1913, May 4: (The Funeral Firefight: The Cathedral Fusillade and the Time-Honored Preliminaries): Out of practicality in a tropical climate, the dead are bur…

1913, May 4: (The Funeral Firefight: The Cathedral Fusillade and the Time-Honored Preliminaries): Out of practicality in a tropical climate, the dead are buried promptly in Haiti. President Auguste’s state funeral commenced in the new cathedral at 8:00 A.M. on May 4, the morning following his death, with the diplomatic corps and all Port-au-Prince in attendance. The remains, escorted by the Musiciens Palais National playing a dirge with drums muffled in black, were placed on the catafalque, and the cabinet — surrounded by armed officers — took their places. Amid the solemn requiem, Archbishop Conan exhorted the living to respect the dead by peaceful choice of a new president, then descended in processional from the high altar to give Tancrède Auguste his viaticum for the final journey. They had reached about midway, recounted John Allen, the Banque’s American manager, when a low murmur peculiar to the people of the country took place, immediately followed by a whistle of the same character — in less time than it took to tell, the cathedral was in uproar, and simultaneously came the firing of guns from instigators who had ranged themselves on both sides of the cathedral, pouring fire into the building with few casualties, so that it was noise and apprehension rather than bullets that caused the panic. Pandemonium broke loose — no one could run for safety because there was no chance to run, every bit of ground was occupied, those near the doors would not go out for fear of being shot, and as many as could tried to get close to the Archbishop and clergy, feeling that the nearer they were to them the safer they would be, tearing away vestments and clothes in the crush. Shouting “Down with the Cabinet!” and scattering the faithful, soldiers firing all ways but mostly upward burst inside. The captain of U.S.S. Nashville took out his gold watch and noted that the time was exactly 8:30 and that a fusillade from three sides was being poured into the cathedral — fortunately the windows were high enough that bullets flying inside were well overhead. In the words of H. P. Davis, who lived in Haiti and later wrote a history of the country, it was evident that the time-honored preliminaries of a new election were underway.