The Butte Miner from Butte, Montana • 1

1 Second Edition i 1. WEATHEH-lwBl Showem Today 1 T-imrrtw A VOL. XLVII NO. 339. BUTTE, MONTANA, MONDAY MORNING, AUGUST 22, 1910.

ESTABLISHED 1876. VE L1VI SEA OF FIRE ROLLING OVER WESTERN MONTANA FORESTS WITH EXPRESS TRAIN SPEED FIFTY-F1 SWEEP OF FIRE AT -IT A ffl IU Idaho Towns Inside (he Fire Zone i LOSS AT IDAHO MINING METROPOLIS ILL REACH AGGREGA OF $1,000,00 Bodies of Fire Fighters in Grewsome Huddles Are Found Here and There in Biaze-Swept Canyons Adjacent to the StricKen Camp Many of the Survivors Blinded Half of Town Saved. Two Rangers, Who Rode Horses to Death, Succeeded in Organizing' Rescue Party, Saving Twenty of Fire Fighters from Rapid Sweep of Flames. HEAVY LOSS OF LIFE PROBABLE IN WESTERN MONTANA FIRE DIES DOWN Spokane, Aug. 21 A Wallace, Ma special says that the wind has gone and at 10:00 o'clock fires around Wallace -t-m to have died down.

The blaze at Mullan is reported under control. A bad Diane Is raging Taft, Near the Idaho Line, Entirely Destroyed; Saltese, Near By, Has Been Abandoned; De Borgia and St. Regis Are Threatened, and Haughan Is Reported Burned. above Burke, but will not reach the town. Wallace, Idaho, the "fire Stricken City.

KNOWN FATALITIES. Fatalities known at Wallace arei JOHN BOYI, father of Captain William Boyd; suffocnted in his home while trying; to rescue the family. TWO MEN, whose bones were found In the ruins of the Michigan hotel. UNKNOWN MAN, burned in the Coeur d'Alene WILLIAM HEARMOL'TH of Winnipeg, fire fighter, single. JOE FEENE, fire fighter, single, suffocated in tunnel on PIneer creek.

FOUR UNIDENTIFIED FIRE FIGHTERsj suffocated on Placer creek. UN IDENTIFIED FIRE FIGHTER, burned' to death near Mullan, Crew of Twelve Burn. Repurts have reached the forest supervisor that a crew of 12 has been burned in a gulch on Big creek and that several groups of from two to six are missing. Out of a gang of 18 who were LARGEST LOSSES. The largest losses in Wallace follOWI I'oeur d'Alene.

Iron Works and foundry and warehouse, 9100.000. The Sandard Oil company, 920,000. The t'oenr d'Alene Hardware company, The Wurstell Furniture company, $50,000. Smith Fisher, $50,000. The Sunset Brewery company, $90,000.

The Oregon Railway and Navigation passenger stations and a row of box cars, $50,000,. The Pacific Hotel Annex, owned by W. James of Spokane, $20,000. No attempt has been made to list (Special Dispatch to the Miner.) Missoula, Aug 21. The most serious incident in the forest fire situation was reported late this afternoon from the St.

Joseph country, where 180 men engaged in the forestry service are miss ing and it is feared they have been burned to death. When the fire approached the camp, where there were 200 men, two of the fighters took horses and, riding the animals to death, reached another camp and organized a rescue party, which penetrated the fire to Bird Creek. FOUND UNHARMED. Twenty of the men were found in the waterwhere they had gone for safety, and they were unharmed. Of the remaining 180 the losses of residence owners, the number being between T5 and 100.

caught near Mullan, four are so badly burned they will die. Forest Ranger Pulaski, who was In charge Among the other properties destroyed are the Wallace Times office, the Samuels, Pacific, Michigan and Coeur d'Alene hotels, and seven of a gang; caught in a tunnel irt Placer creek, Is severely injured and in 11 lose the sight of one eye. tores. (Special Dispatch to the Miner.) Spokane, Aug. 21.

A Wallace special to the Spokes-manReview says it is believed that at least fifty fire fighters are dead, several parties having been caught in the hills. Losses here ill reach in the neighborhood of a million dollars, according to the latest estimate. Mullan is in imminent danger and the people are flocking to Wardner and Spokane in box car specials. The hospitals at Wallace are crow ded with victims from the canyon, and nine bodies not identified as yet have been brought to Wallace. The city is not in further danger as yet, but the situation is very uncertain.

About seventyfive families are homeless. FIRE FIGHTERS ON ALERT. Safe for the moment, at least, the people of Wallace are looking to the hills around them through bloodshot, heavylidded eyes, watching forest fires that ring the city around on every side, lest they should break through and destroy the city. Lines of hose are laid along the west side of the city, where the fire will strike first if it comes, and all available fire fighters are being held ready to start work at once. (Continued on Paere Eight Column Three) Mullan, Idaho, Surrounded by Terrible Conflagration.

Wall of Fire 50 Miles Long is Burning no word has been received. The forestry service has organized a relief train, well equipped with pack animals, carrying provisions and hospital supplies, and will endeavor to rescue the men. TAFT DESTROYED. The town of Taft, near the Idaho line, was entirely destroyed before daylight this morning. Saltese, just below Taft, has been abandoned by its in habitants and is known to be surrounded by fire.

De Borgia is seriously threatened and one man is missing. At St. Regis the fire has crossed the river and threatens outlying buildings, although no fears are entertained for the town. HAUGHAN BURNED. Haughan is reported to be destroyed.

