Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1906-05-24
THOUSANDS ARE HOMELESS
DISTRICT SWEPT BY FOREST
FIRE SCENE OF DESoLATIoN.
Area Covered by Flames Is About 400
Square Miles in Extent-Brave
Frontiersmen.

Escanaba, Mich. A tour made
on Sunday of the entire district
swept by the forest fires shows that
the devastated territory covers a total
of 400 square miles. The most north
ern point touched by the great forest
fire which caused loss of several mil
lions of dollars was at Sands, Mar
quette county, while TO the south 1t
extended to Talbot, Menominee coun-
~.
On the east the Whitefsh river and
the main line of the Northwestern road
combined 10 form boundary. The
most western point of the burned dis
trict was at Waucedah, Wis.
Thousands of acres of cut-over TIM
Der lands are to-day blackened
waste Sites of villages are marked by
the remains of building foundations,
and in some instances a few scattered
houses which were saved by strenuous
efforts.
The Quinnesec fire was of different
origin from the Escanaba fire, having
started in field where men were pull
lUB anu Hll6 ucbiio.
fire spread into the city, wiped out all
the buildings, except three residences
and the paper mills. Then the fire
spread into the timber and running
north for 40 miles finally Joined the
flames sweeping east on Escanaba.
1t was also learned that Woodlawn
and Kingsley on the Escanaba q Lake
Gu dos
kns on the northwestern.
The strip burned along the Escanaba
& Lake Superior road appears to be
80 miles wide and the alarming nature
of the earlier reports of the fire seem
to be thoroughly verified by the trip.
Stories of heroic battles against the
flames are numerous. Dozens of towns
were saved only by the most desperate
battle with the flames
Northland, q town of 1000 inhab-
itants, was three times threatened. The
fire was checked each time at q dis
lance of only ten yards from the
houses on the outskirts. First the fire
swept toward the place from the north,
but was checked when two residences
were scorched. Wagons with barrels
OF water prevented the spreading of
the fire. Driven away the fire swept
west and then returned from that d.
rection ard again was stopped. A
third time the fire spread into a great
tract of timber south of town, which
reaches up to the doors of the houses
in that part of Northland, and "A third
time was checked.
Many freaks were seen. The home
of one man who carried the coffin with
the corpse OF his dead babe 30 miles 10
Escanaba in his escape from the fire,
went back on the special train and
found his home gone, but the picket
fence surrounding the house un-
touched. The ashes of his home had
been blown away by the gale, and the
fence was the only evidence of human
habitation. The rest of the town had
been swept away.
remarkable feature of the fire is
the fact that nearly all the refugees
are not dsheartened, but are deter
mined TO return AID begin over. They
have only the clothes they wear but
say this Is the fortune OF the frontiers
man, and that IL their homes are lost.
at least the fire has cleared the land
for them and this much labor is saved.
To Open Ohio Mines.
Cleveland, O.-Operators in this city
who are interested in the reopenins OF
the mines in Jefferson county and
other points in the vicinity Of Steuben-
vile declared their belief that he
mines would be put in operation With
out the expected clash between the
strikers and the detectives and other
nonunion erlnloves of the oneratorg