Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1894-08-04
UTTERLY WIPED OUT.

Towns Pouring In.
PHILLIPS, Wis, July 29.-At day
break to-day smoke covered an area OF
100 miles square. About $500 people |
have fed into the forests or ito the viii |
lagos near by. The town this morn |
ing was q smouldering heap of ruins |
and the smoke was so dense that the |
headlight of locomotive could not be |
seen fifty feet away. Three relief
trains reached Phillips soon after G
o'clock this morning. One was in
charge of Gov. George W. Peck and
his staff. The second came from Stew
ems Point in charge Of Frank Lame
reaux and Crosby Grant, and the third
from Marshield in charge of Maj. w.
II. Upham, republican nominee for
governor.
| AS soon as he arrived Gov. Peck
called his staff together and directed
the work of unloading the provisions.
There were several car loads of food
and warehouse was opened in one OF
the few buildings that are left stand
ing in the town. Through the dense
smoke Gov. Peck made his way and
found two heavy walls that marKed
the place where the two banks had
stood. On inquiry it was learned that
the vaults of the banks contained S52,.
600, and Gov. Peck Immediately swore
in dozen men to guard the money in
the vaults. They were armed with
Winchester rifles and ordered to re-
main on duty in two shifts day and
night.
The loss by the conhagration in its
entirety is difficult to estimate. Out Of
500 building in the town only thirty
seven remain. b. w. Davis, of the
Davis Lumber Co.. estimates the total
loss at sl,5O0, 900, with scarcely half
that amount covered by insurance. The
Davis Lumber Co. lost 100000; fully
insured The next highest loss is that
of the Fayette-Shaw Tannery Co., oper-
ating one OF the largest tanneries in
the United States. The tannery was
destroyed with its stock, aggregating
loss of nearly 100000. The Platz
Brewing Co. of Milwaukee, had a dis
tributing depot here which was de-
stroyed with loss of $1,000.
There is no way of estimating the
number of lives lost in the fire, and
even after forty-eight hours have
passed no one can be found who ven.
lures an opinion of the loss of life,
When the people fled before the wave
of fire they became separated, and can
give no account of each other. 1t is
known that sixteen persons persisted
on the raft that burned in the bayou
A bridge or trestle crossed the bayou
and when the supports of this bridge
, burned away it fell. Women and chill
dren were crossing at the time, and
some must have perished.
The charred body of Anton Flentzel
can be seen in the wreck of brick
chimney. The man was attempting
E to carry his trunk from burning
d dwelling, when the brick chimney fel
r on him, crushing out his life.
Y As the FIRE swept towards the bridg
a number of children were seen to taxi
refuge in the big lumber yard. Thei
cries were heard by Others who fled to
+ wards the water, but the children hav
never been found.
y OF the sixteen persons who lost thei
!. . lives on the raft that burned in th
= bayou eight are yet in the water. TIL
body of Frank Cliss, the .machinist
y :, was found under pile of driftwood a
', noon to-day. The bodies of his wifi
- and children We're recovered after
= wards. Dynamite was exploded al
~ day in the bayou, and number o
bodies were raised by this means. jim
Locks body was brought to the sur
face. He was the butcher who wa
u L drowned with his child in his arms.
:, The true story of the launching o
;; this ill-fated raft has never been told
The only man who tells a comprehen
:, sive narrative of the horror is Josepl
= Bollen, a lumberman. He was stand
ing near boathouse when a numbe
women and children came towar,
:. him. There were three or four mel
!, following. They went to the raj
: and attempted to push it fror
:, the shore when it caught fire
- Some jumped into small boats an
= others remained on the raft, All pei
ished, as the boats were overloade
and sunk. The raft burned to tn
waters edge.
> The local relief committee has issue
, statement to the public thanking tn
;. generous citizens of the state for thei
= liberal contributions.
A. To briefly summarize, the fires hav
- burned as follows;
" The city of Phillips, entirely wipe
n out; the city of Mason, practically dt
Il stroyed, with the White River Lumbe
, Co., and 80, 600, 600 feet of lumber; hea(
quarters of the Ashland Lumber Co
near Shorts Crossing. entirely wipe
out; special train of the Chicago, S'
Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha, consis
20 ing of sixteen ears and two locom'
tives, all burned, broke through TIL
re burning bridge near Ashland junction
r. the camps of the Thompson Lumbt
e Co., burned at White river; two bridge
lie on the main line of the Chicago, s
ot Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha railroad
rs cne near Ashland Junction and or
as near Mason; two bridges on the Wi
d, consin Central, one at Chelsea and IL
" other ut Phillips, both on the ma
v line south of Ashland.
1t Several parties of berry pickers fro
10 Ashland narrowly escaped with the
lives. ......
Sixty Business Houses and Several Dive
G. ings In Belle Plaine Ia, Destroyed.
u BELLE PLANE. Ia. July 29.-The c.
is of fire was heard throughout the tov
as late yesterday afternoon. The citize
en- soon had the fire apparatus out, b
g owing to the engines steaming slow
rs the flames, which had started in t
n, roof OF livery stable and were fam
no by a strong west wind, had lear
or across the street to the business p'
g. of the city, and were soon beyond I
re control Of the firemen.
ne It was impossible to stop the spre
ty Of the flames with the apparatus
hand and sixty buildings were burn'
kilograms were hurridly sent to Gee