624 



THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



LITERARY NOTICES. 



Report of the Chicago Relief and Aid 

 Society of Disbursement of Contribu- 

 tions for the Sufferers by the Chi- 

 cago Fire. Printed for the Chicago 

 Relief and Aid Society, at the Riverside 

 Press, 1874. 



This volume is one of unique and re- 

 markable interest, founded on one of the 

 most terrible tragedies in all history. With- 

 in a period of twenty-four hours an immense 

 portion of a great city was laid in ashes. 

 The total area burned over was 2,124 

 acres, or nearly 3 square miles, containing 

 about 73 miles of streets and 18,000 build- 

 ings, while, of a population of 334,000, the 

 houses of 100,000 were destroyed. Of the 

 experience of that terrible Sunday night, 

 when the conflagration spread through the 

 city before a driving gale of wind, the 

 " Report " remarks as follows : 



" As the fire raged, the number of home- 

 less people became greater and greater, and, 

 possessed by fright, many were inapt in ex- 

 pedients of self-preservation. Many sought 

 temporary abodes for themselves and their 

 effects in the hospitable homes of their neigh- 

 bors. But the hope of security here was soon 

 surrendered, and those who had been but 

 mere spectators of their neighbors' calami- 

 ties, were now panic-stricken householders, 

 engaged in taking care of themselves, their 

 families, and their property, until thousands 

 together were fleeing west, north, and south, 

 in consternation, and frequently in despair 

 of saving life. And thus the streets were 

 filled with an indescribable mass of fugi- 

 tives forcing their way through the stifling 

 clouds of dust, smoke, and cinders, and the 

 confusion and utter chaos of the night a 

 night lurid with flames, the reflection of 

 which, in itself, gave to the countenances of 

 these fleeing thousands an awe-stricken and 

 almost unearthly aspect. The hissing and 

 crackling of the flames, and the deafening 

 roar of the gale, the pelting cinders and 

 brands, and the crumbling of material, gave 

 tragic coloring to the scene, and leave the 

 night memorable in the minds of those who 

 witnessed it, as a picture of appalling hor- 

 ror, distinct in its outlines, weird in its dark 

 shadings, but utterly incapable of verbal rep- 

 resentation." 



But, appalling as was this phase of the 



great disaster, the consequences it immedi- 

 ately entailed were hardly less dreadful : 



" Comparatively few, of those who had 

 fled before the flames, had tasted food since 

 early Sunday evening, and hunger came to 

 them to add its terrors to those of exposure 

 and, in many instances, apprehension of 

 death. And then came the greatest terror 

 of all the consciousness of the fact that 

 families had been separated ; husbands and 

 wives, parents and children, were missing. 

 The flight had been so rapid, and, in all di- 

 rections, the thoroughfares had been so ob- 

 structed, and in some cases utterly impassa- 

 ble, by the crowding of vehicles and masses 

 of people, and the city itself a wave of fire, it 

 is no marvel that, under these circumstances, 

 thousands, for the time, were lost sight of, 

 and became lonely wanderers ; and that 

 hundreds perished in the flames. The seeds 

 of permanent or temporary disease sown, the 

 bodily suffering and mental anguish endured 

 can never have statistical computation or 

 adequate description." 



Instant measures were required to meet 

 the emergency. The news of the calamity 

 spread by telegraph through the world, 

 roused universal sympathy, and back, along 

 the wires, as if by reflex action, came prompt 

 offers of abundant assistance. The telegraph 

 poured in reports of world-wide contribu- 

 tions in money, and the railway-trains came 

 freighted with provisions, clothing, mer- 

 chandise, and all the necessary supplies 

 which a suddenly unhoused and bank- 

 rupted community might require. To meet 

 these universal proffers of help, and carry 

 out the work of distribution, the "Relief 

 and Aid Society" was called suddenly into 

 existence, and the present " Report " is the 

 history of its experience. Its officers con- 

 sisted of the ablest men in Chicago, and 

 the record of their prompt and vigorous 

 doings is in the highest degree interesting 

 and instructive. The report they have is- 

 sued is a model of systematic, detailed, and 

 comprehensive statement of operations, and 

 will be permanently valuable, both as an im- 

 pressive chapter in the history of Chicago, 

 and as a register of experiences that will be 

 valuable for consultation in similar emer- 

 gencies that are liable to happen in other 

 cities. The volume before us is gotten up 

 in superior style, but we hope there is a 

 cheaper edition for general circulation. 



