The Middlebury register and Addison County journal. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1883-1885, 1883-06-22
A HORRIFYINH CALAMITY.
Nearly 200 Children Crushed TO Death or
Snflocated During n Panic.

n PuniC.
dreadful calamity, involving the de lth
of1SS children, las occurr, in the town of
Sunderland, county of d Iri am, England.
1t seems that an entertainment had been
given in Victoria hall by conjuror, which
was attended almost altogether by children,
to the number of se,e al thousand. Tie
accide occurred at the close CT the re;-
Torrance. Aft, r the body of the hall had
been entirely cleared of its occupants some
Twelve hundred of the little onos came
rushing downstairs from the gallery. AT the
top of the first flight of stairs there was
door which opened only twenty inches, and
one child only was permitted to pass through
at tine. AT this point, while the mass of
children we're pushing forward, some of
them fell and we're unable to rise, owing to
the others crowding on. The result was that
great number were pushed down, trampled
on, and either suffocated or crushed to death.
The scene was terrible and no effort
could stop the mad rush of the alright
ed children. They came on pell nell,
though strangely without much shouting,
and soon iSS of them we're knocked down and
killed by others trampling upon them. The
greater number of the bodies, which we're
badly mangled from the trampling, laid
seven or eight deep. Many of the victims
and Others who were not killed had their
clothing torn. from their bodies in the
struggle. The ages of the 1873 children known
to have been killed ranged from four to
fourteen years.
When the disaster happened the jantor
and his wife and several hastily summoned
bystanders went to work imm ediately to
give the sufferers relief. Those who went
to the rescue of the unfortunate sufferers
found the work of removing tie heap of
bruised, crushed and sufocated bodies no
easy task Two hundred children were res
cued from the pile who were practically un-
in. ured. Many others were found in an I'M
conscious condition, hut of these number
were restored and Immediately taken to
their homes.
Nearly all of those who were dead, with a
number of those whose wounds were re.
garded as fatal, were laid out in the main
hill, where the local doctors in attendance
used every effort to restore those in whom a
spark of life could be detected. Many of
those who came to assist in removing the
dead and rescuing the living were utterly
overcome by the distressing sight of so many
dead and dying little ones.
When the news of the disaster had spread
through the town great crowds of people
fastened to the scene, until at least 20, 0C0
! persons surrounded the hall. The feeling
was so intense that the authorities
| to preserve order. The work of getting
out the dead bodies of the victims was
begun Immediately. They were laid out
in the hall, and the parents of those killed
were admitted for the purpose of identifying
the bodies of their children. The most
heartrending scenes occurred while the
work of identification was in progress. The
mothers of the dead children constantly
uttered piercing shrieks, and many of them
tainted on discovering the bodies of their
| little ones.
The disaster was referred to in all the
churches in Sunderland the next day and by
many of the preachers in London, and
prayers were offered for the parents and
| friends of the victims.
The staircase from the gallery was a wind
ing one. Both the audience and the officials
who were in the hall at the time of the
disaster were unaware for some time of the
terrible tragedy that was being enacted at
the door. They we're not informed until
Graham, the hall keeper, who, strolling near
| by the scene of the calamity, was attracted
by the groans and gave the alarm.
| Mr.. Fay, who gave the entertainment, was
busy packing up his apparatus to depart
| when a man rushed up to him and info! med
him of the disaster, and imme late Tell
| down sp eechless III tit
| Some of the families whose homes were SO
suddenly darkened, lost over three children.
One man and his wife pushed their way into
the hall in which lay the dead bodies of the
victims, and without betraying any emotion
began to scan the faces of the dead. Recog-
niling the face of one of his children, IL 4
father, pointing with his finger, exclaimed
That's one I" Passing on again. he recog
nized another and then third. Staggering
in fit of agony, he cried "My God All
my family gonep' and overwhelmed with
! grief sank to the floor In some homes there
are five children dead.
Queen Victoria sent telegram to the
may or of Sunderland expressing her grief al
the occurrence. The children OF various
Sunday-schools also sent kilograms of sym.
pathy. Flags were at half-mast. One Sun
| dav-school loses thirty scholars by the
catastrophe. Many of the survivors had the
arms broken in the crush. Others are suf-
fering from broken ribs or rupture of in
teraal organs.