The Mena weekly star., 1911-07-20
PORCUPINE FIRES
 WORST IN YEARS
Reports From the Stricken Districts Indicate Bad Conditions-Coun- try Burned Rich in Gold
 People Escape Now.

Cobalt, Ont, July i4.-Every hour adds to the list of those dead, injured and rendered destitute in the fire devastated Porcupine dis trict, where the property loss is probably more than $2,000,000. The number of dead in the district re- mains largely matter of conject- ure. About 90 bodies either have been buried or designated for ship ment in collins now being rushed northward by the carload. Many persons are missing from the more densely populated townships. How many of the hundreds living in comparative isolation have perished only days of work by organized re- lief parties can reveal.
 A message from Porcupine early today stated that seven bodies have just been found at Vipond mine. Their condition made Identification impossible.
 Men, women and children, thinly clad and bearing marks of the aw- full fight against the flames and smothering smoke are still Hooking into the larger towns in this vicin- ity and at North Bay. Those escap- ing with slight injuries have gone through to North Bay to be carried free of charge by the Canadian Pa ciflc railroad and Grand Trunk rail- way to their destination.
 A Rich Gold Mining District.
 The Porcupine district, which is about 30 hours railroad ride from Toronto, is considered by many of the experienced mining men from the United States now there as the richest prospective gold mining dis trict ever discovered, overshadow- ing in promise South Africa, Cali fornia, Colorado and Nevada. Sam ples of ore now being received in Kansas City assay all the way from $40 to $i,000 a ton and the quartz is all free milling.
 The formation is different from formations discovered in this coun- try. It is the oldest geological gold bearing strata ever discovered on this continent. There are no great eruptions, the veins running instead along the surface. Gold bearing quartz is discovered by digging long trenches instead of sinking shafts.
 The country is level, covered by a growth of moss and underbrush, with here and there dense forests. They are vast marshes and black flies and mosquitoes abound. Be- cause of the nature of the land it has been very difficult to prospect. The first train arrived in Porcu- pine July 1 and ct tLe present time there are some 10000 persons in the district. The Canadians, however, have been slow to take advantage of the opportunities offered. Had the same discovery been made in the west, possibly 10000 persons would have flocked to the vicinity.
 The fire swept a path two miles wide across the richest discoveries, burning everything in it's way. The destruction, while causing a great deal of loss and suffering, may stim- ulate greater activities for, with the buildings and improvements, it al- so burned the surface bare of brush trees and undergrowth.
 The first gold discoveries were made in 1909. The place was quick ly populated with experienced min ing men from all sections of the western United States. Several Kansas Citians have investments there. It is yet too early to de- termine whether there is deep min- ing, but plenty of gold is being found at the grass roots.
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