Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-01-07
FATAL FIRE INAC0NVENT
TWENTY-SEVEN LIVES ALREA-
DY KNOWN TO BE LOST.

Twenty two of the Victims Pupils and
the Other Five Sisters-The Sister
Superior Among the Number - The
Sickening Search Among the Ruins
Still Progressing.
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, Jan. Ga spe-
cial from Belleville, H., says: ''The
st. Joseph's Roman Catholic Convent
here was burned to the ground at an
early hour this morning. Five nuns
jumped from the fifth story window. One
of them was killed and the others are
likely to die"
ST. LOUIS, Jan. 6, s P. Mn the con-
vent at Belleville, ILL.,, which was de-
stroyed by fire last night, there were go
pupils, all girls, from 10 years to adult
age, several teachers and a number of
other inmates. The fire is said to have
started in the rear of the third story,
which was used as a dOrmitOry. An at
tempt was made by the Sisters to extin-
guish the flames, but this failing, efforts
were made to save the pupils. The
fire spread so rapidly that order could
not be preserved and panic seized both
the children and the Sisters, all making a
wild, confused rush to escape. Forty or
more pupils are known to have got out or
were taken from the building and given
shelter in neighbOring houses, but several
in their fright jumped from windows and
We're either killed or badly injured. Miss
Mary Campbell, of East st. Louis. a
teacher, leaped from the third story and
died III a few minutes. Another, whose
name has not been aScertained, climbed
to the roof Of the DOrticO and either
fell down or was blown off, sustaining
fatal injuries. Among the others injured
by jumping are Daisy Eberman, who re-
sides four miles from BelleYille; Agnes
Schneider and Lou Motto, Of East St.
Louis; Fanny r. Enker, of Washington.
Mo-; Sister Reparata, Sister Stylita and
Sister ManUssa. Sister Jerome, the Lady
Superior, and 10 to 20 of the smaller pu-
pills were missing at a late hour last
night, and it was feared that some of
them had perished in the building.
Searching parties are actively at work
to-day. the scene at the fire was one
of the widest excitement and terror.
The streets in the vicinity were
thrOnged with people anxious to be of
service, but, OwingttO the rapid spread of
the flames, they were helpless, while ter
ror-stricken parents rushed franticallv
around searching for their missing chill
dren and wailing over their loss. The
fire department was of little avail against
the mad rush of the surging flames and
in one hour the entire building was a
mass Of ruins.
TWENTY-sEVEN LIVES LOST.
ST. LOUIS, Jan. 6, 10 p. M.-The follow
ing dispatcn from Belleville to the Asso-
ciated Press gives further particulars of
the burning of the convent there last
night: 'The convent was known as the
Institute Of the Immaculate Conception,
and was conducted by the Sisters of
NOtre Dame. The fire was the most des-
tructive to life and property that BelleYilIe
has ever experienced. A visit to the scene
this morning showed the fire department
still on duty endeavOring to quench the
flames so as to preserve in recognizable
shape the bodies of the victims. When
the ruins sufficiently cooled a volunteer
corps went to work to bring out the
bodies. 1t was terrible sight. At times
the searchers would find two or three char
red masses huddled close together as if the
victims had sought protection from one
another from the advancing flames. Two
bodies were found in the rear part of the
building burned into an unrecOgnizabIe
mass, but the majority were found beneath
where the dOrmitOry was situated. They
seemed to have sought shelter in this
room too late to recognize that it was
impossible to escape from it. The flames
beneath eating away the supports let
down the floor into the seething vortex
of fire and smoke. The loss OF life
is much greater than was estimated last
night. Instead Of two, as at first sup
posed, the tOtalsknOwn deaths are twenty
seven-twnnty-tw pupils and five Sisters.
Among the latter is the Sister Superior.
Ga the fourth floor the pupil boarders.
with three Sisters, slept; on the third floor
the remaining Sisters slept; and on the
second, or floor above the basement, what
are termed orphans and halt-orphans
slept. The inmates on the second floor
were saved"
ORIGIN OF THE FIRE.
ST. LOUIS, Jan. 6, 1880 p. M.-The fire
was caused by the furnace in the base
ment, and when discovered the floor i'm
mediately above was ablaZe and volumes
of smoke were rapidly pouring through
the stairWays, corridors and halls of the
building. BY the time the sleepers
were thoroughly aroused all avenues
of escape were filled with blind
ing smoke. A panic ensued, and
the scene that followed was heartrending
beyond description. The extreme cold
retarded the work of the firemen. and,
even if they could have reached the scene
without delay, they would have been of
little service in rescuing victims. There
were no ladders in the Fire Department
and no provisions were MADE for
such deplOrable emergency by
the managers of the institution. The un-
fortunate inmates were therefore power
less to help themselves, and those who
were witnesses to the horrible holocaust
were unable to help them. The manner
of escape of each of the surv-
vOrs could not be learned. At 4
O'Clock eleven bodies had been
recovered from the ruins. The bodies
could only be identified by portions OF
their clothing, which had escaped the
flames. All that now remains of the fa-
nous Convent of the Immaculate Concep-
tiOn is charred and broken walls. The
bodies of several victims are yet in the
debris. The building and its contents
We're valued at from $4,000 to $75, 900.
The insurance is $25,000.
CRACKER FACTORY BURNED.
CHICAGO. Jan. 6.-Kennedy & Co.'s
cracker factory, large five story brick
building on Desplaines street in this city,
and several adjoining frame houses, We're
destroyed by fire last night.
DOrscy's Suit in New Mexico Lost