The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1878-03-27
CHINESE MEsPORrUNEs.
Progress of the Chinese Famine--as, ,OOD,-
900 Persons Starying-The Fan of
Thousands of Refugees at TientsG j.

A correspondent Of the st. Paul Pioneer Press
writes from Shanghai January 2e: .The
famine, which has been in progress for three
to be at it's height. Certain it Is that such
awful suffering has not come to our knowI-
edge until this month. Our. information is
not from the Chinese, but from foreigners
on the ground, either laboring as mission
came from Rev. I. richards, an an English
Protestant missionary, and from Pere Ay-
,aer ,,l Roman cathYIie, bringing terrible
Shantnng.. This region has a population OF
9,000, 600 OF human beings, who are to-day In
state OF starvation. The people are wander
ing ing about m from place to place begging tor
their children for 81 81 or So to get food, and
from places come the fearful tidines that
children are actually broiled and eaten to sat-
isly the pangs OF hunger. Dead bodies lie By
by the birds, while all are in state of almost
utter helplessness. The Chinese government
is doing much to relieve the dlstress, but
many must perish from starvation and cold
before help can come, so extensive Is the tract
OF country Under the famine
The Hong Kong Mail says: "At Tientsin,
on the seventh OF January, q terrible calamity
occurred. A fire broke out at 10 O'Clock In the
morning at one Of the relief yards established
outside OF the city wall for the benefit Of the
famine refugees A strong northeast wind
was blowing at the time, and searcely Y an hour
passed before all the sheds were burned, and
between 28O0 and 5000 women and children
were sufOcated or burned to death. AS cor
rect an estimate as can get gives the num-
Der OF inmates as 5000, Of whom only little
over 100 escaped. The location OF this SOUP
kitchen was unfortunate. On the east side
was the city ditch; ON a part OF the south and
west sides was an ice pit, while houses lined
the remaining sides In addition, IT was sur
rounded by q strong fence of kauliang stalks
plastered with mud in which there was only
one gate and 1T Is said that on the bursting
forth OF the flames, the gatA-keeper locked the
gate and ran away. Many OF the Chinese
showed much courage in trying TO render
assistance, as testified by an eyewitness, who,
passing just at the time, hastened to do what
he could in tearing down the fence and rem
dering other services. He speaks of the
scene at that time as terrible beyond descrip-
ton. The scene presented after the fire had
done its work was CHASTITY and horrible, and
that can never be effaced The contor-
tions OF the features, the positions of the
bodies, hands, limbs, mouth and eyes the
same as when the flame and smoke overlook
them, reminded one OF the descriptions OF
Pompeii. Had the gate been left open prob
ably many more might have made their es-
cape, but SO rapidly did the flames spread
through the mat-sheds, and in the straw and
mats spread ON the ground as protection
against dampness, that before an opening
could be made in the fence few even were left
to linger On in suffering. How the fire origin
ated no one seems to know-a spark. posi-
bly,, from the range where at the time the
millet was placed"