Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1911-07-27
WHEN FLAMES SWEPT PORCUPINE.
Henry McMaster Tells Of His Narrow Esclpe

dense growth Of moss. at length
succeeded in burying my trunks,
|typewriters and other belongings, and
then 1t was time for me to save my
self.
when returned after the fire to
see how my personal chattels had
Jared, / discovered that they had
been destroyed. They were not bur
led deep enough and the heat was
SO intense that they had caught fire.
And nearly everyone else who had
buried belongings was in similar
predicament. All that ! had left was
the clothes on my back.
Another Man Needed II.
Like many others, took with
me suit case with an extra suit and
changes of linen. This / threw into
the lake. 1t was picked up by one
of the prospectors after the fire and
some letters in the pocket Of the c1st
identified the clothing as belonging
to me. The prospector had seen me
ENTER the water and, not having run
across me, he took 1t for granted that
! was lost, and appropriated the n.aih-
ing. When we met sfterward he was
astonished. He had lost his clothes,
so mine were necessary TO Elm. /
was fortunate to have those were.
Trunks and suit cases and grips
were hurled into the lake by their
owners. with the hope that they Eight
be eventually saved. But IN most
cases the trunks were only partly
submerged, with the result that they
caught fire and were destroyed.
"When 1t became necessary for us
to leave South Porcupins we Ea:'ral-
ly made for the lake. We FIRST pro-
vided for he safety Of the women.
And, by the way, the only women
lost in the fire were those a. the
mines outside Of the town itcelf. We
managed 70 save all Of the others.
Picked Up by Launch.
"My roommate, Stanley Nicholson,
a newspaper man from Guelph, Ont,
"a prospector named Haas and myself
secured canoe. shw the others
into the canoe and then concluded
that would take a chance Of getting
off by another craft of some kind,
for three men in canoe is to" Duch
of load, and, besides, there was
the gale prevailing, ] told them to
proceed. Just then noticed wo-
man standing in the water little
way from shore with burning, trunks
timber and debris about her. / made
my way to her and assisted her into
launch that Just then hove in sight.
The launch was more than c0mtor-
tably filled, and the skipper did not
want to take me aboard after l had
assisted the woman, but on recog-
nizing me he made room for me, and
we proceeded to Golden City.
"After first assisting the women in
South Porcupine to place of tenn
porary safety, which, Of course,
meant the water front, we drove all
of the horses and cattle into the
.I,water. Most of the cattle stood
knee deep in the water loudly bel
lowing and refusing to bulge, and
most Of them were burned to death.
Many Of the horses swan out to
safety. But others, probably twenty
live ali told, scrambled back onto
the shore and ran back into the fire
zone snorting with terror.
Deaths by Drowning, Too.
"In that fire lost q companion
who was prince Of good fellows. lie
had been my roommate ever since
!! went to South, Porcupine to develop
Iny claim. Stanley Nicholson had
ljoined the other prOspectors when
the boom came on, and in addition
Ihe wrote for several newspapers. He
and Haas went 700 far out into the
center Of the lake. They got directly
lin the path Of tire gale and were
eapsized aud lost.
.Mnat Of the others who lost their