The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1867-05-23
lFrom the Philadelphia Inquirer. 10th. J
shoe cking Affair af Seminary.

A terrible and fatal accident, by suffo.
cation occurred here On Sunday night
last, at the Moravian Seminary foi
Young Ladies. The victims were all
servants, engaged at the seminary su.
san Manhertz and Hannah Hawk are
the names of the dead, and Susannah
Knoll the name of the woman still in
danger. Maria Krauss and Lena R0hr-
backer are still suffering, while Eliza
Fehr AID Mary Griffin are slightly at
fected. No pupils of the seminary were
at all affected, they sleeping in the up
per two and three stories, and the accl-
dent having occurred in the basement.
The room where the lamentable occur
renee took place had, opposite the door,
fiue which led up into the chimney,
from which another flue opened from
the seminary dining room above, which
room covers the area of the three rooms
beneath. In this dining room a large
stove was situated about the centre,
sufficiently large enough to heat this
extra apartment, and the pipe from this
stove was about eight feet from the
floor and ran the balance of the dis
tance with but slight elevation from
the stove. From this stove came the
gas which, from the condition of the
weather-the air being quite heavy.
forced the gas to descend in such vol
umes into this open fue in the sleeping
room below as to cause the disaster.
This f1ue had been left open and in this
condition for two weeks previously, at
which time there had been a stove in the
servants dining room, the pipe of which
led through an aperture in the partl-
ton wall. The girls, seven in number,
retired to their room at the usual hour
on Sunday night, and shut the door.
The window was also closed One OF
them, the eighth, named Civilla Hibbal-
still, did not retire until about one
o'clock, when, taking w. a candle, sh g
entered the bedroom, and perceiving,
as she thought, blood on the walls, an .
hearing the uneasy groans Of those ~
the room, one of whom was already
lying on the floor between tho beds, she
herself now became affected somewhat
with the gas, and, leaving the candle
burning, rushed out of the room fright
ened almost to death, ran to the house
keepers room, telling her that the girls
were murdered. The housekeeper and
her two daughters became panic strick-
ell, she exclaiming, "Civilla, there are
murderers about; come in quick and let
us lock the door, The four women re-
mained paralyzed with fear till morn
ing, and not even attempting to alarm
the watchman on the streets, which
easily might have been done from their
window, the housekeeper's room being
in the front of the building, opening on
Church street, one of the principal
streets. Civilla, when running ont of
the room, fortunately left the door open,
which saved some of the lives. In this
condition the unfortunate women re-
mained till six o'clock in the morning,
when daylight gave them courage to
alarm the house, when terrible sight
presented itself. Hannah Hawk and
Susan Manhertz, who slept respectively
at each end of the room, were found
dead, the pillows, bedding, g., bespat-
tered with blood. Eliza Fehr, the cook,
was on the floor, and, it seems, had
been awoke by the screams and groan-
ings of the other women, and got up,
lit the candle, when, losing conscious
ness, she fell and remembered no more
till restored to consciousness next day.
This must have been before the other
girl came in. The other four, whose
beds were more in the centre of the
room, were found in the morning insen-.
sible, but were soon restored and are
now we'll again; the others are not out
of danger yet. These hues have been in
use for nineteen years and no accident
nor perceptible inconvenience ever oc-
Cured in that time, although they say
there is an occasional smell of gas, but
never sufficient to excite any fears of
danger. These rooms had no connec-
tion whatever with the dormitories of
the pupils, they being in the upper, dis
tant and entirely separate portions of
the building. 4