The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-12-24
A HEARTRENDING ACCIDENT,
While Doing, Her Garments
lgnited From a Paper.
BRAvELY BATTLED WITH FLAME
She Was the Widow of the Late
Professor John lie Conte of
World Wide Fame.

heartrending accident occurred yes
terday in Berkeley at the residence of
Louis Julian LIE Conte on Dwightway and
Mark street. by which his aged mother.
Eleana Josephine LIE Conte, the widow of
the late Professor John LIE Conte, lost her
life.
Mrs. LIE Conte. who was 20 years of age,
was sitting in her room on the second floor
OF the house before an open CRATE fire, at
about l O'Clock P. NJ. reading the paper.
Becoming weary of reading she doZed off
to sleep and the paper slipped from her
knees to the fire where it quickly ignited
aud when the poor woman aroused herself
she was mass of flames.
The blaze fared up into her face and
lgnlted all the upper part of her clothing
She could make no outcry because she had
inhaled the fire and she jumped up hur-
riedly and rushed to the wasbstand and
tried by drenching her clothes to extinguisn
the blaze.
Finding this of no avail she hurried into
the room Of the children. across the hall.
still choked by the flames and unable 10
call for help. and getting into bed as
quickly as possibly she pulled the bedding
up about her in her efforts to put out the
lire. which by this time had caught to all
the front part of her clothing.
She was found covered up in the bed a
moment afterward. grooming In anguish.
There was no one on The same floor with
her when the accident first happened. but
her son had left her only fifteen minutes
before.
Almost the same time the accident oc-
Cured her little granddaughter, Tallulah,
had occasion to go upstairs, and looking in
grandmother's room, she saw that the
towels and infiamable stuff about the wash
stand was in flames. She did not see her
grandmother anywhere, but shouted down
to her father that the house was Oh fire.
Mr.. LIE Conte rushed up the stairs and
quickly put out the fire, anu then turned to
look for his mother. He heard smothered
groans from the children's room, and going
across the hall saw that his mother was on
the bed writing with pain and trying to
put out the fire that was still smodering
about her clothes. She could make no
outcry. Her face and the upper portion of
her body were frightfully burned.
The suffering woman's pains were eased
as much as possible and DR.. Paine, the
family physician, was sent for. Ii was
nearly o'clock when he arrived, and
Mrs. LIE Conte breathed her last just as the
doctor reached her bedside.
Mrs. LIE Conte was we'll known and
highly respected. She was born in New
York, where she married Professor John
LIE Comic in 1S41. She afterward removed
to Georgia with her husband and then to
South Carolina, where she lived MANY
una nj
irving in California in 1869. Her husband
became connected with the University of
California and was well known the world
over as physicist of renown. He died 10
1891. His brother, Professor Joseph LIE
Conte, at present fills an important posi-
ton in the university.
Mrs. LIE COnte was the mother of three
children. one of whom only is now living.
This is Louis Julian LIE Conte, an engi-
neer of note, and with whom the mother
lived at Berkeley.
Deceased had been largely engaged in
charitable work until few years ago.
when she was compelled to give up active
labor on account of feebleness. Mrs, LIE
Conte was great student herself and
fond of reading over the works of her
illustri0us husband.
The funeral services will be held at her
late residence at 2 o'clock on Wednesday
next. lDterment will be in Mountain View
Cemetery, Oakland.
Coroner Evers was notified of the acci-
dent soon after IL occurred and proceeded
to the house. where an inquest was held
over the remains. The verdict was that
death was due to the inhalation of the
flames.