Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1910-09-01
DEAD TOTAL 200
APPALLING LOSS OF LIFE in ST,
JOE COUNTY, ACCORDING
TO REPORTS.
MANY ARE STILL MISSING
Financial Loss Over $4,000, ooo.-crit,
IcaI Period in Idaho and Nor
tana Declared to Have
Passed.

Spokane, Wash. - If the stories oil
men who returned from the st. Joe
/ country of Idaho are to be believed
/ the loss of life along Big Creek, a trib
utary of the ST. Joe river, was appall
ing, and the dead in Idaho alone viii
number more than 200, even if Ranger
Joseph b. Hahn and his "a men turn
up, Of which the forest officer in Wal
/ lace Is not hopeful.
! All estimates of the financial loss
place 1t at over $20,0OO,0OO, mostly in
| timber.
Ranger F. A. Ferne at the head of
still larger party on the st. Joe is
SAFE
The. loss Of life occurred mostly last
| Saturday and Sunday, when {. gale
famed smouldering embers into great
fires and drove flames through the
mountains with the speed of an ex.
press train, giving the fighters no
chance to flee for their lives.
None of the towns in Idaho and
Montana is now in danger and the
critical period of the fire is passed.
With the opening of the Chicago,
Milwaukee and Puget Sound railroad
into the st. Joe valley discouraging
news is beginning to come out.
1t appears that 600 men were at
work on Big creek, tributary of the
ST. Joe, last Saturday, when the wind
blew the flames through the caynon.
Apparently truthful accounts Of the
loss of AZ Of the men we're received
Their deaths should not be confused
with the losses reported from Avery
Near Avery AZ bodies have been
found Sixty-five men, natives of the
Mediterranean country, arrived in
Spokane from Big creek and said that
Is Austrians and two American chop
pers were burned to death last Sat
urday
The towns along the line Of the
Columbia and Puget Sound, short
coal railroad, are in greater danger
than those along the Milwaukee line.
The Columbia's agent at Taylor re-
ported that the fire was within 100
yards of the town
The Columbia and Puget Sound
sent a passenger train to Taylor and
is holding it there ready to- bring out
the people in case the town burns.
Taylor is a town Of 600 persons.
Forty Bodies Recovered Near Avery.
Missoula, Mont. Ranger Deb
bitt, who has been located at Averv.
Idaho, advises the forestry headuuar-
tiers here thar dead and injured are
being found hourly in his district.
An army surgeon and two nurses
are giving aid to the injured The
unidentified dead are being buried at
Avery.
At noon AZ bodies had been recoy.
cred, and of these 80 were identified
An untold number of injured are being
brought in to an improvised hospital
on the ground Because Of the condi-
ton OF the bodies Identification is i'm
possible.
The Puget Sound railway officials
report the situation on their line prac-
tically unchanged. A sweeping call
has been issued for men and euuip-
ment to work on line rebuilding, and
men are being moved to the west end
Of the Missoula division, where the
fire damage is heaviest. Nevertheless.
it probably will be 10 days before traf-
fic is resumed Northern Pacific Off
Gals, just arrived from the fire-swept
district, report the loss of two stations
on the Couer d'Alene branch. They
are De Borgia and Lookout Taft was
destroyed but the company has no
depot at that place. The station at
Tuscon on the main line also fell be-
fore the flames.
Experts who have seen much of the
damage wrought on the line of the
Puget Sound estimate the loss to the
company between $2,O00,O0O and So
100000. The Northern Pacific has
Cancelled an agreement with the Pu-
get Sound officials to handle time
freight from Missoula to the coast.
Towns Now Out of Danger.
The general situation is much i'm
proved Except In the Occur d'Alene
district attention is being paid to a
reorganization of the forces to fight
the fires.
Chief Forester Henry n. Graves ar.
rived here and spent the afternoon
in consultation with the local officials.
Is While the forests are still burning,
all towns and settlements are row
thought to be out of danger.
The fire fighting force of the for
estry service in the entire district is
composed Of $500 men, in addition
to nine companies Of federal troops
The average wage Of the fire fighters
is estimated at IS per day. This
makes the daily cost to the forestry
bureau $4,000.
FARMAN FLIES FOR ALFONSO.