Waterbury evening Democrat., 1905-03-23
BURYING
 THE DEAD.
BrocktonT nTurnsfrom
 Foil to Grief.
Sixty Factories Closed Their Doors To-Day While Flu. nerals of Explosion Vic, tins Were Being Buried.

I
 tins Were Being Buried. | Brockton, Mass, March 23.-The busy shoe manufacturing city of BrOckton turned to-day from toll to grief, for this was the time appointed for the public funeral services of more | than two score of. its active workers | who lost their lives on Monday in the explosion and fire which created the greatest calamity in the history of the city and one of the greatest New Eng l land has ever known. Twenty thou sand of Brockton's inhabitants work l in the great shoe factories of the city and twenty thousand joined to-day in | the public manifestation of sorrow. Sixty factories closed their doors. Business so far as possible was sus- pended. Street cars did not run dur ing the funeral services and traffic on the streets was almost entirely stop ped. Everywhere flags at halfmast and buildings draped with long black streames attested to the presence of great universal bereavement March ing bodies of silent men, accompanied by bands and drum corps playing dirges for the dead. evidenced the gen: eral sympathy with those left behind by the men and women who went to work Monday morning and never re- turned to their homes.
 During the forenoon the bodies of the tifty-five victims recovered from the factory ruins were placed in cas-
 
 were arranged for the afternoon, one at the City theater another at the Porter Congregational church. the third at St Paul's Episcopal church. Manifestations of bereavement were not confined to BrOckton. for the towns about. many of whose residents worked in the Grover factory, and some of whom met death there join ed in the general expression of sorrow and sent to BrOckton many of their people to participate in the service of the day. Only 15 of the B bodies re- | covered from the fire ruins have been identified. Forty of them were un- named. so mutilated were they from the action of the fire. Thus the fam lilies and friends of two score of per sons mourned, unknowing as to which were the bodies of their missing ones. F Chief among the buildings draped in black were the City hall, the Centra. police station, the several fire depart. ment houses. the headquarters of the Knights of Pythias. the home of the Odd Fellows, while the meeting places of the many labor unions. whose ranks had suffered from the fire. ana the factories of the city. all bore evi. dence of mourning. The store windows in the principal streets were either draped in black or the shades were drawn to signify the suspension of al, business.
 During the forenoon at St Patrick. Roman Catholic church q solemn high mass of requiem for the repOse of the souls of four practitioners. who. it is believed, certainly perished in the fire, though none were among the identified dead. was celebrated by Rev James ]. Kelley. the pastor.
 Seville council, Knights of Columbus. attended the service in body. while delegations from many of the labo. unions were present. the International
 
 represented by its president. John r.. TObin of Boston.
 Impressive and Saddening in the cX- treme was the service. In the center aisle near the altar rail. resting on d black draped bier. was placed a coffin, empty. the only visible evidence of the loss sustained by the four families who occupied the nearby pews. Those for whom the mass was sung was Nellie Leary. May Leonard. Timothy Des- mOnd and Thomas Sangley.
 Other special services were those fot former Councilman Ernest C. Carlson, one of the identified victims. and also for Miss Mamie O'Connell and Miss Serena Shaw Barrows.
 NIT Carlson was prominent in tho city'S affairs. He was buried from the South Street Methodist church. The service was attended by many of the city's best known residents The pall. hearers were chosen from the Knights of Pythias. the Campello Veteran Fire. mems association and the Campello lodge of the Ancient Order of United WOrkmen. At the church the ritua, of the Knights of Pytbias was read.
 The great. blacked. level area upon which had stood the Grover factory building was deserted today. for all work upon the ruins had been slIspend- el. To strangers the site of the fac tory was easily discernible. for tall chimney. which alone had withstooi the flames. rose from the center ~ the ruins. The half wrecked dwelling houses which the exploded boiler had pierced. and the remains of the other buildings. almost wholly destroyed by the fire. bounding the btIrne-l space. made significantly harmonious frame for the desolate scene.
 While final preparations for the pub lie funeral services were under way Mayor Edward H. Keith announced that the relief fund for the fire suf- ferers had reached S1:;.1O4. q contriblI- tion of S2:'0 having been received from the employees of the e. F. Keuth Co shoe plant.
 In contrast with the dull and rainy weather conditions of the day of the explosion and of the following days of snow and sleet. today was fair and clouileSs-