The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-09-27
THE HOUSE OF DEATH.
o.APHro PEN-PICrURE OF THE
PARIS MORGUE.

AMERICAN Lazy = O--OON ~
with the Grim Specter-
IRON, the Washington Pos.
IT,. following powerfully graphic descrip-
- the celebrated Paris morgue and
-, therein was written in July last by
80 lillian Lewis, during her sojourn in
D. and is now published for the first
- MISS Lewis is known as an accom-
- Iitsrate,tT as well as a clever actress:
In a little one-story stone building, just
,.,hi,d the church of Notre Dame. are ex-
.9-,5 the unknown dead Of Paris who have
-, 6sne1 out of the nearby Seine, or
-, foully dealt with, or been killed by
- If the thousand accidents happening in
,.roat city. The building is. perhaps, so
e., long and 25 feet high. 1t used to be a
-, of some old military barracks,
- has been used for the city morgue
.,-ortv-6ve wears. In the front OF tho
t,,ilJi1g three doors open onto busy
49, On entering the building you are
aooofr'nted by a wooden screen II feet high
aod n feet long. This screen serves TO
len The rays of the sun from shining
Siractly on the dead figures, and is also
useful at the time OF a SENSATIONAL "hnd In
1,aninp the crowd moving in a procession
t~om left to right or right to loft, as the
o,sa NAV be, between it 1.-THE SCREEN AMI the
Ssavv railing which protects the glass par
,;,io5 in front of the dead bodies.
This nartition reaches from floor to cell
;r- and from end to end of the room, and is
lie a double window of ordinary thin win
5oIv glass. The inclosed dead room is kept
cool during ordinary warm weather by
means of iron pipes filled with circulating
LII water. When the weather gets hot ice
!, amnloved to keep the temperature down
much the same as in American morgues. A
Tigantic Thermometer, suspended in the
middle of the room, faithfully regist RS the
isrrees of heat and cold.
THE BODIES OF THE DEAD
ara on long iron slabs or cots. These are
sIeced in a row back of the glass partition.
niece of sheet iron at the foot of the iron
AZ nreveuts the feet of the cadaver from
.mcbiuC the glass. The slab or cot is very
much inclined, and with the extra aid of an
inn headrest, brings the head at least a foot
higher than the feet, thus enabling a good
tl-]ength view of the body.
Until three years ago all persons brought
totbe morgue were exposed quite nude to
the waist. Since then the practice has been
discontinued Now the body is stripped of
ell the clothing, when brought to the
mOrgue, for examination by the physicians
and police then placed, entirely naked, on
the IRON slab and the clothing put on TOP
OF the corpse thus-the shirt is folded
and spread over the chest, body and
arms. the pantaloons folded and
placed upon the legs, then the vest and
coat are spread in the proper places but all
on TOP of the body; the feet are always bare,
with the shoes and stockings beside them:
|. the handkerchief, necktie, garters, suspend
els cane, whip, umbrella or any article of
dress is displayed to good advantage. with
the purpose of furnishing some clew that
NAV lead to identification. The hat or cap,
be 1t silk, felt or straw. is put on the head;
if a woman, the bonnet or hat or shawl is
put on her head.
This practice is no doubt a good one in
assisting Identification, but it is awful when
employed as in a recent case / saw at the
Paris morgue. Picture to yourself man
a years OF age. middle hight, blue-eyed,
sparSe-haired, a SMALL neatly-trimmed
gray mustache, and well dressed. That is,
the clothes which were spread on his re-
mains we're Of good material; the shirt
sleeves and cuffs which lay beside his arms
we're of fine linen and well laundried; on
his head was a new white straw hat WITH a
blue ribbon band. This body had been at
The morgue two weeks already on my first
visit The hands and finger nails and some
visible portions of the body we're black and
green, indicating an
ADVANCED STATE OF PUTREFACTIoN.
The head had shrunk till the bat was many
mes too large. The blue eyes were wide
open and CHASTITY. One protruded till it
rested almost on the cheek-bone; the other
hai sunk far back into the head both eyes
were surrounded by thick rim of sticky
WHITE stuff That had oozed from the head
and settled round them. l visited the
lnorgue three weeks later. That thing
which had haayN he hob
soul was still there-blacker, ghastlier than
DeIore-the face and the clinched, claw-like
handS were scarcely distinguishabie from
Vhe dark coat near them. | shall never see
"1lte straw hat with a blue band in all
my HE without recalling that awful sight
WIN no name, just number, 3S3.
gn SAB further on lay man IS years
Gu, SIX feet tall, face all black and blue.
r usa'u oy browning, no shat. no clothes,
t f- OF coarse hemp bagging covering him
from ankle to chin. This was No 446
Ne1t was All, handsome young man
wuea hving, evidently; tall, mouth smiling,
Eye ciCSed; the whole face with an indie
ScilO9oe LOOK OF perfect peace black SLOUGH
ua', ordinary clothes, white handled
O uui1ieila lad across the body, handker-
oogl Win monogram "H. II. D." in
c coIae II prominently displayed This was
500 &c y. SUICIDE. On the next slab was a
-"AJ -AiAo AOOhlUS woman, aD-
palsauy ~ years of age. "Run over by an
S Sai the daily papers said. Her dark
sI H. was OILY little streaked with white.
ra olacS clotn gown and cape covered the
". UulluS made by careless drivers negli
$3.50 somebody's mother" to be there
san, 'e el for days. The least number I
M ,s az Sne morgue on any visit was three;
VIZ greatest seven.
TIE BLOOD AND DIRT
"aSned from the bodies in order that
b .oU US ana relatives may know them. but
~, sui and dust are left on the clothes.
em,i ns one OF my visits two of the morgue
net ny u rolled in a slab which they had
h Nv osled I'm little side room and put it
bon aNo row ready for the next occupant.
or Vn ' wheeled No. 446 IA workman of
cosrsa -'- ~. from his blue blouse and cap and
thew tn, ulrty, white trouse-s,) out. When
1iyor .u t the slab round it made me
"a NJ. " see the white, glistening dead flesh
siia v; .ne coid, dripping iron. AS caught
nth b .t1w OF the dead man, his bare elbow.
ld nIa GAen Done sticking tarough the skin.
asn p adtl why he was here. He had lust
~ claimed by friends.
krngs Ire are the sights that the Paris mother
Eboyes t Io' oaoy to see, holding him high
st.ip,, .I 10 neads of the people, laughing and
lnIa ob uitl and coaxing him to "lookn
b ssr Tniluren come led by older children:
W. want, On the way to the butcher or
kbmrc5aat Tue family supplies, stops with
n he paa;ts under his arm to have peep;
tot fa'r ,'S,alS and strangers come here as