Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1894-09-06

Ii cniIinyed alsnIt three hundred men,
ato, with lLeir families made up a
Ia ige II rtiCn IF the 1000 or LOO pop
ulaticr claimed for the town. Its pay
roll was enormous and without It
Hinekley could not survive. Indeed,
II it is lot rebuilt 1t is hard to see
what reason. there should be for re-
building HInckley TO anything like its
former proportions. The whole plant
was wiped out almost quicker than it
tGkes to describe 1t and with the rest
went abou ninety splendid horses. The
burning OF this plant involves a finan-
cial loss Of from S450,00o to 100000
with about half that amount Of in
uraCcn. The total loss to the city
will exceed a million dollars, with a
comparatively light insurance. The
a In the lumber regions is neces-
sarii. high and very little insurance
vas carried in consequence.
The situation at Sandstone is ever
more eppal'iLg than at Hinckley, ex-
cept in point of numbers. or the 200
people livilg ia the town, one fourth
are dead. Otto Stafferfeldt Of Sand
stone walked into Hinckley and rode
down 10 ! lie City tonight and tells
a graphic story Of the disaster. He
says that list night about $50 flames
lIeareG the town and the people pre-
pared to leave early. The wind blew
like a burricsne and as the people were
getting ready to leave, the fire closed
in on three sides, not a single person
saved a thing except his clothes.
Stefferfeldt carried two children TO a
place CT safety, and went back for
more. About 100 went to the river
and fifty or sixty were burned to
death At 4 o'clock this morning Mr..
Stefferfeldt saw over forty bodies,
chan red and burned, lying on every
si5e. The people who were saved
have been all day without food or
shelter end no relief could DE got to
them to%tay. The people are living on
potatoes and carrots left In the ground.
Sandstone Is about three miles from
Sandstone Junction on the Duluth
road and The Ere was on both sides Of
the river so that the town of Partridge
was hurrnd.
Mr.. Gi]b1y, conductor on the Eastern
Minnesota caTe down 10 eighteen
miles north Of Hinckley and found MI
bridges burned, incI'ling big bridges
over Kettle river aud the Grindstone,
walked down TO Sandstone and found
only a handful of people. One gentla-
man. Mr. Sanhorp, found forty-SaYcn
lead bodies lying uncovered in the sun.
Jae people gre fA>,i' 10 OF everything.
They need food. shelter, clothing and
medical attendance. The only build
ing left Is he brick school house, which
Is all burned ont inside.
lha peuple are living on the river
+ bottoms, without shelter. General
Manager FalrinEtun at Duluth. WAS
teleSraI he'd, ~ wires are open to
within two miles of Partridge. aud
asked to send a train to within seven
miles of the place with provisions and
medicine.
In addition to fOrty-seven bodies at
sandstone, there are twenty at Kettle
River Junction. One family is living
In a root house end the father is miss.
Ing. All the settlers in the vicinity
are probably burned to death. O'Neiil
Bros. had twelve camps in the woods
near Sandstone, and all these are
burned. Most OF the inmates however,
are believed to have escaped with
their lives.
There are about eleven homeless
families still at Mission Creek, but
they have provisions for about twenty
four Eturs. Brook Park. two miles
west OF HiIckIey, is burned and there
about 125 people there, many of whom
are Ill need of immediate relief.
Pine City, MINI, Sept. :. - This
city has been converted into a
Dig hospital for those Injured in the
terrlble timber fires north. Between
ltlnckley aud this city, the st. Paul K
Duluth railroad runs q special ever
few hours bringing in the injured.
A few Of the wounded are he fol.
lowing: Carroll il nike, head and arms.
q. A. Carlson, ST. Louis, ears and
hands burned; Mrs. Mcneil, aged
"ighty, head: Mrs. Greentields, face
ana entire body: Mrs. Otto OIeson.
rice II es es; Charles Larsen. hands:
Joseph Bardon. eyes, legs and hands:
Emma Hammond Of Iowa, entire
pohy, will die; Mrs. WesterIuud. face.
and eyes. Nels rrcsk, face and hands.
Otto Rull, eyes: John Frisck. body.
john Shahorg. body.
: fice City has turned the skating rink
fnd C urt house as well rs MANY
Irlvate houses, into hospitals, whore
h'tv sufferers are receiving medical MT.
ttrdaiico and careful nursing. The
tov.E lall il used as an eating house
mere all the homeless men. woman
n ch:idro:, are substantially fed. Tho
sci"oi Louise. church and hotel besides
some stores are used TO shelter them
by Eight There IS no property to bc
Talked after. Those who have saved
uali faT!lcs are lucky, and those wb,
their W lives feel grateful for
talt much. "
NO attempt Mt burial will be made
before ii'nrillng Forty Boxes have
been received from st. Paul and about
a dozen are being constructed here ,s
feceptacles for the dead. Whichever
way the eye turns heartrending scenes
are witnessed. The hospitals and
streets are thronged with people seelx-
ing their missing loved ones
A soon as each train comes in from
the north there Is a frenzied rush OF
pallid inquiries. some of whom are
doomed to disappointment forever
Fathers seek wives and children: sis.
tiers, their brothers, youths, their moth.
ArG mn