The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1882-11-08
FURTHER PARTICULARS
Of the Burning of the Halifax
Poor House Asylum.

HALIFAX, Nov THE following particulars
can now be given of the burning Of the Poor
House Asvlum, mentioned in the dispatches
last night:
The smoke of smouldering wood spread
through the building into the dormitories and
caused the utmost terror among the four or five
hundred inmates. There was no immediate
danger, so the officials of the asylum did not
take Immediate steps 10 remove the inmates.
The fremen found smoke issuing from the
windows all over the building, but no flames
were TO be seen. In the west wing old women
ana children were seen at the windows crying
TO be let out, and as they began breaking the
glass 1t was feared they would throw them
selves out, A man dashed at the door leading
IRON this wing into the yard and knocked it
H. The stairway was crowded and out came
a procession Of women nursing infants, old
gray headed grandmas and feeble old men,
All were screaming and as they smelled the
fresh air without they calculated their thanks
and then began calling for this one aud that
one until all was confusion.
Then 1t became known that those in the up-
per wards OF that wing were almost helpless
Some OF the tiremen, fire wards and aldermen
a clergyman and others who were among the
early arrivals, hastened up stairs, and willing
hands were soon getting the blind, halt and
lame down the long winding stairs. The work
was necessarily slow, but finally that wing was
emptied.
In the meantime the flames in the basemaut
elevator reaching to the top of the main build
ing. The draft swept the flames upwards, and
In few seconds the flames were raging in the
top OF the main building. The story lust under
the caves IN this building was used as hos
pital, and in it were about seventy patients
most of them pefectly helpless. The fire was
now hercely burning right in the hospital, and
above IL the heat cracked the roof till the lead
poured down III streams of IRE and states flew
everywhere in deadly showers, rendering ary
m oCN. frF ~. Ls.sl IL
death.
An attempt to raise ladders 10 the windows
was made, but the ladders were too short, and
after fireman was knocked down by falling
bricks and it was seen that ladders even would
be swept away in few minutes, the attempt
was given up
The fire burst through the roof and the scene
was one never TO be forgotten. Far above the
roar OF the flames were heard the cries of the
wretched patients in the hospital, who were
roasting to death Most of them were helpless IS
and could not leave their beds, and perhaps
were stltied by the smoke before the flames
reached them, but others were seen to dash
themselves against the windows and cling to
the sashes till their streng was exhausted or
their hands burned off and they fell back into
the flames.
A woman was seen to drag herself to cor
ner window and forcing her body half out till
she could breathe the cool air without She
remained in that position till her head was
1t Is known that there were about seventy
patients in the hospital, and so far as could be
ascertaned only half dozen were carried out
before the flames cut off all further approach
to the place.
A medical man who is in position to know
estimates the loss of life to be not less than
ffty, and these were all patients in the hos
pital The poor old people and little children
who got out of the other parts of the building
were huddled together in barn some little
distance away and were there packed around
with straw and blankets to keep them COM
fortable till morning.
The building was insured.
The building burned cost $83,000. Some
fragments of charred bodies were recovered
but no extensive search has been made or can
be made with safety among the ruins in the
present dangerous cundition.
AS far as ascertained thirty-one persons were
burned to death in the last nights fire
eight men and twenty-three women.