The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1906-06-09
FIRES
FAKE STORIES
THE GREAT FIRE STORY NOW
SAID TO BE LARGELY
FAKE.
BURNED TOWNS INTACT
There Are Not Evidences That Many
Are Homeless and Destitute n Lat
est Report ls True.
Actual Observers Story.

Since my dispatch OF 80 hours ago.
written soon after my arrival in the
northern country. wires the stan cor
respondent Of the Detroit News. have
either personally or by phone inter
viewed enough men 20 warrant me In
saying that there has never been n
spell OF disaster In Michigan where
newspaper writers of fakes have work
ed on ON reputable newspapers such
volume of lies as has been printed
about the upper peninsula fires OF the
past week. l will produce witnesses
10 substantiate this statement.
Take Quinnssec first. for that Is tho
largest town said 20 have been burned
by forest fires. which after weeks OF
smouldering were last Friday famed
into hurricane fires. The Chicago Tri-
bune, depending on resident CORE
spondents. last Sunday printed "Quln-
nesec destroyed. all residents home
less" This under the heading OF
Forest fires" Now for the facts
Quinnesec has a population Of about
500. II is as miles from Escanaba.
Mrs. Patrick McKenna. widow. aged
66. owned four frame stores on Main
street which she rented.
one tenant set FIRE to pile OF rub
bish in the alley on Friday. the wind
came up and about $4,000 worth OF
property in the center OF the village
burned. The fire jumped over tho
Catholic parsonage and burned tho
church. OF which Fr. Nosbisch. of Iron
Mountain, Is pastor
Supervisor Cundy, OF Quinnesec
township; Err Nosblsch. Village Clerk
Pat Wilder and others say forest nres
had no more 10 do with burning Quin-
nesec than fire In Detroit
No forest Are came within four miles
OF tho village Thirty-three buildings
were burned. and 10 families lost their
homes. Iron Mountain and Norway,
big towns OF the county. will take care
OF these. Reports that three children
burned to death in the village are not
true. The steel trust has two big
boarding houses In Qulnnesec. Neither
burned. One OF Mrs. Pat McKenna's'
tenants was alone responsible for the
Quinnesec Are.
Quoting again from the Sunday Chi
cago Tribune Antoine. mining town.
all but few OF the zoo people home
less Tom Hanna. publisher OF tho
Iron Mountain Press. says Antoine IL
suburb of Iron Mountain and that
all that was burned In Antoine was
seven ties and two stress. Tri-
bune correspondent sent TO X for Sun
day that Powers was wiped out"
Powers Is one OF the Northwestern
railway junction points and has about
300 people | have been there today.
There has been nothing destroyed IN
Powers. People there got much alarm
ed Friday. but the fire did not come
within four miles.
The Chicago Tribune said Dagget,
on the Northwestern railway, between
Quinnesec and Escanaba, was wiped
out. Dagget wasn't touched. Also
that Saunders was destroyed Not so.
Saunders is l6 miles north OF Iron
Mountain and Editor Hanna says moth
ing burned there but a mill that's been
abandoned Ave years.
Cornell. 1900 people homeless" on
the Escanaba railway, has. SO Dan
Wells and his cousin. Supt. Wells. OF
the railway. says, only about half n
dozen families Commissioner Dan
Wells says the EscanRba railway has
about 100000 acres along the line,
which is about 100 miles hong. The
lands extend eight 10 ten miles each
side OF the track. and there's hardly
a square OF II where the Ore didn't
appear.
Yot Commissioner Wells, after work
Ing with his agents for three days.
says he can find but Ia or Is home
steaders who were burned out In tho
entire 100000 acres. The takers have
reported that hundreds" ia this dis
trict were burned out, but give no
names
The Northwestern railway lost its
station al Quinnescc. but little more.
At Niagara, three miles from Quin-
nesec. Is the pulp mill OF Kimberly
Clark, said TO be the largest In Mich
igan. II employs about 700 hands. A
representative OF this mill reports that
comparatively little OF It's supply OF
timber was Injured by the Ares.
They do not think any pulp mill
will be Inconvenience by the fires.
Some OF the takers are now printing
stories that upper peninsula business
men. for reasons OF their own. arc
trying 10 belittle their stories OF tho
fires. Why business men should do
60 liz not explained. One Chicago fax
or said II was SO smoky In Escanaba
Friday that he could hardly see TO
write his dispatch. There's one sa-
loon TO about each 1876 OF Escanabn's
population sim "A great many people
had narrow escapes from being burned
10 death last Friday
Herman Rcckling al HaZIeton Pa