Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1899-03-03
Chicago Happenings.
Interesting Paragraphs from Person-
al Letter from the Great city by the
Lake.

Interesting Paragraphs from PersOn-
al Letter from the Great city by the
Lake.
The first two weeks in February were
extremely cold-mercury ranging from
eight to 20 below zero. There being no
snow, the ground froze to a depth of four
feet and there was great trouble with
frozen water pipes everywhere. On Sun
day, the 18th, one Of the coolest days, a
gentleman and his wife's young brother
and sister, living in the north part of the
| city, had an unusual and most unpleasant
adventure. Going out for walk late in
the afternoon, they decided to go a little
way out in the lake on the ice They
walked some distance, and then retraced
their steps, only to find that the ice on
which they stood had separated from that
near the shore. and moved so far away
that they could not get across the water
that lay between. IL was about o'clock
before anyone suspected what might have
happened to them, and searching parties
were sent out, and the darkness then
made 1t impossible TO locate them. They
were rescued at daybreak next morning,
the young girl in an unconscious condition.
A party of students from Northwestern
University had similar experience. The
wonder is that they suffered no permanent
i'll effects from 1t.
There were many large fires during the
cold snap, and, the fire plugs being frozen,
made it hard to fight the flames success
fully. The property loss was large, and
in several instances there was loss of life
One fine apartment house Of grey stone
and brick, on boulevard near us, seemed
to burn like finder box. 1t contained
20 flats, and the occupants of one-father,
mother and infant-are believed TO have
persisted, as they have not been heard of
since the fire.
Many feel a sense Of personal loss in the
burning of McClurg IL Co.'S book store,
the largest in the West, If not in the
country. About 10 o'clock Sunday morn
ing, Feb. u, an engineer, who was
alone in the building heard an explosion,
and found the third floor was in flames.
He at once turned in an alarm, and en-
gnes were promptly on hand but the in
tense cold proved a drawback, and al
though 80 engines were called into requisi-
ton, the fve.story building was soon a
total wreck. Fortunately, the fire did not
spread to the great dry goods stores OF
located near by.
which is probably well covered by nsur
ance; but to those who were wont tC
browse among the rare old books in the
Saints and Sinners Corner" the loss
seems irrepsrable. Eugene Field, who
was a confirmed bibliomaniac, was a fire.
quenter of this department, and gave i
the title by which it was so well known
The late Professor Swing, Rev. +. w. Gun
saulus and Rev. +. NJ. Bristol (now paste
OF ''the Presidents church" in Washing
tom were among the Saints" Will
Field himself was in the other list. Amonj
the famous books sold here were som
containing autographs of Robert Burns
Tennyson, Leigh Hunt, Charles Lamb
Ruskin and others; many editions o
Shakspere; presentation copies OF variou
noted authors, etc.
II Is said that on one occasion Mr.. Fiel
was anxious 10 secure a certain rare volume
but at the time had not the requisit
, amount of cash. He therefore tried t
make sure of ii in the future by writing o
a fly leaf the following lines:
Guide friend for Jesus sake forbeare
, To buy ye book thou seest here;
: For have gone to earne ye pei
meane TO buy We book my seize
Whether his scheme succeeded, / can
say; but the verse itself must have mad
others all the more DESTROYS Of buying ii,
imagine. In 1892 the habitues of the col
ner received from Mr.. Field an invitatio
reading
Saints and Sinners Corner
McClurgs Bookstore,
q:S0tP. ~, Saturday. Dec. ST. 1892
, Be there.
, 1t is, perhaps, needless to say that a
were there. Refreshments were served
> impromptu speeches made, and sewers
a., poems read. The lights were then lowe
\ ed, and Eugene Fields "Dibden's Ghost
. was heard for the first time. One VIII
: was there says it was an occasion long I
. be remembered.
? That appreciation of good literature is
i be found in this hustling Western metr,
a polls is proven by the large number
v local patrons Of McClurg's retail depar
I. ment, but some of them are of easter
origin, as l notice the name of Owen
i Adds, and remember the Adds fain
n used to be often seen in Brattleboro yea
6 ago C.