The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1850-05-25
The May Day Accident at St. Louis

We hnye Published brief lelcprsldic ne
count Of melancholy accident which occur,
rcd at S. Louis on May Day, The following
moro complete narrative, written by ono
who was present, we COPY from HE b. Lou
s lD'olligoncer
son Wednesday evening, lst May the
young ladies' Of lhG school had prepared To
celebrate the occasion with music, iablonuN,
chnrndrs, &C., mud had invited their parents
and other friends % tho exhibition. The
school room Is IN the second sory OF tia
building, with n straight slhir,yny leading up
from Ilhh street. a. the head OF the slnirs
ls a door opening upon the right into tho
school room, whoro the exhibition was 10
take place. Just 10 the len ofihe door, upon
entering, n stage had been grGciei across lhss
West end Of tie room, being the end mosl
remote from iho street.
About oighl u'clork the young ladies nf liza
Hchoul-ucar a hundred iu uumher=hnd nr-
scmbled, aud were ranged IN seats ~ front
oflhe stage. ln front of the pupils were tho
audience, consisting Of perhaps ono hundred
aud tiity pcrsnhs, about hnlf oi whom were Ia.
dicG The exercises had goue on for about
ono hour, aud tie young ladics were enact
ing scene IN n chatnde, the audience being
chiefly standing, and having pressed up us
near a. possible To iiie stage, when suddenly
there Asl.a n sLntI y. crashing noiHr. ne n eomef
thing were giving way. My impression at tho
moment was that The stage was falling. liut
IN tho urNt moment there was ierribla
crashing noise, aud Immediately Ia front Of
ssheFaI 8s standing with my wife uHw ttiS
door crack aud sink within two fcol sf us,
aud Instantly The whole floor in front Of ~,
Including the stage, fell IN wuh a drsndiH
crash; aud men, won,cn and children disap-
poarci fron our sight, in the twinklinR ofHq
eye, mingled with The falling ,iUbcrT, chairs,
book cascS aud other furniture.
knew that TWO Of my children, n dnugh-
ter Of sixteen, and slu about twelve years
or nge, were among the fallen mass. Wit
what anguish uiy wiu aud mysclf wcrs
overwhelmed in that iegFibls u,on,oul, may
loo ui0gined, hut cannot DO described, Fofr
mnntcly narrow strip OF tho 1oor, leading
10 the door remained hrR',by which We were
enabled To- reach the stairway We hurried
down 10 the street, aud was among tbs
first who snw the terrible spectacle below.
on entering the lower story, found thnt the
falling mass had c5ushed in the door below,
and that ihc whole had been prccipitnied in
To the cellar which wrH i2rhlly hlicd "iif
wnicr.
Thcre saw, mingled with the fallen
tiubcrs, a ninss of az least one hundred
human beings, mon, women Hnd coil
drcp, shrielIing, writing mud struggling
while nt the snmc time the most appalling
egreat,,-- we're heard from those. outsidr of
the neutrality-suspicious. cuiting for their chit,
dfcn-husbEnds aud brothers uticring,in tho
most dcspairiug accents, the names of their
wives aud sisters. pray Il may ~Rst.C -lW
NY fortune to witness again such scene oi
horror aud uuguish. One of ihc first. per
sons whom | rucugnzcd. by the dim light op
entering, was my daughlcr.who had ax,ricat
ed herself and wns cndcavoring 10 clnmheF
over the lnlua tuhcrs. She was soon tnkoy
on, not seriously injured.
Oitho fate Oimy son was wholly ignof
raul for more than an hour. IL appeared at,
,crwafds that he had fallen partially iuto ih0
WINTER, with several persons lying g-Erruss his
body, bat Miraculouly escaped, without the
slightest Injury. refer to those details re-
lEiing TO my own family, only ns an hlusira-
linn of many similar caaca--- ---.-a---------
Gradually, and 10y Tho aid Of ollr gallant
fifemcu, The d"nd, iho dying and the ninlmed
were removed from the ruins, aud then can,S
the recognition of friends, the rouAion Of
families -soHe joyful and tull of cobsolptiug
Others sad md hcurt-rrhtihg beyond mems,
urc IN recurring to tin scene, with all ~
attendant horrors, can scarcely imagine
how 50 many escaped with their lives. Il
S.t.tis ititrct, almost miraculous, that out of
one hundred who were thus buried among
the fallen linhers 30 few were seriously IN.
jurrd. J. u. CRocKET.
nc rrtrr1ircr ui yCFtfT5 hy tiTH CUrHEUoTtW,
ns already mentioned wls two, aud both OF
these, 1t is believed were caused 10y drowh.
itg...tIit water being, ahoHt toHr feet tIcvp ig
the cellar. SiXiy-unc persons in all wcre
wounded one ottho ladies' killed wns AlGs
G. W.Pome-oya sister az HonEulvin Towns.
lev of Bmttlchoro'. VI.
The 81. Louis Republican snys:--
"1'hn real cause OF the falling nl the honi
was, in our opinion, the giving wny of the
Northwest brick column in iho cellar. This
floors OF tho tNU stories Were supported 10y 8
brick pillars in the CELLAR the cellar had lety
partially filed wJh water for long Iine,0Nf
the hrrk forming Il.e pillar To which we NJ
lude, or tie earth under il gave way. ']hp
lcH no support to that part OF the floor, nnS
tho weight being greatest there, the whole
was carried down together,
ErrCRAMstArtc CoURTsmP.-A certain Mr.
Page, TatfCT an 'aUCioHt beau" charmed hy
a youthful tnir one sent her glove, VIII
these !nes:--
"From Glove, cut Oh the initial letter, q,
4hen Glove L. HaFe-aiaa that 1,scusi to- tbec.p
The laily, who doubtless considered her
Youth aud hennty 90 ynluublc to bc bestowed
ON sulor zu nnIiqunied, rslurned the glove
with the couplcl: -,
"From Page cut Off the initial letter, v,
Then Page ie Age,nnd that won't do for HEeT