The Cecil Whig., 1851-11-29
Letter frG M New York,
Correspondence Of The Cecil Hhig.

The awfal Catas!rophe- IIhose FauH-Storm-
Fnnerai Of tie Caalrea-hossu.h-My For
rest, DC.
Mr.. EDIToR:-We are still in state of con-
siderable excitement on account OF the affecting
catastrophe Of last Thursday, Of which YOU have
no doubt had iuli particulars in the daily Jour
mails. Ii not, let us mention thai. in public
Schoo in the 9Th Ward. one Of the female sch,l.
ars was suddenly tahen i'll. The chil!rrn. frIptt
cned AT the circumstance rushed from the room
IN a Stale OF Consideration. The chil,!rcn in
other rooms hearing the alarm, and listening 10
the fire bell which Happened to toll Jus, AT that
moment, imagined the buiEIing was in flames.
All rushed al once loi the stairway, aiming at
escape. Some lircmrn passing BY, perceived
thc disturbance, nhi iancylng that II ire was
really the cause Of il. ran in and increased ,h,.
ranc. There were lS So children in the house.
lhis number enIcavoIing TO crowd down the
siaifs, broke away the fe,bly made bans,ers.
and the children fell hoadlong to the stone floor
below, where they lay piled upto the first cell
ing! Upwards of i3 were taken out crushed
anu dead, some sixty more were discovered TO be
seriously injured.
lhc scene. whrn assistance finally arrived
was painful III the extreme, anl when the ma
rents OF The k!lie and wounded came, and their
lamentations hled the air, the very Stcrncs1
he art was melted into tears oisymrathy Nurc
than II cart lead of shawls. bonnr,s and Lo .rr,,
&C., were removed afterwards, from rho .nn,,
some families have lost all their children. and
many their lavoriic little girls. Oor the females
were the chief sntlerrrs,) Inany streets have been
ever since. little cisc ln, a ro,;on -, ,',,i
mouihrd and Unavailing sorrow. Some of the
boys escaped By jumping from the windows into
the arms of persons in the street. I'm, evcn ,h.Y
Il
i'll nj their homes.
1t is very natural that such fearful tbino
should occasion ono widespread treliuc orin,
dignaIion against men who could build hons.
for srch n nu,,ose in n,,,n.r ,b,, ;n ,,
OF any eXcil, lncnt must have created sn,,o euch
a calamity. Had a fire reaIIv occurred Tho l,ss
OF life would have been enormous bcyord cv-
preston, and although there is some consolation
in the reflection that the present occurrence Los
doubtless avcrted one incalculablv moro J;s,s
trous and painful, it does not in the lros, ryrn-
crate the culTabc authors of il. and we si,il ho
much mistaken If ,hr iurv n,u. :a'''; NC
the cit circumstances. do no. a,cnnl ,o mike ','n NV
example of them at least il is 10 br honcJ -,
for nothing less will be satisfactory.
We had a terrific storm on Thursdov rioht
and the damage in some quarters bpy been verv
heavy. The river ovc,fowcd the wLorves and
many poor families were driven by the snroinr
waters iicm their humble aboGes. and Aed ,n ,Ln
police stations for protection. THE ownin,s
suffered ia every direction. and looked rrnrv
where next morning like ragged tlays of dis,ree:
We cxpcc, to hear of MANY sad disasters or ,be
coast.
We had another incident Yesterday in the fall
Of house on 35lh street. that was in proor4.s of
erection. Nobody happened TO he in il n, The
time. and so nnbolv 90, hurt-a rro1irin, fac,
as "Nobody" is the individual who is alwoys
engaged in producing so much mischief. The
house was one nf n row all nr y-b;,L ,,,l,