Year: 1870

From the Liverpool Mercury, January %.


A larger congregation never assembled


within the walls of St. Joseph's. The ca


pacious building was filled to oVerhowing.


The floor, the galleries, and even the stair


cases and passages, were crowded with wor-


shippers. Many came who were unable to


obtain admission to the church and to pro-


vide accommodations for those who were


desirous of attending the mission service,


but " no were unable to find seats or standing


room in the church, a supplementary service


was held in the school-room--a large apart


mept underneath the chapel. The entrance


to this room was by door at the northern


end of the chapel. 1t was at this point


that the catastrophe occurred, and there


fore to understand the terrible nature of


the occurrence it will be necessary to de-


scribe somewhat minutely the mode of


egress to the chapel and school-room. The


doorway at the north end of the building


leads to both the school-room and the


chapel, is about six feet wide, and is raised


three or four steps from the pavement. On


entering the doorway there is tight


of stone steps leading to the school
room beneath, and another fight from the


same landing leads to the body OF the


chapel. Round the chapel runs o gallery,


and under the portion of the gallery at the


north end and close to the doorway was
dense body of people. The staircase lead


ing from under the gallery, and the steps


leading to the school-room beneath, were


also crowded with worshippers. About 7:45
o'clock, when the Rev. Father Raphael


was delivering his lecture, the occur


renee took place which has been attend
ed with such direful consequences. The


majority of the congregation in the


body Of the chapel had brought with


them wax candles to be blessed. at the
time the cry of fire was raised these can
dies were lighted, and the glare caused by
the illumination led to the belief that the
building was actually on fire. Those who
were in the school-room attempted to force
their way into the street. The narrow stair
case and doorway soon became blocked up
with q seething multitude, who, in their
alarm, struggled to escape from the build
ing. The cry of fire had been heard also
by the worshippers who crowded the stair
case leading to the northern chapel and
those under the northern gallery. They
were seized with panic, and imagining
that the school-room was in flames,
rushed wildly down the stairs to the land
ing. 1t was here that the two crowds-one
coming from the school-room and the other
from the chapel above-met. A terrible
scene followed. The people fought and
struggled to reach the narrow street. The
doorway, however, was soon blocked up,
and escape by this means became impossl-:
Bile. Loud cries of alarm were raised ; the
cry of q fire {" continued, and the panic in
creased. Strong men fought and strug-
gled with each other to reach the
street; the shrieks of the women and
children told of the terrible alarm that
had seized them. Some persons near the
spot attempted to compose the multitude
but still the struggle continued. Women,
and children, and old men, were knocked
down and trodden to death under-foot, or
suffocated in the terrible crush. While
this fearful scene was going on, the great
majority of the congregation were unaware
of the existence Of any cause of alarm, out
in o few moments intelligence reached the
fathers who were conducting the service
Fathers Rapael, Dominick, Alphonsus,
O'Donovan, and McGrath-of the ter
rible scene that was taking place on
the staircase. They at once pro-
ceeded to the spot, and by their almost gu
perhuman efforts got the crowd from the
staircase, and in few moments restored
order. But their help came too late. In
that few moments-from the time the cry
of fire was raised until the arrival of the
fathers-the mischief had been done, and
at least fifteen people had been sufocated
or trodden to death by the terror
stricken crowd. The alarm of fire
had reached the interior of the cha
pei. The occupants of the northern
gallery became terror-stricken, and
many of them made their way to the stair
case. Women tainted and men strug-
gled to leave the pews. The fathers here
exerted their influence with the multitude,
and by their efforts order was restored, and
a calamity which might have been even
worse than the first was averted. The
fathers assured the people that there was
no cause for alarm and the service went on.
Still there was considerable uneasiness
among the congregation, and until the end
of the services it was feared that there
would be recurrence of the alarm, and
that further fatality might ensue.