Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1910-10-11
tits He'll Down There"- Estimate
Lives Lost, rs to 400---Wid
Animals and Human Beings
Flee for Safety Together.

Warroad. MINI, Oct 1O.-Latest
reports of the forest fires in the Rainy
river region in Minnesota increase
the horrors of the situation. if not
the number of lives lost. Estimates
of the number of persons killed range
from IS to 400 tonight Several con-
sentative men of business and au-
thority place the deaths at more than
100. But the greater concern for the
present is the rescue of the helpless
and the relief of thousands of home
less men, women and children
Stories of wild animals fleeing for
safety side by side with human be -.
ings, their natural hostility and fear
of man overcome by terror came in
today, showing the stress of the sit
uation Tales also came of mothers
burned to death with their babies on
their breasts and men calcined while
endeavoring to shield their children
It's hell down there" said En-
gineer Smith of the Duluth express
today, when a reporter swung into
the cab after the train passed the
fire zone. His train took many refu-
gees from the scene of the confagra-
ton to Winnipeg.
IF the fire keeps on the way it is
going there will be mighty little left
of the population of that part of Min
nesota," he added.
THE flames have Quoted down IL
little, but it only needs a puff of wind
and they will start up again as bad as
ever. There is one good thing, it can
not come near one of the railroad lines
again for all the timber is burned
away. For miles around Beaudette
| and Spooner where there were large
| tracts OF bush it is now level AS the
prairie. Everything is swept out The
| wind went at such a terrific rate that
| the fire had no chance to burn any
| thing but what was directly in front
| of it. All the charred tree trunk
| along the tracks are lying away fror,
| the direction the wind was blowing
| Even the earth around the tree trunk
] is on fire There has been forests n
that part of the country for such a
| long time that the earth is peaty
When tree fell over with the force
| Of the wall of flame. it began to bur
| even to the roots and the earth aroun
the roots.
| "a special train with special ma
chinery and workmen is going over
| the entire system, strengthening all
the bridges on the Canadian Northern
road.
we had to go have been slight 7
| charred. but the real strength of them
has not been seriously hurt
From the engine it looked as
though every timber mill in the
/
| the Shevlin Mattieu Co., which is
safe. All their lumber yards. how
over. was passed. We passed over
the burned territory in the night an
the flames from the mass of logs
looked like real picture of the in
ferno through the clouds of smoke
which reeled across the path of the
engine.
"Al the ties of the road have been
| charred and the country is level with
the tracks. We stopped every little
while to take on some people. but II G
most of them got off just outside of the
danger zone, so they could go back as
soon as possible to rebuild their
| homes
Warroad. Mimi. Oct. 10.-EstimatCs
of the loss Of life in the forest fires
which started Friday, wiped out sever
al small towns and are still raging,
range all the way from so to 200. Tie
property loss will amount well up into
the millions.
Men who have just returned from
Beaudettc on a railway motor say that
the list of dead in the district back
Il tIo will ~
Tie mayor of Baudette stated that -
bodies have already been found and
refugees coming in every hour report
having seen many dead bodies in tle
II road.
II The fire zone covers an area of 81
miles in length. from the gravel pits
west of Warroad to Stratton, the
fourth station east of Rainy Rlvei,
and in width about 30 miles. GOVERN s
all the territory between Red Lake and
Lake of the Woods. The fires have
II wiped out the villages of Baudette,
Spooner, Graceton, Pitt Myron and
Malcolm. The last two named places
are small settlements in Beltram coun-
II ty south of Warroad.
The greatest property loss occurred
| at Baudette and Spooner, which Is
practically one community, being par
alleled by a narrow river. The other
towns consisted of only a few small
buildings. There were hundreds OF
homes destroyed in the territory and
as there are no roads in the district the
loss of life may not be known for
weeks. The state of Minnesota is SPAR
ing no expenses to check the fire. The
state fire warden is mastering every
man he can procure and he is instruct
ed to use every possible means at his
command, regardless of cost. Every