People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1894-09-07

many OF tnem were actually burned
as they fed, falling on the right of
way for distance of three miles or
more. Nearly thirty bodies were re-
covered along here.
The people who remained in Hinck-
ley Jared much better than the fugi-
tives. Most of them gathered on the
ten acre clearing Of the Eastern Min
nesota road, where there was large
gravel pit, in which was large pool
of water. Into this 100 people rushed
and there they remained for four
hours, applying wet cloths to their
faces constantly to keep out the
smoke. One man was drowned but
all the others escaped. .U
At Sandstone, village in this Vi
entity, fifty lives were lost The fire
swept down on three sides Of the
place at once Saturday afternoon.
The citizens fed to the river, but only
$50 of them escaped, with only the
clothing they wore. The fifty who
persisted died along the way to the
river.
At Kettle River, another village,
and at Brook Park probably twenty
lives were lost.
On the bodies found along the nu-
luth track were four watches, all of
which stopped at 4;30, indicating the
time when death overlook their pos
SCISSORS. The searching party which
went up the Duluth track scared off a
large black bear which was shifting
about the bodies, having apparently
come through the fire uninjured. One
of the unidentified bodies, that of a
woman, wore ring on which was
engraved Nv B. G. to c. L. G."
The total loss at Hinckley ard the
immediate vicinity is roughly esti-
mated at 100000. To-day rain is
falling and the last of the fire has
been quenched.
BURYING THE DEAD.
Before o'clock this morning a con-
struction train loaded with bridge
material for the repair of the bridge
across Grindstone river reached Pine
City from Rush City. A couple of
hundred loaves of bread and other
light provisions were placed on board
in charge of Judge j. G. Nethaway of
Saltwater, representing the relief
committee. A party of laborers to
dig graves and inter the bodies was
collected and the train proceeded into
the burned country.
About II o'clock the bridge was
sufficiently repaired to permit the
passage of a train and an engine,
freight car and caboose, with plenti-
full supply of food and meagre store
of collins in charge of Undertaken
OHalloran of St Paul was sent north.
In the Hinckley cemetery this
morning, in an indiscriminate heap,
lay more than ninety corpses, men.
women and little children, some
burned to a crisp, others only Drowned
by the heat and none clothed.
There are eleven homeless families
still at Mission Creek, but they have
provisions for about twenty-four
hours. Brook Park, two miles west
of Hinckley, is burned and there are
about 1875 people there, many of whom
are in need of immediate relief
HEROISM OF A TRAIN CREW.
From the stories of passengers on
the limited train, which was burned
near Hinckley, the entire train crew
deserve to be placed on the roll of
honor for personal heroisn. Engineer
James Root of White Bear, heads the
list, He was badly burned and al
most blinded and fell from his seat
unconscious Immediately on getting
through the fires. Fireman John Nc
Gowan was a good companion for him
in the cab, and the other members of
the crew-Conductor Jerry Sullivan,
Brakeman Monahan, Baggageman
George Morris and Porter Blair-were
fit associates for the hero who led
them into what was literally fierce
furnace.
When about a mile and half from
Hinckley Root discovered that the
fire was too fast for him and it over
took the train and overleaped it so
that the train was literally sur
rounded with flames. The air was
sitting and the clothes of both engin-
eer and fireman caught fire. Nc
Gowan leaped into the water tank,
eytinguishing the fire in his own
clothes and then seizing a bucket
dashed the water several times over
the burning engineer. Root steadily
kept at his post, although scarcely
able to sit upright. ...l .'..
The rear car caught fire and as the
flames overlook it the passengers
rushed headlong into the forward
cars. Conductor Sullivan, with his
plucky associates walked up and
down the aisles doing their best to
soothe the frightened passengers.
The shrieks of the women and chill
dren as well as the terrified shouts of
the men increased the terrible feel
ings aroused by the uproar of the
AulhSo VI CNCAy Hduu' Inc NluuOMS
broke from the heat and several of
male passengers, too terrified
for further self-control, with
terrible cry leaped headlong
through one of the open windows and
were swallowed up in the flames out
side. Others seeing this act quickly
followed and altogether in the next
ten minutes a dozen men leaped to
death in the flames in like manner.
The women, whose terror had been
| pitiful a few moments before, now
came heroically to the help of the
trainmen in endeavoring to soothe the
frightened children, a number of
whom were on the train. 'ud .tl,f
Engineer Root saw there was no
outlet apparently for his train ahead
and concluded to turn back, through
the distance already burned over
rather than encounter possibly greater
perils before them. He backed at a
fast speed to Skunk Lake, little