Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1914-09-21
Ry the Associated Press.

LONDON, Sept. 21.--The Rheims
correspondent of the Daily Mail sends
this story of the damage wrought in
the cathedral there:
THE magnificent cathedral of
Rheims, which was a national monu-
ment of universal fame, is now no
and blaclSened walls. Tt is not yet
known to what extent it's stone work
has been weakened by the flames or
whether 1t can later be restored, but
1t will never be what 1t was before.
500 shells hit Cathedral.
"The fire started between I and 5
o'clock Sunday afternoon after shells
had been crashing into the ~tUwn all
day Over 500 fell between early
morning. and sunset. A quarter OF the
city, several hundred yards square.
was set afire, the flames spreading
from street to street.
"The cathedral on Thursday had
been turned into a hospital for the
German wounded so as to secure for
the building the protection of the Red
Cross flag. When the first shell struck
the roof everyone believed it was
merely a stray shot, but later in the
day German battery on a hill four
miles away began making the great
Gothic pile its particular target.
"Shell after shell crashed it's way
into the old masonry and stone work
that had stood the storms of centu-
ries, or fell into the deserted streets
roundabout At 4:30 some scaf-
folding around on the east end Of the
Cathedral, where repairs were going
on, caught fire, and soon the whole
network of poles and planks was
ablaze. Then the roof of old oak
timbers caught fire and soon the CELL
ings of the nave and transepts were
q roaring furnace.
Fire Destroys the f-'erior.
THE blazing piers of carved wood
work crashed to the floor, where piles
of straw had been gathered in con-
nection with the work of the field
hospital AS soon as this caught fire
the panelling of the affairs, the chairs
and other furniture were devoured.
"The German wounded would have
been burned alive If the French doc
tors had not removed them at great
personal risk. There was a bad mo-
ment while these German injured
were being removed. A crowd of peo-
pie had gathered outside watching the
flames and when the Germans, some
i'm uniform, were brought from the
transept door the crowd gave q howl
OF uHcontrollable rage and earnest
voices screamed kill them Some of
the soldiers in the crowd actually
leveled their rifles to dispatch the
Germans when little priest the
Abbe Andrieux, sprang between the
Germans and the rifles.
Don't fire. he said You would
make yourselves as guilty as they
are.s
The crowd Gained somewhat and
the Germans were carried into the
f, shelter OF the museum amid boots and
threats"
A dispatch to the Express says that
the bombardment of Rheims began on
Friday from German batteries posted
six miles north of the city. The first
shots shattered the priceless old win
dows of the cathedral, which was
dying the Red Cross flag owing to the
fact that 500 wounded German prison.
ers were under care In its chancel
Of these $50 suffered further wounds
during the boubardment.
Four Hundred Citizens Killed.
Four hundred inha bitants of the
town were killed during the lombard
nnent, the dispatch says, which cor
tinued through Saturday. All of the
historic buildings in the neighbor-
hood of the cathedral have been
destroyed and much of the town is
now in flames. The population is fly
ing to the southwest.