The San Francisco call., 1899-10-11

| flected In the heavens. Men on horse
back, in buggies and wagons ano all
sorts Of rigs fairly flew to the rescue OF
their threatened redwoods ana all through
the night worked like demons to avert
disaster
When the morning broke the fires
seemed to be under control. The fire
fighters, black from smoke, hollow eyed
from the lack Of sleep and from the glare
Of the flames presented a sorry-looking
sight in the light of dawn. They were
most of them ready to drop In their
tracks from the nights exertions had 1t
! not been that they were still stimulated
with excitement and fearful that the ris-
ing winds might still fan the smoldering
embers into other columns OF flame.
and deeply wooded hilsides and. in
squads sought breakfast and few hours
sleep before noon.
1t was we'll they did. Their fears OF
the wind were well founded At o'clock
1t had assumed the proportions OF a good,
stiff breeze, and by 2 o'clock 1t was
clouds Of dust and smoke in its embrace.
Again the underbrush began to crackle
and snap, smoke rose in threatening
spirals into the atmosphere, still hazy
from the smoke of the night before.
Deer frightened from their coverts, ran
aimlessly through the redwoods and up
and down the country roads, birds tWit-
tered in alright, rabbits and wood rats
and quail skurried in one needless, panic
stricken throng anywhere and every
where from the fire demon.
redWoods were famed into flame, charred
StumpS blaZed anew and thin trail OF
fire torked both ways in the porthern part
of Corte MADEIRA Canyon and in Warmers
Canyon. Mounted men haStened to the
threatened forests. d. H. BIbb, the lum-
Der man, who has a large residence under
the eastern brow of TamalpaiS, put a
large force of men TO work to head off
the advance of the neW-bloWn fire over
the ridge into Baltimore Canyon. His
own residence was in no danger. His men
worked heroically setting backfires, but
the wind was against them and the flames
mounted the ridge to threaten LarkSpur
and Corte MADEIRA, leaving the lower
Corte MADEIRA Canyon and Mill Valley in
temporary safety.
over in Warmers Canyon and near
Blythedale the gale had famed the flames
on their second errand of destruction and
ii was not long before riders raced into
Mill Valley with the news that the resi-
dences of DR.. Alexander Warner and
Hugh Boyle had been consumed. These
rumors were found later to be untrue. The
flames, attaining great volume. had swept
and before they were checked had COM
pletely destroyed the growth Of trees and
vines on Warmers place. By the time
the rain fell there the danger point ap-
peared to have been passed. but the down.
/ pour was none the less welcome.
And now that the greatest forest fire
in the history of Marin County has passed
into history, the residents of the valleys
and canyons are thanking their stars and
the rain that 1t was not worse. Although
many lives were endangered none were
| lost Lorenzo Ferrari, who was supposed
to have perished in the flames having ap-
peared in the flesh bright and early yes
terday to fight the flames. Much personal
| property was damaged, how much is not
known, but its value will run up close to
| 500 900, but this is hardly regretted as
much as the destruction of trees on the
ridge and in Warmers Canyon. That loss
can only be repaired by time.