TERRIBLE SCENES AT THE BURNING OF A POORHOUSE.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5356, 28 May 1878, Page 3

TERRIBLE SCENES AT THE BURNING OF A POORHOUSE.

On the 6fch April the Henben County Poorhouse (New Vork) was burned. It was of brick, 30ft. by 40ft., twojstoreys high. Nearly all the windows were grated, and there was but one mode of egress from each storey. An insane epileptic from Hornellaville, named Ford, who was looked up iu a cell on the first floor, set fire to his bed with a match, probably obtained from a fellow-pauper. All the partitions were of pitch pine, and burned like tinder. Cries of “ Fire !” roused the other inmates only after the building was filled with a blinding smoko. An inmate, who had Ford in charge, opened Ford’s door and the flames burst out and ran along the partitions and up the stove-pipe hole into the second storey. Ford could not be seen on account of the flames. He had forced his head between the bars of the window, and was unable to pull it back, and was crying for help. The flames poured out of the winnow around his bead, and he perished. The upper storey was occupied by twenty-five women and children, the lower storey by eighteen men. Tho majority were idiotic cripples, or very aged. At. the foot of the stairs leading from the second storey eight or ten women were piled up, and a cloud of suffocating smoke rolled down. In five minutes from the time of the alarm the paupers ceased coming out, and in half an hour the roof fell in. Five bodies were taken from the ruins, found altogether. They would about fill an ordinary sized coffin. Heads, legs, and arms were entirely burned off, and in most cases but a very small portion of the bodies can be found.