The Monticellonian., 1904-02-11
A Shift of Wind Sent the Flames
 to tSe Water Front.
Dynamite Freely Used to Level Buildings and Thus Stay
 the Fiery Advance.
The Flames Checked, Monday After noon, and the Fire Then Was
 Burning Itself Out.

Baltimore, Md, Feb. S.-ihe News Union, in it's editorial, says: Acres of buildings covering territory from three to six blocks ii width were destroyed in Baltimore's great fire which started Sunday morning. The fire is still burning and considering the high wind and inflammable nature of the buildings and material ln front of 1t, may continue to burn for hours yet.
 No one can tell as yet the extent of the disaster
 No End Can Be seen.
 No end can be seen at the present writing. and to estimate the total loss is the merest folly.
 The wholesale dry goods, produce lumber, shipping. and financial inter ests have been destroyed, notwith- standing heroic efforts on the part of the fire department. reinforced by al most numberless fremen from Wash ington, Philadelphia. Wilmington, Newark, Harrisburg and New York city
 Starting in the wholesale section, the fire burned out every wholesale house of note in the city swept along through the Baltimore and Fayette streets re- tail sections, destroyed all the prom inent buildings, leveled the brokerage offices as well as the chamber of com merce and stC.ck exchange in the finan- cial section, then sped on through the wholesale and export trade sections oentering about Exchange place. It finally brought up at the fails where it invaded the lumber district.
 Hundreds of Firms Burned Out.
 Monday morning the fire was burn ing fiercely along Pratt street, from Light street to a point not yet de- terminable It had gutted tile old and new buildings along that thoroughfare, and on the wharveS, which housed hundreds of firms doing business all over the world. It had swept away the bridges over Jones' Falls and burned into the great freight terminals of the Pennsylvania and Baltimore & Ohio railroads on President street
 Millions of feet of lumber have gone up in smoke already and the fire. still burning, with the ferceness which has characterized it since it started, threatens the vast manufacturing dis trict. following the harhor lines to- ward Canton.
 One of Wor.h's Greatest Disasters.
 To describe in detail the Gre, which will go down in the history of the world as one of it's greateat disasters, Is simply an impossibility just as ? is impossible at this time to give an adequate idea of the amount of loss, the number of buildings destroyed or the firms which have gone out of bus mess These are facts whieii will not develop for days to come.
 Baltimores equipment Of Z5 engines was almost useless. Reinforced by four companies from Washington, as many more from Philadelphia.two more from Wilmington and another from Chester, Pa. it was still unable to check in any way dunng the night the progress of the flames Monday morning, a half dozen of New York citys most pow erful steamers arrived hy special train. and their coming gave new i'm netus to the efforts to check the flames by putting. fresh men into the fight, the Baltimore firemea, as well as the out-of-town men, who arrived earlier having been exhausted by their all night struggle against such terrific odds
 All Electrical Power Destroyed.
 All electrical power has been de- stroyed and no street cars are running.
 About midnight. the wIld, which had been blowing strongly from the south west. with a tendency to switch To the westward. began to come in a gale from the northwest. At this hour the flames were heaaed directly for the ten ement districts across the falls. where