That many born Americans had born behind their friendly grinning faces a quite malicious hatred against the immigrants, could easily be observed in the discussion of the fire boundary question. What the English papers, and especially the Times have been printing about the demonstration of the German, Irish and Scandinavians, is utterly saturated with the most poisonous spitefulness against the immigrated craftsmen and workers... The Times does not hesitate to invent the rawest lies about the "meetings of the North Siders" - to represent the poor fire victims as besotted beer louts - and to distort and ridicule their vigorous utterances in the most insolent and infamous way. In short, once more the vilest xenophobia, the nativistic swelled-headedness and bigotry shows itself naked. What does a scandal sheet like the Times care that the just desires and demands of the "Dutch" remain unknown to its readers?

If boorish laughter, vulgar scorn and grin, and impertinent caricaturing of the meetings on the North Side that is completely sufficient - at least to the native rowdies.

... But when Americans like William B. Ogden and Mahlon D. Ogden agree with us regarding the necessity of permitting wooden structures in the outlying districts, then we can afford to renounce the applause of a Story and an H. White. If any man in the city, then Ogden knows what has made Chicago great and populous... To forbid all wooden structures inside the whole space that in part still consists of fields, meadows, vegetable gardens or empty prairie, but is named on the map, Chicago, means to stop the further growth of the city - is nothing less than suicide.....