beginning is missing, describes the fire.


Fragment of a letter to Mrs. Jane Clemens and
Mrs. Moffett, in St. Louis:

.....The level ranks of flame were relieved at intervals by the
standard-bearers, as we called the tall dead trees, wrapped in fire, and
waving their blazing banners a hundred feet in the air. Then we could
turn from this scene to the Lake, and see every branch, and leaf, and
cataract of flame upon its bank perfectly reflected as in a gleaming,
fiery mirror. The mighty roaring of the conflagration, together with our
solitary and somewhat unsafe position (for there was no one within six
miles of us,) rendered the scene very impressive. Occasionally, one of
us would remove his pipe from his mouth and say, "Superb! magnificent!
Beautiful! but-by the Lord God Almighty, if we attempt to sleep in this
little patch tonight, we'll never live till morning! for if we don't burn
up, we'll certainly suffocate." But he was persuaded to sit up until we
felt pretty safe as far as the fire was concerned, and then we turned in,
with many misgivings. When we got up in the morning, we found that the
fire had burned small pieces of drift wood within six feet of our boat,
and had made its way to within 4 or 5 steps of us on the South side. We
looked like lava men, covered as we were with ashes, and begrimed with
smoke. We were very black in the face, but we soon washed ourselves
white again.

John D. Kinney, a Cincinnati boy, and a first-rate fellow, too, who came
out with judge Turner, was my comrade. We staid at the Lake four days
--I had plenty of fun, for John constantly reminded me of Sam Bowen when
we were on our campaign in Missouri. But first and foremost, for Annie's,