Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1867-04-25

HEART-RENDING CALAMITY. - On
Tuesday night of last week, the dwelling
house of Michael Bitter, a blacksmith
living at Suffeld Centre, was burned to
the ground and in it five children. The
calamity is one of heart-rending detail,
and has thrown the parents into the most
despairing grief, as well as filled the com
munity with profound sorrow. The fol
lowing are the particulars that have
reached US: The dwelling occupied by
Mr.. Bitter was rather small two-story
house. The lower apartments were oc-
cupled as sitting-room, kitchen and pan
try, the upper rooms being occupied by
the family Tor bedrooms. The family of
Mr.. Bitter consisted of himself, wife, six
children and an apprentice. The eldest
of the children was a girl about twelve
years old, the youngest an infant of a few
months. A little boy two years old was
at Mrs. Blitzer's parents, the other chill
dren being at home on the fateful night
Mr. and Mrs. Bitter, with the babe, oc-
cupied one room, the four children and the
apprentice sleeping in another. About
II o'clock Mrs. Bitter arose, lit candle,
and descended to the pantry foE some milk
for the babe, which she gave it and then
replaced it in the cradle which it occu-
pied by the bedside. Later in the night,
about II o'clock as is supposed, the APP
prentice was awakened by the eldest
child, who aroused him by shaking him
The girl did not speak, as the room was
then filled with smoke to the point of suf-
location, and the apprentice found himself
so nearly sutfocated that he could not
speak. He rushed at once to the room of
Mr.. Bitter, and aroused him by shaking
him. Mr.. B. awakened his wife and rush
ed down stairs, followed by her, neither,
for the moment, thinking of the babe.
Throwing open an outside door, draft
was created, and the whole premises
sprang into blaze. The apprentice re-
turned to the other chamber, but the
smoke and heat had so increased that he
at once sought to descend, but found that
was impossible, and jumped from the win
dow to the ground. After getting out,
Mr.. Bitter made several frantic efforts to
re-enter the house to save his children but
failed in each effort. The house soon fell,
burying in the debris the remains of the
five children. 1t is supposed the children
were sufocated by the smoke, before the
flames could reach them. The girl who
awakened the apprentice, it is thought,
sank down upon the floor, dying at the
bedside at once, as her remains were found
in position indicating such a fact. The
presence of mind of the little creature,
which enabled her to awaken the appren-
tice, without doubt saved the lives of her
| parents, though she was at the time in the
very agonles of death. The act was an
instance of the most touching heroism,
well worthy of precious memory. The
origin of the fire is matter of theory and
the one generally accepted is that Mrs.
Bitter, in going to the pantry with the
candle, unconsciously set something on
fre-papers on the shelves, perhaps-from
which the Confagration ensued. The
charred remains of the five victims of the
merciless element were buried in one
grave on Thursday, the solemn ceremo-
MES being attended by large concourse,
and the greatest sympathy manifested for
the crushed and distracted parents. Ev-
erything belonging tn the family was, of
course, destroyed, including every article
of clothing possessed by them, and $50
in money, which was in garment of Mr..
B. Upon the house and its contents
there was an insurance covering quite a
portion of its value. The people of the
nelghborhood generously subscribed to a
fund for the sufferers, amounting to five
or six hundred dollars.-RGven1a Ohio }
Democrat.