The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1910-08-26
DEADLY FOREST FIRES
Death and Destruction in
Washington. Idaho and
Montana
HUNDREDS ARE MISSING

Nearly the whole of the Panhandle
OF Idaho, timbered mountain coun-
try, is on fire, and it is possible that
400 persons may have perished.
United States Forest Supervisor w.
r. Weigle, has not heard from three
hundred of his men who were in the
burning woods and fears that they
have perished.
A light rain began to fall Tuesday
afternoon in Wallace and other Occur
d'Alene mining towns, which have
been scorched or threatened by the
forest fires, and the weary fire fighters
took no hope.
Nothing, however, but long,
heavy downpour will quench the
flames that are eating up the big
trees of northern Idaho, northwestern
Montana and northeastern Washing
ton.
The Idaho militia and the United
States troops are on the way to battle
with the dread invader, but the sold
iers can accomplish little more than
protect the threatened towns. Forset
supervisors of Idaho and Montana
are unable to get into communication
with 800 of their rangers, but it may
be that many of them are unharmed.
The most sensational rumors OF loss
of life continue, but it is impossible
to verify them and seems likely that
aside from the losses among the ma
tional rangers, the number Of dead in
the three states will not exceed 100.
Late Tuesday afternoon the list of
known dead. compiled in Spokane,
contained only thirty-four names.
The mining town of Wardner is al
most surrounded by flames and the
miners are out nghting the fire.
The fire in the great Occur d. Alene
national forest is beyond control and
timber worth millions of dollars is
burning. Fires on the Occur d. Alene
Indian reservation have been checked
as have been those in the Palmous
national forest. Along the St. Joe
river, which runs through what is de-
scribed on the maps as the 'largest
body OF standing white pine timber
in the United. States,' there is con-
tinuous fire from Plummer to a point
In Montana.
Next to the United States, the big
corporations are chief sufferers. 1t is
difficult to give figures on the timber
losses, which may reach $l0,O0O,OOO.
1t is estimated that more than 1,5OO
settlers in Montana, Idaho and Wash
ington have lost their homes and
everything in them.
The fires along the Northern Pa
citic in western Montana are dimin-
ished. They were largely in the tim
Der that had been tire-swept in for
mer years, but the Idaho fires are
burning in virgin forests.
The Pen d'Oreille valley, heavily
timbered, is on fire in several places
and lose of life is feared. 1t is diff
cult to get the news form that sec
ton. Dispatches received by the
officers of the Chicago, Milwaukee &
st. Paul railroad state that four of
the soldies of Company G, twenty
fifth United States infantry, negro
regiment, sent out from Fort George
Wright to fight the fires are missing.
The dispatches also say that number
of families in the vicinity of Avery
have been burned aut and that a
large number Of people are dead and
missing.
Milwaukee employees at Avery say
that it seems as if all of the Bitter
Root mountains is burning and that
the entire Occur d'Alene national
forest will be destroyed.
-Four families of homesteaders who
we're reported burned to death on the
La Tour creek in Keotenai county,
Idaho, escaped by wading fifteen
miles along the bed of the creek with
the fire burning down to the waters
edge, forcing the refugees frequently
to submerge themselves when the
flames reached their faces.
<n,oka 0hScrraS tho Sno