The Gainesville star. [volume] (Gainesville, Fla.) 1903-19??, 1904-02-16
BALTIMORE AWAKE
Stricken City Begins Active
Work of Resurrection,
BIG MONEY VAULTS SAFE
With Heroic Fortltude Municipal ON
olaIs and PopuIaee arc Moving to
Build a Greater City In
the Area Of Ruin.

Amid ruins still hot aud smoking
Baltimore has begun its resurrection.
With the dawn OF clear winter day,
whose brightness was In itself an In.
splratlon, the apathy gave way to "a.
ergy, and from the governor Of the
state 20 the least private citizen The
people Of the distressed city aroesea
themselves to NEE, the appalling con.
ditions that confront them,
II was a day Of conferences, The
governor, the mayor, and various man,
lclpai ofioisls met and threshed out
the problems that are theirs by virtue
Of public ONCE, From this conference
came a decision that Baltimore for the
present needs no outside help, but will
endeavor with her own resources and
those Of IN etseta SHRD HRD DILL
those Of the state to meet the emer-
gency. At this conference also was
developed the machinery for an advis-
ory legislative commission to act in
conjunction with the legislature
Labor is already in demand and the
newspapers contain display advertise.
ments for men to begin the work Of
clearing the ruins.
All things considered, the public
stock.taking that engrossed the bust.
ness world OF Baltimore Tuesday was
satisfactory. But this does not mean
that the great Are was a lesser calam-
lty than has been pictured In these dis.
patches. The words that have hurried
over telegraph wires, restored by al
most superhuman energy to meet
waiting worlds demand for news,
have given out but an inadequate con.
ception Of this catastrophe of cen.
tury. The bald fact Is that 40 acres
Of Business buildings, representing
property to the approximate vplue of
1926, 100000, we're destroyed within
twenty.four hours.
A great cloud was lifted Tuesday az.
ternoon when 1t was discovered that
practically all OF the vaults and strong
rooms and safes OF the financial con-
Germs whose buildings were destroyed
are unhurt. A tremendous loss in Sc
curities had been anticipated here, and
when vault after vault yielded up itA
treasures unframed the JOY OF the
guardians was boundless.
From the Continental Trust Compa.
ny's safe alone paper to the amount
Of more than $200,0O0,OOO we're recov-
cred. The news cheered the whole city
and encouraged immediate and thor
ough investigation. Merchants and
their assistants, smoke-soilsd and be-
grimed and hollow.eyed from anxiety
and loss OF sleep, worked like labor
ers in the smoking ruins to uncover
their safes, and in nearly every in.
stance they were rewarded by intact
contents.
Another surprise was the discovery
that three financial concerns, whose
homes were directly In the fiercest
sweep OF the flames. were practically
unframed. These we're the Continual
Trust Company, brown Bros bank
and the Mercantile Trust Company.
No one ventures to offer an explana.
ton of the remarkable escape OF these
buildings In the center OF a heat so
Intense that metal trimmings OF the
skylights melted and drlpped through
on to the desks. In the Mechanics
bank the time locks on the vaults were
still running
There are between $l1,0OO,0OO and
s12000,000 now In the vaults of the
sub'treasury, of which over 100000
are in gold.