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Where London's column, pointing at the skies, Like a tall bully, rears its head, and lies. |
It seems wonderful (says the author of the Craftsman) that the plague was not as peremptorily imputed to the Papists as the fire.[15]
There was a general suspicion of incendiaries laying combustible stuff in many places, having observed several houses to be on fire at the same time: but we are told, God with his great bellows did blow upon it, and made it spread quickly, and horrible flakes of fire mounted to the skies.
There was a strange concurrence of several natural causes which occasioned the fire so vigorously to spread and increase.
There was a great supineness and negligence in the people of the house where it began: it began between one and two o'clock after midnight, when all were in a dead sleep: on a Saturday night, when many of the eminent citizens, merchants, and others, were retired into the country, and left servants to look to their city houses: it happened in the long vacation, at a time of year when many wealthy citizens are wont to be in the country at fairs, or getting in debts, and making up accounts with their chapmen.
The houses where it began were mostly built of timber, and those very old: the closeness and narrowness of the streets did much facilitate the progress of the fire, and prevented the bringing in engines. The wares and commodities stowed and vended in those parts were most combustible of any other, as oil, pitch, tar, cordage, hemp, flax, rosin, wax, butter, cheese, wine, brandy, sugar, and such like.
The warmth of the preceding season had so dried the timber, that it was never more apt to take fire; and an easterly wind (which is the driest of all) had blown for several days together before, and at that time very strongly.
The unexpected failing of the water from the New River; the engine at London-bridge called the Thames water-tower was out of order, and in a few hours was itself burnt down, so that the pipes which conveyed the water from thence through the streets, were soon empty.
Beside, there was an unusual negligence at first, and a confidence of easily quenching it, and of its stopping at several places afterward; which at last turned into confusion, consternation, and despair; people choosing rather by flight to save their goods, than by a vigorous opposition to save their own houses and the whole city.
Thus a small spark, from an unknown cause, for want of timely care, increased to such a flame, that nothing could extinguish, which laid waste the greatest part of the city in three days' time.