The Anaconda standard., 1890-05-07

sick in the inflrmary on the fifth ioor.
and to her rescue came three Others, De-
mersc. Gilbert and Lumicne., They
seized their companion and bore her In
blanket to the stair case, but they were
met by shot OF fame and all perished.
None of them were over % years OF age.
The sisters worked with the persistence
OF heroines by turns implorinR, beseech.
ing and commanding the patients and
finally saving a very large number in
view Of the inadequate facilities at hand.
Sister Theresa, the Supcrioress, Il broken
hearted and being at present in i'll health
her name may be added To the already
long Inst OF victims. Doctors Bourgue and
Baralet were carried from the building
unconscious and whatever must he said OF
the management as whole individuals
exercised every power to lessen the cal.
amity they had neglected to avert. A loud
explosion was followed by crash of
beams. The interior was giving way.
Wild faces sank from the windows
and :hrieks .h o.. OF maniacs ,.,,S were ,1si ma
one by one the walls topplcd
inward and the fierce blaze burst up from
the newly added fuel that rose to the
dark sky and shot its glare over the 81.
Lawrence to the southern shore and even
TO the crest of Mount Royal, 10 miles dis
tant. Then il died down into blackness
and nothing but the now broken towers
remained, bounding the seething mass OF
metal under which are now not the bodies
but the ashes OF hundreds of victims. BY
this time il was O'Clock and growing
dark and very cold. Spring rains had
converted the place into quagInire ana
only horsemen could get from place
to place. The poor sisters, most of
them young and delicate, stood ankle
deep in the mud securing and supcrintend.
ing the removal Of such furniture as had
been saved. The patients wandered
about aimlessly clad in scant garments.
When released many of them leapcd for
joy and bounded like deer across the
fields to the woods. Patients of both
sexes escaped and though "A Gordon OF
police were thrown round not all were in-
cluded and n horribly suggestive tale was
borne i'm by an inhabitant who was com
| ing through the woods To the scene OF the
| disaster. A new dread has come upon
the inhabitants from the presence OF so
many ESCAPED lunatics and will count
| themselves fortunate IL they are not
visited by series of such crimes as only
madmen can devise.
All the time the fire was burning every
| high ho,isetop i'm Montreal had its curious
sight. The long road was thronged with
| carriages. The transport service OF Mon
| trcal was pressed into service and every
available cab, omnibus and hack went
out filled with people.
Premier Mercicr has placed the Mon
/
| the nuns and tomorrow the buildings
will he stocked with provisions. The
strangest wonder To the flremen is that
such an absence of fire fighting facilities
could exist. Although the appliances
were there they were utterly useless. HE
institution had excellent engines, two
good pumps and new boilers. but no con.
nections existed between the pumps and
| the boilers.
| The Sisters of Providence spent in
founding and organizing this institution
| 81, LIE, ,232. of which 100000 was spent on
| the buildings. The buildings were in
| sured by the government for $4,000 will
the exception of the medical department
consisting of the doctors and sisters
| apartments, who retained complete con
troll of all the departments of the asylum
| Later-At midnight the death roll is es
timated at fifty although many more ar,
missing, but are expected To turn up. i
is feared that seven Tertiary nuns were
burned as three more are missing besides
those named above. They were not, how
ever, seen i'm the flames and the sister
prefer not giving out their names at pres
| pnt.