The second of the events above alluded to was the conflagration which will be long known as the Great Fire in Louisville. It originated about midnight, on Third Street, between Main and Market, in the chair factory of John Hawkins, and burned south within one door of the Post Office, (then at the corner of Market and Third Streets,) and north to Main Street. It then took a westwardly direction down Main Street, destroying all the houses to within two doors of the Bank of Louisville. Its further progress having been arrested here, the flames crossed the street, and coming back upon their course destroyed nine large stores and one boarding house on the north side of Main, east of the middle of the square. Upwards of thirty houses were consumed, and the loss was estimated at more than $300,000. The houses destroyed were chiefly large importing and commercial stores; many of the goods were saved, but all the buildings were entirely destroyed. This conflagration however, proved in the end rather a gain than a loss to the city in general, as the site of the fire was speedily rebuilt in a much better style than before. The friends of the city were at this time urging the propriety of establishing manufactures here, a want not felt less at that time than now. In an article upon this subject in one of the daily papers, the following statistics of the sale of cotton goods were elicited, in which reference is had to the year 1841. "At this time there were sold, brown cottons to the value of $276,095; prints amounting to $249,824; cotton yarns to $224,819; bleached cottons $89,589, and checks and tickings $68,180, making a total of $908,772 taken from the city, which, it was urged, could have been easily and profitably furnished on the spot." It was then said and may be now repeated that too little attention is paid to the vast advantages to be derived from the establishment of manufactures, especially at this point where the necessary power could and can be so easily and so cheaply attained. It is somewhat remarkable that this population has depended and still depends so entirely upon commerce as a means of gain. No other city perhaps in the world has so large a commercial business in proportion to its population. This is probably accounted for in the fact that the increase of commerce has been so rapid and the difficulty of overdoing the business so apparently impossible that every temptation has been offered to the capitalist to prefer this mode of investment. The time, however, cannot be far distant when the advantages offered to the manufacturer will be acknowledged and embraced. Indeed the commencement of what must before long become a very large branch of prosperity here was already established, but it has not grown with a rapidity commensurate with the increase of other departments of trade. A few foundries and manufactories of bagging and rope were established about this period. These, with the addition of a lard oil factory, begun by C. C. P.