, 1890-05-08
A HOLOCAUST.
Burning of a Quebec
Lunatic Asylum.
OVER FIFTY PERISH.
The Maniacal Glee OF the
Doomed Inmates,
USELESS EFFORTS AT RESCUE
The Female Patients Chung To-
gether and Gould Not Be
Driven Out.
USELESS EFFORTS AT RESCUE

LosCrE PoisT, Que, May GA Ions
line of gaunt towers are all that one nov
sees OF the Tongue Point lunatic asylum,
located ten miles from Montreal, which,
with many lives, was to-day consumed
by fire. The sights witnessed are such
as can never be forgotten. Nothing
could exceed the horror Of the attending
calamity, considering the number OF the
victims, the horrible nature Of their
death, and manner In which
the helpless victims received their
| fate. What to the spectators
was scene of horror was to the lunatics
n moment OF uprcme glee, and in their
delight they disported themselves In the
| ilames and waved their limbs In salts
/ faction at the ruin that was about them.
and not until tho walls tunibled over
their heads were their maniacal screams $
silenced. There wero inoarccratcd In
Tongue Point 1900 luna,ies, for that
asylum was prison more than hos
pital, and now not more than |, 100 are
accounted for, hut many escaped into the
fields and woods, and tIo dead are ashes
among ashes. The number OF dead is
purely q matter OF conjecture, aud can
never be aseertained. since no other rec -
ord was kept than that in the asylum
books, and they were destroyed.
Taking into consideration the whole
of the evidence from the flrcmen, half OF
the sane inmates and the sisters in
charge IL is conservative estimate to
say that 100 victims met their death,
although some assert that the number Is
double that, and others place 1t below
this figure.
However, the fact remains that no
such calamity has fallen upon the
Province of Quebec since the earliest
times. Ever since Quebec was n
province its management OF thUso most
helpless of all creatures has been its
shame They have been bound out to
nuns at 500 head per year, and the
nuns naturally keep them as ftugally us
possible.
From the construction Of the building
there Is q doubt in some minds as TO
whether 1t was intended for an asylum or
blast furnace. In any case, II serted
the latter purpose admirably. II was
constructed of brick aud was 60 feet
long. running back from the river half
that distance. The main building oc.
cupied the center, and on each side OK
tended four wings six stories high.
int lb~uNO WIS Nkualffl III ~ cup
board IN the second ward, on the WON.
ans side in the upper story, by n care
less patient, and. us the ventilation was
carried ON BY q longitudinal shaft COu-
nected with the towers the flames snon
appeared blazing UP through the
roof in the center OF each tower. A telc.
gram was sent to Montreal for aid, and
engines were started out at once. They
might as we'll have remained at home,
for In five minutes they exhausted the
water supply. The only thing that
could be used 70 save the building was
the St. Lawrence river, and II was half
mile distant
When tho Associated Press reporter
arrived with the iircmen, part oil one
tower had just fallen, and flames were
bursting out everywhere As the heat
increased, the statues fell from their
inches 10 the ground, and then the In.
hnbitants prostTatcd themselves, crying
aloud that tine saints had deserted
them indeed. Beds, furniture and
utensils Of every description were being
showcred from tie windows, and
stream Of iilclad men poured out Of the
the eastern wing. Not "A male patient
WAS lost. Among the women IL was
different Tho less hopeless cases were
placed IN the lower wards. and they
were removed without difficulty, but
from the upper wards where the
violent patients were secured, there
came the widest screams, ns they re-.
sisted the nuns who were beseoching
them to make their escape.
At window maninc would be seen
peering through the bars. grinning and
jabbering at the bright flames that went
up to the sky. AS the heat beca mo
more intense she would grasp tho bars
and remain there until the flames en-
Yeloped her. The inhabitants had come
from nll rlg n rnnml frurtnh lU "A
blaze. ana in half an hour the little vii
lage was surginE with shouting, vooiicr-
a,ing people.
THR INMATES RESIST RESCUE.
When the hromen found that they
were powerless TO save the building, they
turned their attention 10 the inmates
and burst in the doors with aNes. |
Engine Chief Beivert says 1t was suca
sight as no fireman ever before wit
messed. In one ward he entered there |
were twenty-five patients, and at his |
approach they huddled together like a |
pack of beasts, entwining their arms
into ono mass of humanity. lie seized |
the nearest, but" said the chief N |
could no moro separate the crowd than |
could the parts of your horse" lie |
tugged at them until the lire darted |
into their garments and enfolded them |
like shroud OF hame, and then he es-
Nhptu hiAh
MARROW ESCAPE.
In another ward three frcmen were
nearly trapped 10 death. They entered, |
and tho door, which had spring lock, |
closed behind them. As is customary,
there was no handle ON tho inside. Tie |
door resisted their axes and they rushed
to the windows, but were driven back |
by tho flames. The chief. suspecting |
their peril. sent aid TO the other side and |
the mon were carried down on |
ladders. The engineer of the building |
did good work, saving nine patients.
Every fireman made record oil which |
he feels proud.
your SISTERS LOSE THEIR LIVES.
On the first alarm the engineer turned
on the hose, but IL was utterly useless,
as the fire lcaped along tho ventilatlng
shaft to the towers and burned In a
dozen places at once. Ono Of the nuns
Sister Marie. lny sick In the iniirmary
on the NTH hoor. and 10 hor rescue came
three others. They seized their com.
panion and borl ncr In blanket to the
but they were met by a iheet
OF flame, and all perished. None of
them were over 20 years of
age. The sisters worked with tho pcr-
sistence OF hcfoines. by turns implorine
and commanding the pa.
tients, and finally saving very large
number In view Of the inadequate facil-
tiles ut hand.
BrrLpisGs PLACE. At ruEIR DISPOSAL.
Premier Morcicr i.ss placed the
Montreal exhibition building at the dis.
posal OF the nuns. and tomorrow the
building will be stocked with provisions,
No rIan rIonriso rAoIurrrs.