The last word from there was that the fire was dangerously near and the telephone operator was preparing to flee. The area covered is, roughly, a hundred miles square, most of it in the mountains and sparsely settled sections. It is difficult to obtain information from any of the points and impossible to reach some of the isolated places at all. LOSS OF LIFE PROBABLE. There is a probability that there has been serious loss of life, as there are prospectors, camping parties and lumbermen all through the mountains, and the fire may have come upon them while they slept last night, or they may have awakened this morn ing to find themselves cut off DYNAMITE CAR EXPLODES.

George Walbillig, a packer, and two companions reached Missoula tonight from Adair, a station on the Milwaukee west of Missoula about a hundred miles, having left there yesterday morning, riding horseback. One horse was ridden to death, but the men got over the range. They say that a car of dynamite and a car of oil at the construction camp near Adair exploded soon after they left. The fire was spreading rapidly and Walbillig believes the construction camp was destroyed. There were twenty-five men working there.

WIVES TELL OF SWEEP IF WSif Portions of Belknap, White Pine, Noxon, and Heron; Thompson Falls Threatened Senator Edward Donlan's Lumber Yards Near Thompson Falls, and the Sawmills and Yards at Cedar Spur Totally Destroyed. Many Prospecting and Camping Parties, It Is Feared, Have Been Overwhelmed by Mad Rush of Conflagration. flU MI I 1 CARED FOR IN 1D1I ME BEIN II HURRIES 10 1 OF LIBBY (Special Dispatch to the Miner. Missoula, Aug. 21.

Mercilessly and relentlessly the forest fires in western Montana and Idaho are sweeping over a vast area, driving hundreds of fugi (By Associated Presa.) Helena, Aug. 21. Governor Norris, who was with the board of army engineers inspecting reclamation work left the party at Great Falls at 3:00 o'clock this afternoon and departed for Libby, where it is presumed he will take personal command of the fire situation in the fire zone. tives before them, destroying small settlements and wiping out of existence millions of dollars worth of property. The situation tonight is more serious than it was in the early morning, except as to Wallace," where, it is believed, nearly half of the city will be saved.

Communication with Wallace to the west has been possible at intervals to (Special Dispatch to the Miner.) Thompson Falls, Aug. 21. Forest fires late this afternoon are seriously threatening this place. Every available man in the town is out fighting the flames, with some success in staying their progress unless the wind stiffens. Portions of Belknap, White Pine, Noxon and Heron are burn ing, according to reports received here this afternoon.

A wall of fire fifty miles long, extending from Thompson Falls to the Idaho line, is sweeping the dense timber and destroying everything in its path, it is feared overwhelming many prospecting and camping parties in the mountains, as there was slight chance to escape, the high wind during the night driving the fire ahead with the swiftness of an express train. State Senator Edward Donlan's lumber yards, twenty miles from Thompson Falls, and the sawmills and yards at Cedar Spur were totally destroyed last night. Six hundred men are fighting forest fires in this vicinity, but communication with those any distance from Thompson Falls is impossible tonight, as every wire is down. Settlers whose places have been de- train today. Citizens heire are taking stroyed by the fire have been flocking care of these refugees as fast as they into Thompson Falls on every available (Continued on Page Eight Column Four) I I OF UHE STR CKEN CITY much distress among them.

Their wants are being supplied by Missoula people and they have been given temporary homes. The first of the trains came in over the Northern Pacific's Coeur d'Alene branch, bringing the patients who had been in the Sisters hospital at Wallace, and fa many refugees as could fiud place on the small train. There were 250 on this train and a second train at noon brought as many more. These people came from the small towns along the line between heie and Roused From Sleep. Many of them had been roused from their sleep by the people on the train, whose summons had been the first Intimation that the fire was near; there had been no sign of it when the people went to bed Saturday night.

In most instances these folks escaped only with scanty clothing. A woman who had fled from her home at midnisht gavn birth to a child in a boxcar Just after the arrival of the first train in Missoula. Local hospitals are caring for th sick. Missoula homes have been opened (Continued on Page Four Column 8u day, but eastward it is entirely cut off and it is known that the entire east half of the town above Seventh street has been burned. West of that a hard fight is being made and with an im provement in the water supply there is a chance that the flames may be driven back.

(Special Dispatch to the Miner.) Helena, Aug. 21. A telegraphic appeal for assistance was received today by state officials frnin Libby requesting immediate aid in Moping With the forest fires; The telegram was forwarded to Governor Norris, who is at Great Falls with the board of army engineers. All Northern Pacific trains will be routed between Helena and Spokane over the Great Northern tracks because of the danger from forest fires west of Missoula. For a few minutes this afternoon the Missoulian's correspondent at Wallace (Special Dispatch to the Miner.) Missoula, Aug.

31. It was exactly 9:30 when the first train from the Wallace district pulled into Missoula. It was made up of a variety of cars, principally boxes, and carried a most pitiful looking crowd. A thousand or more of the people of Missoula were at the station to receive and minister to the refugees. A table and chairs were placed upon the lawn and everything ready to serve sandwiches and coffee.

Two dozen or more ladies and some of the leading business men of the city were there to wait on the visitors. Ambulances, automobiles and street hacks were standing ready to be pressed into service. Before the train came there were some who did not believe it would bring any but a few sick people who were carried out of Providence hospital. But when the refugees began to climb out, (Continued on Page Eight Column One) had a wire. He summarized the situation as follows: "Thirteen lives lost; property loss $1,000,000: fire still threatening." About 1.000 refugees have been brought into Missoula today.

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