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From 'Our Dumb Animals'. February, 1918.
The Appalling Disaster at Halifax
Massachusetts S.P.C.A. Sends Aid for Animals in Stricken City
When the appeal for help was sounded from stricken Halifax after the frightful explosion which left so large a part of that city as scarred and devastated as any European battlefield, Massachusetts' response was instant. Train loads of first aid, in selected personnel
KILLED IN HARNESS
and materials were quickly started towards the ill-fated city to succor the human victims of that awful disaster.
From Mr. R. H. Murray, secretary of the Nova Scotia S. P. C., also came the call to the Massachusetts S. P. C. A. for help in relieving the suffering among animals. There was no hesitation, no delay. $1000 was advanced at once by the Executive Committee of our Society,
GUARDING THE RUINS
and an appeal for contributions made in the leading papers of the state. Up to this writing more than $1500 has been received. Officers Theodore W. Pearson and Ambrose F. Nowlin took the first available train for Halifax. Upon arrival they were taken at once to those sections of sorest need where, in the midst of conditions that made stout hearts quail, they realized the magnitude of that death-dealing blast and the terrible toll it had taken.
In cooperation with Mr. Murray and Mr. P. J. McAuliffe, his zealous assistant, our officers secured a team from the Relief Committee and proceeded among the ruins throughout the devastated district. Equipped also with the means for humanely destroying such animals as had been wounded so badly as to render recovery hopeless, they dispatched scores of the suffering victims of which life had
HUNGRY AND SHELTERLESS
strangely refused to let go. Here and there they searched among the wrecks of buildings, releasing dogs, cats, pigs and poultry; putting an end to the misery of some, transporting others to shelters were feed and warmth could be readily provided.
We would spare our readers many of the harrowing details of the experiences of our officers in their work of mercy. A few instances will suffice to tell the tragic tale of that prosperous community laid waste in a few brief moments, with more than a thousand lives snuffed out and as many more maimed, mangled, and mutilated but yet living. A horse was found into whose neck a piece of armor plate, presumably a fragment of the munitions ship, had been driven by the force of the explosion. Though deeply imbedded, it was removed and the animal put in a fair way to recovery. This piece of metal weighed nearly two pounds and was brought to our offices. A collie dog was found several days after the explosion, amidst the wreck and ruin of his home, guarding a flock of fowl even aginst the stranger who was bent upon relieving their pitiable distress. In not a few instances the humane agents went upon premises where owners or occupants had abandoned the buildings after hurriedly boarding up doors and windows, leaving domestic animals imprisoned therein, to suffer starvation in zero weather, to cry now pitiously, now weakly, for that aid that was all too slow in coming. The area of ruin extended for many miles into the countryside. Appeals for grain and hay came from far as well as near. Livestock that had escaped destruction were without fodder and shelter during several days of frigid temperature. Our officers labored night and day to meet these urgent cases, carrying relief sometimes as far as ten miles from the city. A kind and generous humane friend of the Halifax S. P. C. gave over the use of her stable as a temporary shelter for those animals salvaged from the devastated area.
As our officers were about to depart after their eight days of assistance to the local authorities, they were presented with commemorative medals at a meeting of prominent citizens of Nova Scotia, including Lieut. Gov. Grant, Hon. Geo. E. Faulkner, Mayor Colwell of Halifax, Pres. Symmes and Sec. Murray of the S. P. C., and many others. Colonel Hamilton, representing the Governor-General of Canada,
FEEDING A SURVIVOR
expressed in eloquent words the appreciation of Canada for the aid sent from Massachusetts.
In letetrs testimonial received from Mr. Murray, whose efficiency in organizing the work of rescue deserves the widest recognition, he says: "I do not know what we would have done without the aid of the Massachusetts S. P. C. A. I cannot tell you how overwhelmingly grateful we are for the great generosity of your society in sending us the two officers, Messrs. Nowlin and Pearson, and also for the advancing of a thousand dollars for immediate necessities.
"We feel ourselves more and more bound to the American nation at this crisis in the world's history, and the relief which has come from Boston and other cities has been a great godsend to our stricken people."