The Middlebury register and Addison County journal. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1883-1885, 1884-01-11
A TERRIBLE FIRE.
Destruction Of a Convent in Belle
vile, I.lino.s.
Many Nuns and Pupils Burned to
Death.

At II O'Clock at night fire was discovered
in the Convent of the Imnacu ate Concep-
ton at Belleville, Ill, the capital of st.
Clair county, fourteen miles from St. Louis
The alarm was first given by the waite lman
at Harrison's ma .hne works, and Mr.
James Stout, of the City foun-
dry, was about the first man
attracted to the s-ene When he reached
] the llace the windows of the third floor pre-
santed a horrlbla spectacle. There, in their
nght-clothes suddenly aroused from their
sIunbers, stoo in despair large number of
errifie inmates. There was no chance of
rescue, and the only alternative was
the Dire .dful leap Soon afterwarl vol
umes of smoke were seen to spread through
Out the building, followed b, ioud explos-
| ions. and then n few took the de>lerate
chances of hurting themselves through the
windows. Mary Campbell was the first to
try the leap, but when h r body was lifted
up from the lev Pavement she was in a diving
condition, having sustain ed Horrible in 'ures
By TINS time the alarm had spre III through
The city, and hundreds of men uppeare and
cunsu ted as to what was the best jurse of
action. The lire engine had not yet arrived
and the flames were spreading RAPIDLY. and
at nany of the windows were 70 be seen
figures of women al in their night gar
nent', some of them leaning out and Scre1u-
ing for assistance, others trying fraut cally
to open the sashes, which seemed to he
beyond their power. Hundreds of men were
ready to rush into the place to rescue
he inmates, but the doors were all locked
and so solidly constr ucted that all ordi-
nary attempts to break them in were
futile. At last James Stout procured a
ponderous bar with which, a dozen men
using it aS a battering-ram, an entrance
was effected. a rush was made up
stairs, and many of the inmates were
led through the binding smoke to the
grc und in safety. But to the horror of the
r,scuerS it was discovered that in accord
ance with ule of the convent the bedrooms
hal all been locked, and a nunb Der of them
still remained so. The batterrg ram was
brought to bear upon those doors also but
they, too, proved of stout and unfolding ma
terial, and the gal ant band were OBLIGED to
abandon a Lar &c number of tie unfortunate
inmates TO their fate
Among those who found themselves locked
up in the burning building was young girl
ramed a>y kberle who finally managed to
crawl through the windows of the third floor
aid find IL IerilOus position on the cornice
over the main doorway. she there remained
a long time shli, king for su cor At last
the c MINED fame and smoke Hurst
Gromthe windows around her and She
was hurled to the ground below, but her
fal was broken b. two men who stood
with outs retched arms to re Give her.
She wa, not seriously hurt. Her escape
was most IN raculous. By this time the fire
de- a! tment nal reached the scene, bat it
was Immediately discovered that while their
engines were able TO send water to the top Of
tie building, four-story brick structure,
consisting of main building and two long
wings, they had no adder which would reach
to the top story. A number OF women on
the top floor were seen rushing to and from
the windows . sticulating wildly and stretch
ing foI tn their arms in mute JpealS for help
! The broke the windows with their hands
ali erie Or assistance.
The convent was very fashionable edu-
, catiOnal institution, young ladies from va
rous parts in Southern Illinois, st. Louis,
and foreign countre, being among its stu
dents. A III st al the unfortunates at the
WIND lws were young ladies and here and there
roicaily striving to keep the panic-strick-
en- from aashing themselves upon the
; frozen ground below. The lady superior
was seen to move alternately between
three rooms on the third toor at the Win
d ,ws of which seven Young lies were
stan ling. The fire was RAPIDLY a proa h.
ing them but she could be seen passing from
group to group AM eXhorting them to re-
main where they were Suddenly flame
, shot into one of the rooms, and two young
, ladies oc ,up,ins it were seen to fall back
from the window. AT the same moment
, Sister jerome uarte from the next window,
followed b; the occupants OF the room, three
i'll numb. +. As they dill so a crash was
heard, and that room also became filed with
flames, and the floor collapsed Immediately
Il terward.
Shortly after these horrible occurrences
Emil j. Kohl and two others appeared upon
the scene with a long ladder, which, atter
) me hard work, was placed AGAINST Inc front
OF the building. 1t reached to the second
noor and two men ascended 1t. BY means OF
n smallar Ia lder watch they held IN position
the third floor was reached and number OF
,, the sisters and boarIers Were res
c.el Sister Moderate about this time
was found lying uron TN the ,, SrI99unc
. dead About this time, on the south side OF
the main building, two ladies' not known &c
the re-cuers, We're sa, ell from the top or q
l Yeranda, even with the second noor lhey
: mad leaped from the story above, ana IL
their fall OF the roof We're stunned, and wher
discovered were nearly frozen. a short
ladder was found, but it would not rea h
them. At this juncture the men
D took the lad .er, and, resting II
on the proc ton OF the tbo porch Sadia,
: were res gued. The flames we're then rapidly
l Spreading through the entire building, ano
: in spite OF the efforts of the ii emen the in
; terror Of the building was soon consumed
Nothing was left Tor the hremeh To Go eNcep
D To save the walls. The wall on the west sid
o wa, howey er doomed, and 1t soon fell carrying
l down with 1t b.a ing timbels and fragment
~ and burying with its debris the bodies
. many Young la lies. On the fourth floor pu
o pll DO riders with three of the sisters slept
; On tie third floor the remaining sisters slept
and ON the second, or the floor above tn
b basement, what are termed orphans an
V '.Lalf-OrphanS slept On this segonl moo
:, the inmates escap and were saved, III
sister SUI erior, three or four other sisters
and about twenty five pupils, ranging nor
q eight years TO adult age, los1 their lives