The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1894-09-04

marsh near Skunk lake, where they are
surrounded by fire. The engineer was
badly burned by the flames, but stuck to
his post and got all of the passengers ont
OF the fire safely.
This engineer, James Root Is one Of tho
best known and pluckiest OF those In the
employ OF the st. Paul and Duluth. He
tried TO take his train through the fires
20 Hinckley, but when the cars caught fire
from the flying embers. ne reversed his en-
gino and backed at full speed 10 Skunk
lake.
HinckIey Absolutely Wiped Out.
The walls OF the schoolhouse. the iron
fence about the town hall property. the
bank vault and one absolutely uninjured
outhouse are hll that are left of the site of
Hinokley, where on Saturday stood a
score of store buildings and dozen times
as many dwelling houses.
The story Of the catastrophe which wiped
out the material possessions that had
made Hinckley busy, prosperous little
city, is a short one. The town was built
of wood. The schoolhouse erected last
year at a cost Of $4,000 and one half the
Duluth roundhouse were the only brick
structures In the city.
BY one of those peculiar freaks, for
which there is no accounting, the eastern
Minnesota roundhouse and water tank on
the southwestern edge of the town, almost
in the woods, escaped the flames--a cir
cumstance the more remarkable from the
fact that IL stood directly in the path of
the flames, which seem to have jumped it
as cleaniy as if playing leapfrog.
All Saturday forenoon the townspeople
were apprehensive. The smoke rolling up
from tho south tod a story Enthusiastically
plain TO those accustomed TO o wooded
country. The fire kept advancing famed
by gale. The main part of the village
lies In the north fork, made by the cross
ing of the Duluth and Eastern tracks, the
latter TO the east and the former on the
west. On the west side of the Duluth
tracks were few small houses belonging
to the railway employees The firemens
attention was mainly directed to keeping
the fire away from the main business part
Of the city.
About o'clock In the afternoon, the fire
literally jumped into town. Its approach
was not gradual; IL did not eat its way
along, devouring everything on it's path,
but came in huge leaps, as il to overtake
everything fleeing before it and then
burned back at its leisure. 1t Is described
ress on Hinckley and elsewhere as If il
were forced along by cyclone of it's own
generation.
About the same hour, the accommoda-
ton train on the Hinckley and st. Cloud
branch left for the latter place with about
25 passengers. It's path lay directly across
the path Of the fire, and their situation
speedily became desperate. The ties were
burning, the rails were warming and the
trestles werc sagging under the train.
Desperate Situation.
The smoke had increased so that the en-
gineer was helpless. He could not see the
train behind him. Burning trees lay on
She track and were tossed aside by the en-
gine. Suddenly the track gave way, and
She train toppled Off to one side. No one
was injured, and they pressed on to Polka
gama station, few rods ahead.
But few feet in front of the engine was
discovered . gorge 90 feet wide and 40 feet
deep, where the trestle had been burned
away. They succeeded in reaching the
clearing about the station, and escaped
with few burns and bruises There were
burned along the track, however, four or
five people.
The people who were left in the city
We're In what seemed TO be an almost hope
less condition. Esress by the only means
Of transportation that could hope to dis
tance the swiftly advancing flames was
out Of the question. The men had boen
fighting fire for hours and the women and
the children were in panlc-strickcn con-
dition.
Many of them were Of the more ignor-
ant population, for a very large percentage
of the people who got out on the Great
Northern railroad are of the more intelli-
gent class. Horses were harnessed to
buggies and wagons, women and children
Were hurriedly loaded. In some cases at
tempts were made to carry OFF some house
hold goods, but In most instances the pco-
pie had no thought for aught but their
lives.
Probably 200 of them left town on foot
or In vehicles plunging into the woods to
the north across the Grndstone river,
which skirts the town on the north. They
were literally fleeing before the pursuing
demon of fire. Over the hill that rises be-
hind thoGrindstone is n camp, and TO this
most OF the people with teams headed, but |
t proved no protection. The fire gave |
them no opportunity to go further.
Not One Left Alive.
Some abandoned their teams and ran
nto the lower portions OF the morass, but
he fire sought them out. Not one was
eft TO tell the tale, and this morning, in
pace Of little more than four or five acros,
we're counted over 1870 corpses. There were
many families of i've, six and seven, and
here they lay, the men generally li.tle in
ldvance, the mother surrounded by her
title ones, cut Of by the most horrible of
Ieaths. ~
Nearly all the bodies were nude, the fire
aving burned every vostige of their cloth.
ng and blackencd and charred many OF
he corpses beyond recognition, and where
vhole families were wiped out as they
vere, and some of tho bodies completely
ncinerated, identification Is absolutely
ut Of the question.
Awful Fury OF tho Flames.
The intense heat would develop veri.
able whirlwind OF flames that actually
visited off poplar trees several inches in
iameter and carrying them forward from
to 80 rods, where they fell and began
ne work Of devastation anew.
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