several other towns
have suffered like fate. Millaca called
for help yesterday afternoon and the
relief train from st. Cloud was unable
to get beyond Brldgeman.
Nothing further has yet been received
| from Millaca, and how much may have
been the suffering cannot at this time
be known. The flames have, however,
| bsen very threatening around that
town, aud as it is very dry all ever that
part OF the State, the worst is feared.
The party that came through the
! fires around Hinckley on the hand car
suffered severely from burns. Their
injuries. however, viii not preve fatal.
They tell
MANY SAD STORIES
! OF what they saw. One woman who
had evidently tried TO save her five
| children and was overtaken by the
! fiery flames and the whole family per-
| ished close TO the railroad track. An
other case was where a mother, seeing
her house in flames, ran in to save her
| children. Her husband also followed
her, and the walls of the house caved
in before they could get ont
The passenger train from Duluth, on
which these men were, is in ashes, and
the rest of the passengers have taken
refuge in a marsh near Skunk Lake,
where they are surrounded by fire. The
engineer was badly burned by the
| flames, but stuck TO bis post and got all
of the passengers out Of the fire
| safely. This engineer, James Root, is
| one OF the best known and pluckiest OF
| those in the employ of the ST. Paul
| & Duluth Railroad. He tried 10 take
his train through the flames to Hinck-
ley, but when the cars caught fire from
| the flying embers, he reversed his en-
CINE and backed at full speed to Skunk
Lake. 1t was
so DARK DURING THE DAY
yesterday that it was almost impossible
| for any one to see one hundred feet
away, and during the night the head
light on the engine was useless. Engi-
neer Roots injuries are quite serious,
| but il is hoped that he will recover, al
though one report gives no hope.
The little town of Missing Creek,
some little distance north of Hinckley,
is also reported in ashes.
Special trains were sent out, both
FROM Duluth and St. Paul, to-day, with
| full medical force, and all that is possi-
| bic TO be done will be done.
A private dispatch received this
evening from the burned district states
positively that 250 dead bodies have al
ready been recovered, so that the esti-
mate made above may be considered de-
cidedly conservative.
The losses in the neighborhood Of st.
| Cloud, which is on the western ed ge OF
the forest fires, are estimated at $780,
600, and from that point east and north
/ nearly everything is burning. The
! fires are raging in Becker and Aitken
| counties, where many farm houses and
much grain has been lost, as well as
! timber.
From the stories OF passengers on the
limited train which was burned near
Hiuckley, the entire train crew deserve
TO be placed
on THE ROLL OF HONOR
| for personal heroism. Engineer James
Root, OF White Bear, heads the list. He
was badly burned and almost blinded
| and fell from his seat unconscious i'm
mediately on getting Through the fires,
\ When about two miles north of Hinck'
! lev, Engineer Root first discovered thai
the fires which had been raging on both
sides OF the track were racing him FOL
his life aud the lives OF his passengers
Cinaers were flying in every direction
| and the smoke was so dense il was wei