Our Lady of the Rosary diverts the fire

“On June 13, 1914, a fire broke out at the train station in Hammond, Ontario, Canada. Because of the violence of the wind, the flames spread with great speed; already the Catholic school, the church and the presbytery, located a short distance away, as well as the main street inhabited by French Canadians, were under great threat. Water was completely lacking. So Father Roy, the parish priest, had all the children of First Communion placed in prayer in the church, and he went out in procession at the head of the village population, with a statue of Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary which he went to place in front of the destructive element. Immediately the fire changed direction and attacked, right next to the parish church and the school, the Protestant temple, the rectory of the Reverend Minister, the Orangemen’s lodge, as well as several houses belonging to Protestants or Orangemen. Alone, a French Canadian saw his house, next to the train station, fall prey to the flames.

“Now that the terror is over and we can measure the extent of the disaster that almost reduced the village of Hammond to ashes, we wonder how it could be that the wind, suddenly changing direction, spared the buildings and residences of the Catholic population? Sincere Protestants themselves admit that there is something strange about this fact, to say the least.   »

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