Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1906-05-31

stories of extortion heard after
ward,-and heard slso stories Of men
who hauled furniture and helped
others all they could and charged
nothing! I found Aunt n. and the
others all right Ed had gone out for
few minutes but soon returned.
Learned from them that VIII and
Carrie were all right. Ed went with
me to Adams park, & short distance
away and elevated, 30 that we could
get general idea of the fires. They
were all spreading, and it was evident
that all the Wholesale and much of
the retail districts would be destroyed,
as well as the manufacturing south of
Market.
Before forget it, for about a week
| supposed the Del Monte Touring
mill had burned up, but from a map
published in one Of the papers of the
burned district found it was just out
side. Their Office was burned but
haven't seen any Of their people since.
After leaving Aunt MS wanted to
learn the fate Of our store, and then
get home. as | had promised to be
home before dark, and l knew A.
would be worried nearly to death If
didn't appear; SO made my way down
to Kearny street, below which no one
could pass. At this time the building
next below the Merchants exchange
was burning and few minutes later,
in Bowman & Co.'s store, was told the
fire had crossed Montgomery street
into their block. | then went toward
Market as far as Suffer and there
could SEE our place, nothing but the
walls left Looking down Suffer our
store was directly opposite the end
OF the street. Starting for home, had
to go UP on Dupont street through
Chinatown, where the denizens were
moving in considerable numbers; then
on through the Italian quarter, and
down Broadway, as I had come in the
morning. | passed cannery where
there was big pile of canned goods
in the ruin, and the heat was popping
them on at lively rate. Had to
wait half hour for boat. They
we're running only hourly, and not
many passengers. l returned by the
Key route.
From the bay the view of the con-
migration was grand. The great
masses Of smoke were gilded around
the edges by the sun now low down in
the west. A lady on the seat back Of
me remarked to her companion:
How nice and quiet 1t is here, and
what a contrast to the din and CON
fusion across the bay!" After dark
the sight was grand, and we viewed
1t from our attic window for long
time. There seemed TO be a con-
tinuous line of fire from Telegraph
hill to South San Francisco.
Thursday | started again for the
city getting over on the 10 o'clock
train, Key route. They were not
allowing anybody to cross on the
bread gauge and later stopped them
on all trains. In fact, 1t was reported
that all trains from all directions
were being held at different points.
The fires OF course were further
back than the previous day but
burning vigorously, and apparently no
progress had been made in fighting
1t. All night long we had heard from
our home the boom of the explosives,
used to check the flames, and they
were still bocning. All around the
bay they had sent for powder, the
supply in the city having been ex-
hausted. People going up town were
directed to Broadway again as the day
before, but, being with an officer from
Oakland, we passed the lines at the
foot of Market street and wended our
way carefully up the center OF that
street. All around was desolation,
smoke and heat. There were two
buildings at Mission street, one on
each corner. but from there to Broad
way and beyond there had been
clean sweep.
We walked up Market to the vicin-
| ity OF Sixth. At Lofts fountain we
saw the body of man on the pave
ment, passers-by paying no attention
to it. A half block further another
body, and little further still another.
They lay on their backs on the stone
pavement and nobody seemed to know
or care how they had met their fate.
They looked like Italian laborers and
might have been shot by the soldiers.
who had orders to shoot anybody
found footing. The offlcsr whom
was with wanted to go nortb of Mar
ket and started to leave me. told
him the street he was going through
looked too dangerous. He went about
half a block and, returning, We stood
there talking when two-story brick
wall which he had passed twice came
tumbling down, without warning, I'LL
ing the street with debris. Just then
one of the guards shot up side