THE GALVESTON DISASTER.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXVIII, Issue 44, 1 November 1900, Page 19

THE GALVESTON DISASTER.

Bishop Gallagher, of Galveston, Texas (says an American exchange), has telegraphed to all the archbishops and bishops in the United States that the churches and Catholic institutions in that city were destroyed in the great hurricane, and asks for immediate aid.

The Church suffered terribly in the storm at Galveston. It is an episcopal see, with Bishop Gallagher at the head of the diocese. Dispatches state that every church with one or two exceptions is in ruins. There are five Catholic churches in Galveston — St. Mary's Cathedral, St. Joseph's (German), St. Patrick's, Sacred Heart, Jesuit. Holy Rotary (colored). All of these churches have parochial schools. In addition St. Mary's University, a Jesuit institution, is located in the city. It has a la>-ge corps of professors and 119 scholars. Other institutions are St. Angela's Convent and Academy of the rrsulin.' Sister«, St Mary's Infirmary, SacreJ Heart Convent, Motherhou-o and Novitiate of: the Dominican Sisters, St. Mary'a Orphan Asylum. <t. Jospph's Academy of the Sisters of Providence. The report from St. Mary s Infirmary shows that only eight person^ e-caued from that hosptttl Tho number of patients and Sisters could not be asoert mitd, but ordinarily the number of inmates w:n seldom under 100. The Catholic Directory gives 150 patients and 10 Sifters.

No repor. has been received from the St. Mary's Orphan Asylum down the isl md, but it seems impossible that it could have wnh-tood the hurricane. If it fell all the inmates were no doubt l'i-t, tor tlu re was no a>d within a unle.

Lat-r advi. es state that St. Mary's Orphan Asylum was totally demolished. Nintty-two childoren and 1 1 nuns were killed there. It is rumored that one Sister escaped, but if she did no truce can be found ot her.