The Sentinel=record., 1912-02-22
S7,O0O,OOO
 LOSS BY BY FIRE
HOUSTON. TEXAS, VISITED BY A DISASTROUS CONFEDERATION
 EARLY YESTERDAY.
Many Big lndustriial Plants Burned ard Thou;ands Rendered Home less--Many Cities Tender Aid
 to the Sufferers.

Houston, Texas, Feb 2l-Lcayina in it's track piles of smoking ruin, GOV erng an area extending about one and oneihalf miles in length and vary
 ing in width from 200 yards to hali mile, angry flames today licked in- 10 nothingness property easily worth the gigantic sum Of $7,000, 900 with in. snranee possibly at 40 per cent. of that amount In the Tiame.stricken path way lie the ruins of aeaFly dozen Of Houston's greatest industrial en. lterprise, while dying embers alone mark the spot where but a day since stood nearly 200 happy homes. Not "a life was lost, nor was case of seri. ous injury reported
 Breaking forth without warning in an untenanted socm4ag house. known locally as the mad f%use," shortly after 1 o'clock this morning, and at 6 time when fierce gale was sweep ing from the northwest, the flames made remarkable headway from the very start Almost in the twlnkling of an eye and before an alarm could even be-turned in, the fire had leap cd from it's place Of origin, bounced upon adjoining structures and from them careenea madly and destructive. ly toward the southeast, generally making clean and desolate its route; but occasionally, in seeming sport and without explainable cause, spar ing structure, sometimes mere shanty, and again a place of preten. sion N@
 By o'clock this morning the area Of destruction had been defined, but the work of inc fire fighters vas not then ended, nor Is 1t ended vel, for all over the eharred and blackened district lay piles of brick, mortar, ce. ment, dIgtorted tin. smoking merchan- disc. smouldering cotton and other de- bris. the consuming Of which is a slow process.
 In the early morning hours tAessstle continued fiercely and al times hurl ed clouds of burning shingles and fire great distances and threatening even further destruction Two of the plants so threatened were .those of the Texas Company and thS douston. Packing Company The latter was damaged 10 8 considerable extent, but is capable of easy restoration In the former were. stored many barrels Of oil and in the fact of desperate risk. fire fighters freely risked their lives ard by so doing ayerted what might have been another catastrophe and the result 10 the city in the losSfof another plant Times were when the roof of the structures seemed ablaze, but the firemen stood by their posts and by heroic work were the eventual conquerors.
 Simply as giving an idea of the ehormity of the loss, it is only neces saro.to cite that of three congresses the Cleveland the McFaddeh and the Standard which conservative men place at $2,500,O00 Tn addition to this, 55,000 bales of cotton were con- sMned, which at $50 per bale, amounts 10 $2,750,000, and swells the enor, nous total to more than $50U0000 Then 10 that must he~added the loss Of a rice milling plant and various other industries, to say nothing of the value of homes, personal effects and railway and public service corpora ton property consumed,
 Leaving aside the financial end Of The disaster and reyerting to the oth- CT within the short space of few hours fully 1000 persons were render ed homeless and suddenly plunged rom positions of independence to a condition bordering upon beggary.
 fhis situation thus usnered in is one with which the warm-hearted peo- pc of the city were not slow to deal With. Immediately calls were out for the gathering Of all charitable organ l1atlons and the city officials respond a equally as promptly with relAef a'easurese with the result that night lall at least finds the victims with i'm mediate needs cared for, if the future Y iuil of darkness for many who lost 'aelr ail, even to their very wearing apparel
 Work of compiling in detail list