Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-04-21
HALL Of RECORDS
HAS BEEN SAVED
Archives Are Unframed in San
Francisco and Tangle Of
y Titles Averted
CRISIS OF THE AGONY PASSED
Sudden veering of the Wind Saves
Large Number of Homes Of the
Rich and Prosperous, But Those Of
the Poor Are Prey to the Flames.

San Francisco. April 2!.-According
to the latest reports, the Ferry building
is safe from destruction, which at one
time was threatened from the flames
which spread along the sea wall. The
efforts of the men under General Casterl
and the fire tugs and the steamers will
succeed in checking the fire near the
Lombard street freight slips. In other
directions the fire is now completely
under control. Mayor Schmitz and
General Funston have established
headquarters at Fort Mason, which was
saved by some desperate work on the
part of the soldiers, aided by body
of sailors from the warship Chicago
The records in the Hall of Records
have been unharmed, which will pre-
vent any tangle in titles.
San Francisco. CAL, April 21.-
San Francisco has passed the
crisis of it's agony. The fire was check
ed while still a bare fourth of the city
remained undestroyed.
providential veer in the wind after
the sacrifice Of mile long string Of
mansions by dynamite saved a rem
nant of the city. The flames were
beaten back to wear out their fury
on the ruins.
of the fate which has overwhelmed the
town that the rich and prosperous have
their homes and their goods spared
while the poor have lost everything
except the little bundles they have
carried with them to- the parks or to
Oakland, the city of refuge.
For when the fires had passed the
last stand of the soldiers and firerhers
at Van Ness avenue and had leaped
across the sixteen blocks of fine resi-
dences which they had blown up with
explosives from the Presidio stores it
had acres of frame houses interspersed
only with few brick and stone dwell
lings to work on. And the wind was
blowing from the east.
The east wind combined with the
earthquake to help this calamity. At
this season of the year the trade wind
usually Is UloNlllS SllclS Lloiil lAiC
ocean. Had this wind prevailed, the
fire must have been kept in the bus
mess district which was lost from
the first
Wind in League With Fire.
But in this time, when all the forces
of nature seemed to be working wrong,
the trades stopped and an east wind
sprang up Only now and then a gust
of the trades seemed to prevail over it
and whirl the fire over areas which the
first rush had missed.
There was an east wind blowing
Thursday night when the soldiers, after
dynamiting the fringe of Van Ness
avenue, saw their work go for nothing,
and prepared to herd the people out Of
the residence district. The fire was
running along broad front, and spurs
of it had reached Octavia street, three
blocks beyond when up came strong
western trade wind. There was lit
tie water in the district. Every man
took new heart and worked to help the
wind.
This was a curious fire. Remember
always, that nine-tenths of the wood
involved is redwood, which burns with
smoldering fire. There have been no
great bursts of fire, no terrible whirls
of flame, only a steady, determined,
persistent advance.
So the workers saw this sullen flame
turn backward and beat itself out on
the ruins over which it had passed.
This seems to have saved, too the ex-
treme end of the Mission.
Fury Centered on Poorer Quarter.
The turn of the fire, however, COM
quarters, over which a fatality seemed
to hang. For it had passed by the
greater part of Telegraph hill, that
sudden eminence which forms one cor
er of the city and over which run the
small dwellings of the Italians. 1t had.
however, extended up the valley region,
which lies between Telegraph and Rus
sian Mills.
The turning west wind blew this
tongue of fire back upon the slopes of
hill and that burned all day
yesterday. With plenty of water and
with a fresh fire force this region could
hardly be saved; as it was, there was
to do but get the Italians out
of their houses and let it burn.
They say that the troops had the
greatest difficulty in handling the peo-
pie at this point; for the fire mainly
was between them and most of the
open spaces, which We're the salvation
of the people. Some were piled into
Washington square, small park at
the foot of the hill, but most of them
were formed into long, struggling
procession and marched under guard
along the water front to Fort Mason,
the open military reservation and one
of the three places of refuge Then
the hill was left to it's fate.
Trade Wind Beats Back Flames.
Late last night it seemed as tho the
worst were over. The trade wind. by
all the laws of this climate, should hold
now that it has arisen; in the
course of which the fire has taken there
is little left to burn. In a day or two
more it should have gone down and
cooled off.
And still, altho the night brought a