The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1847-06-26
Misery and Death.

Death follows the poor Irish every where.
Many thousands left their native land last
Spring for Canada, and of those whom fever
and famine span ed at home, thousands have
been cut off by fever ard famine abroad; the
great deep has swallowed up nearly one
thousand, and of those who have reached
Canada, many are in utter restitution.
The Montreal Gazette says:
On Saturday afternoon two brothers, EN-
igrants, threw themselves from one of the
wharves into the river. They were rescued
by the eXertions of the police officer on duty,
and on being taken to the station house, sta
ted that they wished to put an end to their
misery.
The Editor of the Montreal Pilot, (Mr
Hincks, late Inspector General of Canada, J
himself an Irishman, tells us that
The state the immigrants at the Mon
treal] sheds is really awful. Language is in
adequate to describe the misery and wretch
edness that prevails there. Twenty five
were buried on Sunday, and six died yester-
day morning. The food is altogether unfit
for the poor furnishing wretches. Hard black
biscuit, surely, is mol proper. food. There is no
soup kettle, no means of giving warm coffee,
nor indeed anything but cold water.
And again:
Several complaints as 10 the manner in
which those unfortunate immigrants who
now throng our wharves, have been treated,
and the reception with which they meet on
landing on our shores, having reached us, we
in order to ascertain the particulars as they
exactly stand, visited the sheds adjoining this
city, and horror of horrors! the scene which
presented itsefto our vision battles descript-
ion. On very low ground are constructed
some coverings for the temporary accommo-
dation ofthose forlorn beings, who, unfortu-
nately for themselves, are obliged to have re-
course 10 them for shelter, These sheds,
and all the avenues that lead to them, are al
most saturated with the rain which during
the last two days has fallen in torrents, and
the poor creatures who make them their
home are obliged TO wade knee deep in mud
ere they Gun approach them.
The interior ofthe one which we entered
exhibited all the marks of wretchedness and
misery in their most revolving forms, and the
number of beds, or something resembling
those articles, which were laid upon the mud
dy, filthy floor, and the number ofsick, male
and female indiscriminately huddled togeth-
er, TO say nothing ofthe noxious vapor which
on entering we inhaled, astonished us. Here
and there we were accosted piteously, the
creatures imploring from us medical pre-
scriptions, thinking thereby 10 alleviate their
present sufferings: but we told them that we
came not in that capacity but that our object
was to see how they were cared for, and eX-
ert ourselves in order TO the amelioration of
their condition. Having made several in
quiries relative to medical attendance &c.
we were informed that no Doctor had seen
the same shed since they BECAME its inmates.
Numbers are dying daily of disease, superin-
duced, no doubt, by the privations and suf-
forings to which they have been subjected in
their weary journey to this imaginary haven
ofrepose.
MELANCHOLY AcCIDENT.-It is our pain-
ful task to record most deplorabs acci-
dent which occurred on Tuesday, and which
resulted in the death of two young men,
(Messrs Cotterill and Schaw) students of
Bishops College, Lenoxville.
Near to the confluence Of the Massawhip-
pea nd St, Francis there is small island
detached from the main land by narrow
passage or channel, containing under ordi-
nary circumstances only two or three feet
of water, which however had become both
deep and rapid owing to the late heavy
rains and the swollen state of The two
streams.
The young men, having occasion TO pass
to the island, unfortunately trusted them
selves together on hastily constructed raft
which, being carried by the force of the cur
rent against a projecting branch was rs is