The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-05-22

Famine In Building Materials. and
Little Can BE Done to Restore
the Destroyed Structures Until
the Opening of River Navigation
The Town ParaIyked by the
Force of the Crushing Blow.
VICTORIA, B. c., May 21-The main
portion of the city of Dawson was de-
stroyed by fire on April 28, causing a. loss
OF $4,OOO,O00. In all one hundred and
eleven buildings, including the Bank of
British North America, were burned.
The news was brought down by L. 8.
Hume, son of Mayor Hume, Of Seattle;
J. Tokalas and party which left Daw-
son on April q and made their way out
by canoe to Lake Lebarge and then over
the Ice having a most perilous trip.
The fire was caused by a drunken
woman upsetting a lamp. None Of the
big warehouses of the Alaska CONNER
cial company or the North American
Trading and Transportation company
were touched by the fire, so there will be
no shortage of provisions even If the
lakes should not open by the middle Of
June, which is now predicted. The
heaviest losers by the fire are Messrs.
Mcclellan and McFeeley, of Vancouver.
who had an immense stock of iron and
tinware and miners supplies taken in at
heavy expenses.
DUST DESTROYED.
The Bank of British North Americas
rather fimsy vault did not with
destroyed The bank also lost a large
amount of gold dust. A rough estimate
places the loss in gold and paper money
alone at s1,OOo,OOO
Altogether the burned area comprises
quite three-quarters of the area of Daw-
| son.
In their trip out the three couriers
] were forced to every expedient, walking,
running with the dogs, swimming On oue
or two occasions and breaking through
the ice repeatedly They passed the
river steamer Flora cutting her way
through the ice with her steel PROV at
Hootailinqua and found the telegraph
wire to Skaguay completed at Cariboo
crossing, seventy-five miles inland A
letter which was brought out by the
courageous messengers notes that before
the ashes Of the bank had time to cool
men were working on the spot with rock
ers, there being a good probability that
much Of the lost gold would be recovered
in this manner.
STORY OF THE FIRE.
An extra edition of the Skaguay Alask-
an received by the steamer Lees, at mid
night contains the following report, wired
| from Bennett to Skaguay just previous
| to the sailing of the steamer of the Daw-
son fire:
Another disastrous fire has visited
Dawson City, this time fairly wiping out
| the entire business center of the town,
and creating losses that will aggregate
| 81, ,0e0, ZOO, with not dollars worth Of
insurance The news was telegraphed
| from Bennett this afternoon by the spe-
| clal correspondent of the Daily Alaskan,
who received 1t from a man named To- d.
| les who had just reached Bennett from
long and perilous trip from Dawson,
over broken trails, dangerous rivers and
rough lakes.
! ''Mr. Tokales says that the fire broke
| out on April p in the very center of the
business portion, commencing at the
| Opera House on the water front, and
spread with unusual rapidity, driven by
| a strong wind, and destroyed everything
| +oa str ino b1o q
Smiths establishment, and taking in all
the water front buildings abreast of the
same blocks.
TOWN IN ASHES.
1.-THE fire crossed the street, burned
through and spread over to Second street,
covering the principal business portion of
Dawson. leaving it in ashes with the fire
men helpless and powerless to da any
thing. The fire consumed everything from
the Simmons Royal cafe down to and op
posite the Fairview hotel. All the build
ings burned like tinder owing to the fact
that they had been standing for nearly
two years, and the logs were as dry as
powder. The fire spread with such
rapidity that the people were unable TO
save anything in the way of furniture,
goods and clothing, so that the losses
when footed up promise to be even great
er that at first estimated
This fire came at a time when the
mills and dealers in building materials
had exhausted their winter supplies, and,
as a result. there is famine in all kinds
of building material and furniture, such
as sash, doors, locks, hinges, ETC. The
few articles still remaining outside of the
burned district have quadrupled In price.
Doors are selling for $S5 each; door locks,
IS each, and everything else in proportion.
1.-The town is paralyzed, because nothing
can be done until the opening of naviga-
ton which will not be for several weeks.
ESTIMATED AT TWO MILLIONS.