FORESTS ON FIRE.

Southland Times, Issue 1292, 12 August 1870, Page 2

FORESTS ON FIRE.

LOSS OF LIFE AND IMMENSE DESTRUCTION OF PBOPEETY. Every day brings additional news to previous reports of the extensive conflagrations in the forests and on the mountain woodlands in Sullivan, Orange, Delaware, and Madison counties, in this State. Theße fires have raged with greater violence and inflicted a larger amount of damage over a greater extent of territory than has ever before been known in this country. The general supposition is that they were of incendiary origin. These fires have been wantonly and recklessly allowed to ravage thousands of acres of valuable woodland, causing destruction to millions of trees, cords of cat. wood, logs, ship joints, bark, etc. ; also, several . .dwellings;; barns, and many fences* • The estimated amount of loss in Duchess, Orange, Sullivan, Delaware, and Madison counties is set down at five millions of dollars.. ;. _ The ..Sullivan county- forests have been burnt for a distance of twenty miles; the Delaware county woodlands have been devastated some fifteen miles. In Orange county the mountain ridges and hill sides are a smouldering waste of land. During the height of the conflagration the spectacle was most sublime and appalling. For a long stretch of miles the country was overhung with huge masses of smoke. At some points, cinders and chaff floated in the air currents, and were scattered in showers over the villages and farms, in several instances kindling into flames upon barns, fields^ and dwellings.- The population was all in commotion and terror, not knowing what manner of developments or whatnew disasters were in store for them. The night scenes in the burning districts were terribly grand-and awful. The rivers and brooks were blood-red from the reflected flames. Along the Erie railway track, at one place the rails were twisted out of shape, and the ties burned. The . .laborers could not repair the damages for hours. There was but slight detention to the trains. The Cincinnati express-train, eastward bound from Summit, rushed through a sea' of flame and smoke for

nearly a mile. Although the tram had been wet, and prepared for t )*£J|||||jj& the glowing heat blTlsteirad:the^^^^^^ a the windows were "stained:* with ypirro^^^ The engineer and. fireman were sir^htly "* singed. Iv some/places the j water; .♦was i7 steaming, hot. Thousands of fishes, birds, snakes, and squirrels peri-shed and floated on the surface. *.| The crags and^rocky wills of the tnountaiu s|des were^ba|jed with the intense heat; N mmy--- of -the boulders are craiskedand crunble 1. Here and there the bones of wild animals (and some cattle) toll the mute" storylpf the holocaust tragedy. Such. was. the terrifying influence of the sighkthat-the-dumb beasts, the horses and cattle, in the vicinity fled in alarm, and the night echoes wera resonant with their bleating*, neighs, and , lowings. By far the most awful spectacle and calamity yet reported occurred on Sunday night near Deposit Station^ darkness gathered over the dying tf ay, the fire had progressed to the. base. $pf fche West mountains, and before 9 o'clock, had completely encircled one of the prominent peaks as with a girdle of fire. The flames roared and crackled with horrible sound as they swept up theliill side with the strong air currents. The ruddy glare lit up the whole adjacent region- with brilliant power. . A party of sportsmen, returning through a gorge on the opposite side, heard shouip„and cries of distress, apparently proceeding ; from the^ flaming forest. Looking up through the flame and smoke they discovered the forms of a man and a woman upon a rocky Height, swaying their arms to and fro. It is believed that the persous thus seen were a man, wife, and child, named Hough, who lived in a shanty in a remote place on the barrens, and in escaping acros&^the, ridge were hemmed in upon the rocks where seen, and so perished in the conflagration. A large number of poor people have been bereft of home, goods, and the means of livelihood. During the past week several fires have occurred in Sussex county, New Jersey, which have destroyed a large amount of property. The fires consumed hundreds of acres of wooded property, and destroyed several barns and log cabins in the extreme, northern part of : the county. Besides: these losses others hare occurred in the southern part of the county.— New York Standard. ■'•-•