The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1894-09-04
A PLACE OF MOURNING.
Hinclley Visited by a Correspondent
Rain Followed by Wind.


Hinckley Visited by N Corresponding
Rain Followed by Wind.
HINCKLEY,S Minn., Sept "A gentle
rain fell this morning and dampened the
enpbers Of the forest fires tfat did so much
damage in Hinckley Saturday afternoon
and night The blackened ruins OF two or
three buildings is all that remains standing
OF the once prosperous towa with its one
thousand population and its busy railroad
and numbering interests. The town is the
junction point for the St Paul Duluth
and the Eastern Minnesota railways and
both these roads have suffered losses that
cannot now be estimated, while the loss 10
the timber interest is something beyond
computation.
This is to-day a place OF mourning, and
the burial Of the charred and unrecogniza-
BILE bodies OF hundreds Of victims has sad
dened the survivors even more than the
disaster itself. The fire was so overwheln-
ing in its devastation that no one in the
burnt territory could for the moment real
ize how great was their loss. Each was so
intent on saving his own life that little
thought was given to the disaster in gen.
eral by most. although many cases OF
heroism have been reported. The bodies
thus far recovered have been plrced in
rough pine boxes for burial. and the major
ity of them have been buried without iden-
tiflcation.
The wires that were down this side OF
Pine City have been put in shape, so that
the operator is able to send his report as
he sits on an empty keg in the open air,
there being no shelter Of any kind In the
town. Most of the survivors went TO Pine
City yesterday for food and shelter. and
the women and children are still there, but
many Of the men returned to their ruined
homes to see IL by any possibility anything
remains
The correspondent took a five-mile tramp
in the woods this morning through a scene
of desolation rarely seen by the eye OF
man. The country is swept clean. There
is but one settlers house standing within
an unknown radius OF miles. 1t is that Of
Mike Dean on the edge of the river three
miles east of. town. 1t was a new house
and very substantial. Dean and a neigh
Dor fought the fire until they had to aban-
don hope. They got the wofnen and chill
dren into the water covering their heads
with cloths kept wet by dashfng water
| over them. When the fire had passed they
came out unhurt and were much surprised
| to find their building standing. This morn
| ing when the correspondent entered the
clearing the house dog barked as savagely
and the rooster crew as loudly IS IL they
had not come within ace Of death.
A hand-car party this morning located
eleven bodies, swelling the total OF those
found along the track between Hinckley
and Skunk Lake to above fifty. Near one
| of the bodies, evidently that of a passen-
| ger on the Inflated train, was found let
| ter addressed to Michael Schrumsl. Chi
| cago. and a charred business card bearing
| the same name. Three othe- bodies were
| probably those of passengers on the train.
| Another was young man, a splendid spec
| linen of physical manhood. and from his
| clothing and high laced boots apparently
| a prospector or cruiser. The other five were
| the family of settler named John Robin
son, consisting of himself. three women
| and an infant Above Skunk Lake the
| work train reported twelve bodies on the
right of the road. presumably passengers.
The most sorrowful feature OF the hor-
| rible fatality at Hinckley is the thought
| that had the situation been realized fn time
| not single life among the residents OF the
| town need have been lost The Great
Northern gravel pits. where only a hundred
| sought safety. is ten acres in extent,
| broad enough, and long enough and deep
| enough to have sheltered every soul In
| Hinckley and also their domestic animals
| There is a pool Of water of considerable
| depth there. The bottom is bare Of grass
| or shrubbery, and there was no infiamrna-
| BILE material near the brink on the side
| from which the fire came. Those who did
| seek the pit passed the hours of their en-
| forced Imprisonment in comparative COM
| fort.
| This morning detail OF twenty regulars
| from Fort Smelling. under command OF
4 rr(fr nT4Fl
| an army surgeon. came I'm from St Paul
| They brought some tents, but finding that
Acknowledgement Muhlberg had sent up $50
| State tents, the regulars turned in and put
| up fifty of them for the refugees with reg
| ular army expedition. The local physicians
were about played out and there was abun-
dance of work for the army surgeons.
In the afternoon. following the rain.
strong breeze swept up from the south and
| soon the flames which had been quenched
| and smoldered by the morning showers
| were sain famed TO a blaze and hundreds
of columns Of smoke began to ascend from
! the woods. The fire will not be out for
many days unless there heavy rains.
but there is no danger, as the underbrush
| Is burned out clean and there is no possi-
| bility OF another spread. The intensity and
| instability of the fire can be seen from
| the fact that road fills where logs were
| burned under several feet Of earth are
eaten out the fire working its way through
water under the entire width OF the road.
The busiest point at Hinckley at noon
was the Associated Press telegraph office
! 1t was not much OF an office. but IL
| sufficsd to serve the public with the Asso-
| ciated Press report. the only press report
sent out OF Hinckley to-day. The wires
] were brought down to a burned stump OF
1 ,Ig l..w hp rxFEH
as the Operators desk Another box made
| him a seat A spike held down the copy
| In the breeze The correspondent had
| Ike homeiy desk and sat on beer keg.
| An occasional shower blurred the copy.
but Ii was rapidly fed 10 the eager wire
| despite the discomforts of the occasion
| sANnSTONE WIPED OIT.