The Forrest City times., 1894-01-12
A CARNIVAL OF FLAME


 nar Grounds and Loss of Two Mil
 hoh Doilars-The Peristyle the Casipo
 '" the Music Hall Destroyed, and the
 sechancai Liberal Arts Building, with
 costly Exhibits, Partially Burned.
 CHICAGO, Jan. 9.-Before the gaze of vast throng last evening the beauti- 1ul peristyle of the Worlds Columbian exposition met glorious end, and the magnificent column sank to ashes in a funeral pyre. With it went the Ca slno and Music hall. Lanking the peri style at either end Before the de- Stfucjlon of the grand water entrance to the fair had been completed the great Manufactures building. con taining S2,OOO, 600 worth of ex- hibits, packed and ready for shipment, was on fire in a dozen places, while brave firemen with heroic energy were risl1ing life and limb to stay the destruction. Fifty thousand people watched the desperate fight and cheered the efforts of the men who, on the roof 250 feet or more from the ground, were struggling to beat back the flames. It was grand con- test and was waged for hours without an apparent gain on either side. The blaze played in the woodwork of the roof, gradually eating through and dropping burning brands amidst the costly exhibits on the floor below.
 There were other attachments of firemen stationed to extinguish the brands as they fell.
 Among the exhibitors sem1-panlc reigned, and frantic foreigners were using every effort to remove the goods to places of safety.
 The fire was carried by burning brands to the promenade around the roof of Manufactures and Liberal Arts building almost in the center, a little to the south of the clock tower, which formed striking center piece in the great building. The plank walk of which the promenade was con structed furnished material for fire, which at midnight threatened to consume the whole roof unless the fire men were able to carry out their plans
 Part of the lower section of the roof on the west side soon caught fire, and there was not a sufficient force of men and engines present to eXtinguish it. The interior of the building was ob scured by dense clouds of smoke, and great black cloud could be seen as- cending from the structure for miles around.
 At t2:30 a. m. the fire chief believes that none of the exhibits will be de- stroyed, and that much of the roof may be saved The danger to the millions of dollars worth of property is height ened by the inaccessibility of the place and the extreme risk to human life in- volved in ascending to the roof and fighting the conflagration from such a dizzy altitude, enveloped in smoke and flying sparks.
 Chief Allerton has a dozen teams and large force of men removing the packed exhibits from the north end Of the building. The Japanese have re- moved nearly all their property from the section toa place of safety. In the American section, near the clock tower, over which the roof is burning fercelv. are a few exhibits to be de- stroyed.
 As the evening advanced 5o,0o0 peo. pie gathered around the spot, and as the pyrotechnic shower from the burn ing roof seemed to signal the destruc- ton of the greatest building in She world a groan went up from the multi tude.
 Down on the lake shore from the north end of the huge building within 100 feet of the blazing Music hall, the crowd stood and watched the destruc- ton. Those close at hand could see score of brave fremen armed with chemical extinguishers rushing rom the subroof to the southeast corner of the Manufacturers building, the point in which the most imminent danger was. Here they fought as tire men seldom ever before fought. Every moment a brand would fall and start n miniature confagration in the wood- work. Only moment would 1t burn before it was swept out of existence, then the plucky little band o1 men would rush to another threatened spot. Another incipient blaze would De stamped out almost as soon as 1t start ed. and each time the crowd would cheer and hold its breath as another fire caught, and a successful onslaught was made on it.
 In Manufacturers building the French exhibit, which was located just south of the center was the first to suffer damage by the fire. This ex- hibit was originally valued at sl, 5Oo' 900, but the larger portion of it is said to have been moved out. Among the losses enrmerated are the bronze al, i'm a re,