The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1893-02-11
FEW ESCAPED.
Further Appalling Particulars Of the
New Hampshire Horror.
A MAD WOMAN FROLICKING ABOUT
THE FIRE SHE KINDLED.

More About the Burning of the stratford
County Insane Asylum
People Were Roasted to Death-The
Keeper Tells What He Knows About
the Fire-An Investigation Ordered by
the Legislature.
| DOVER, N. A., February 10.-With re-
| gard to last nights holocaust, Wilbur
| Chesley, the Waterman, says that while
making his 10 o'clock round he discover
ed fire in a cell occupied by Mrs. Lafon-
tame, at the foot of the bed. He pulled
the woman out of the room and closed
the door. He then called Keeper Dris-
coll, who helped break the locks, and
gave the general alarm. The Lafontaine
woman and Frank Dauchenue ran out
into the yard.
The fire ran rapidly through the build
! ing, as if it were saturated with oil.
There was no way of getting the insane
people out. Chesley himself had to
/ run through sheet Of flame to get to
| the outside door. He could do nothing
to save the asylum.
/ Keeper Driscoll who lived in the
building, says he ran from his room in
| his night clothes, and did all he possibly
could to get out the inmates. His hands
were badly burned. He had to break
| through double window from the out
side to rescue his wife and children, who
only escaped in their night clothes.
Driscoll says there were 46 inmates in
the cells, and only three escaped.
The carpenters had been doing some
work at the asylum, but it is not known
that the Lafontaine woman got any OF
the shavings. She made her way by
some means to the yard. which was sur
rounded by high, close fence, and must
1 have been roasted alive.
/ Dauchenue managed to CLIMB the
fence and was saved.
Charles Demerett, superintendent OF
the farm and almshouse, says he was
awakened by the Waterman. There
were 80 paupers in the almshouse. Fol-
/ ty of them were women, in the wing
next to the asylum. He got them all in
to the other wing, and such of the men
as were able did coed work with water
in pals and saved the main brick build
ing.
Coroner Daniels of Rochester began an
inquest at o'clock today. The scene is
five miles from this city, over one OF the
worst roads ever travelled The body of
Mary Roberts Of Great Falls has been
identified. s @
In the New Hampshire legislature at
Concord this forenoon a resolution was
| adopted authorizing the state board Of
health to investigate the cause of last
nights disaster at the Stanford county
farm. with instructions to report as early
as possible.
/ The ruins of the STAFFORD county in
i sane asylum present a gruesome specta-
Gle today. People are driving in from
miles around to view the charred and
blackened ruins. The burned building
was of the ordinary wooden type and was
veritable finder box There was no
effectual fire protectionw four miles.
The insane were locked in cells and as
usual in such institutions the great MAJ
iority were chronic cases.
Mary Lafontaine, the French woman
from Great Falls, who had been afflicted
with melancholy, Became so violent re-
Gently as toAbe absolutely dangerous and
was looked uhSiA small room by herself.
She had not bRen LIT out for two days.
The keeper found this woman in the
mad enjoyment of blazing fire, increas-
ing every moment in energy and in its
scope. How it was kindled cannot be
known, for Mary Lafontaine had been
carefully searched, and was allowed
neither mat hes nor lamp.
The only means of,protection were fire
pals set in quartettes along the corri-
doris, each bucket filled to the brim with
water. There was no force pump, and
the nearest efficient fire apparatus was
four miles off by the lonely ice bound
roads.
Upwards of As persons, third Of
whom were under lock and key, were at
the mercy Of fire with which this mad
woman was SO recklessly frolieking.
Mr. Driscoll was prompt to act. The
fire." said he, seemed at first no bigger
than my hand. I dashed the contents
of the nearest four buckets OF water
upon it and then RAM for the cells to
release the other insane people"
The keeper succeeded in opening fifteen
cell doors before he was obliged to fly
for his life and escaped by jumping from
window.
The flames rushed through the corri-
: doris the length of the building, l25 feet,
and the smoke enveloped the stairs.
There was no escape except by the, win
dows and the lunatics on the second Hoo1
soon became frenzied. They laughed and
sang and shouted by turns, while some
sat stupefied and gazed with melancholy
pleasure upon the approaching names.
The building soon became furnace.
Appalling Scenes.
When the fire was discovered the hose
pipes connected with a huge tank OF 3d.
/ IL 1f 4J,r