Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1884-01-25
TWO TRAGEDIES.

Two most shocking events took place on
the 23rd u!t at half-past eight M. Fortune
| Jourdan, a much respected mcmberof the
French colony, was found dead in his bed
room, with poniard sticking in his chest,
and an hour or so later seventeen poor little
Jewish children were burned alive in aschool
that had caught fire through the upsettlnS
Of Il charcoal stove.
In respect 30 the first atlair-although ru-
mors of foul play:are aloat sufficient in anoth-
er country to call for a judicial investigation
there is little doubt in the minds of those
who knew anything Of the dramatie life of
VI. Jourdan that he put all end to his cxis-
tence while laboring under great mental cx-
element. Years ago he took unto himself
Il wife OF great personal attractions, but very
little stability Of character, and the manner
in which her name was handled at the tea
tables Of Pcra society gave him great pain
and caused much discussion betwcen them.
Although keeping nominally together, they
lived much apart, and N. Jourdan was
meyer so jolly as when living at his club
en- Q,.yc0U, while his wife was away travel
ling.
Recently his wife returned from one Of
her periodical trips, putting an end TO the
pleasant life her husband had been leading
during the summer, and it would seem that
several alterations of q very violent char
acter took place between them in respect to
his supposed affection for another lady. On
The 23i ult. they had another great row, which
terminated in Nine Jourdan rushing out Of
The house in which they were living. Wear
led out by eighteen years of almost constant
domestic warfare, the unfortunate man seiZ-
ed poniard and plunged it into his chest.
He fell forward over an armchair, and was
thus discovered dead las ifin the act ofprayer.
II. Jourdan has represented for the last
TWENTY-FIVE years the Neritas and other ma
rine Insurance companies, and some few
years ago received the appointment of Con-
sui General for Portugal.
The fire mentioned above was Il terrible
affair. The school occupied the first floor
Of 8 large stone building, the upper story
OF which was used as a synagogue and the
lowcras two shops. The fire originated on the
staircase of the first floor. A "maugal," as
it is supposed, was being carried up BY one
of the young girls, who must have stumbled,
and thus precipitated the burning contents
on the woodwork. Her clothes probably
caught fire, and in her terror she could give
no proper alarm. All those III the building
lost their heads, and 40 attempt was
made on the part Of the grown up people
within to save tbc lives of the poor children.
The school numbered from twen1y-eight to
thirty pupils, whose ages varied from four
wears to ten. The children ran to the stair
case, but were driven back by the flames
and sutfocatng smoke. Then Il terrible
scene took place From the windows the
children stretched forth their little arms and
screamed for the help which the byslanders
could not afford them. The staircase was
impossible. and there were no means mt
hand for mounting to the windows. The
regular fire brigade, through the absence of
proper tclcgraphic communication, was
naturally long in coming, and the native
companies possess nothing but their 'squirts'
pumps they can hardly be called.
Mattresses were brought and bundles of hay and
straw and the children were encouraged TO jump
from the windows. Four only did so, and three
of them escaped with light bruises but the fourth
was badly hurt. The cries of this child were too
much for the others. and no more OF them would
attempt the fearful jump. The smoke soon suilo-
Gated those that remained, and they were seen to
fall back from the windows and when Szechenl's
brigade arrived it too late to save any life,
although the men succeeded in locaiziug the fire.
The sceno was most heartrending. Some moth
crs were rushing about screaming frantically for
their children, while others were shouting aloud
with 10Y ut finding the supposed lost ones safe aud
sound for ut tho early hour at which the lire
broke out several of the little ones, although they
had left their homes, had not yet reached the
school The school mistress is also among the
victims She sprang from window with child
in her arms before anything had been arranged
to break the fall and was killed, together with
the child, whose life with her own, she had hoped
TO save,