The Evansville journal., 1845-04-24
THE sTANDTN COZ THE sWALLOw

I
nal, over his proper signature, gives an hmelll-
gent and connected account of the melancholy !
ce tasF0phe. comprising some particulars OF the
disaster Ihat had not before transPired We pub
| Eisb bis letter al length. Thousand will concur
IN the -opnion, expressed by him., that there
should have been some person on board the boa |
TO proc aim 10 tae passengers the precise sItua- |
lion OF things, and to have direc ted them to the
bow, where all might have been saved.
The Whole uuntoer OF bodies thus far recover
edas eleven Y
FRoN ALBANY EVENING JOURNAL.
MANSION lioUsE; ALBANY, AprI 9, 1916. |
Dear Sir There beng many Contradictory !
statements IA circulation in gard to the loss o.
the sieam-r Swaif1w, take the first oppnrIunt-
Fry OF furnishing you with relation OF the facts
/ which occurred under NY owu Observation. At /
the time fht boat struck Twas sitting near the |
BcaptaIn's Office, OIL the maIu deck. Great contu-
sioa OF course once ensued-passengeIs rush
ing one way and auuther, 10 Iaqture the cause.
ladles screaming, d1c., when Capl. Squires ca ne
/ aft, 10 where most OF the passengers We're
congregated, ana said, Ladies aud gentemen,
be quiet, al is safe"
This wosd was Immediately passed about the
boat and oar fears had become hat ailayed
when tue captain appeared IN the crowd, no d.
ing a sJngal lamp over his head an called upon
all 60 90 forward A general rush as then made
iorw ard, Ia which was lorced aiung: but when
ad got TO within reach OF In door which open
ed out OF the onward deck (uOeut 100, perhaps,
d
!, ward OF $50 back" We were tlIen tor ced back
again to ara Tie centre OF the boat, and VIZ
passed the stairway leading up rom the lower
csbiH | saw the water running rapidly att, Aoa
ing the idrnitare past the stairway, the cabin at
that pOrHJ beiHg nearly iull. 1 then dlscov cred
the LADIES' saloon ait was iilIag, aud the stern
sInkIag
At this moment cry of s'fire'' went through
the vessel, aud tue smoke, sparks and coal dust
rushed 40 IRON the FIRE places. The wafer by this
a.
rsug around my ieet. Up tiis weh had no
kTfovr edge OF the nature cause OF the calau
+ NY, had any lnfHaton been given my
hearing that we were aground, or that we were
y near to any land; but on the contrary the word
was several times passed around that we had run
= upon a rat. Beng thus lIemued in-driven-
a back by the crowd before. prevented from going
>, | u by the water and tlre. aud there being
stairway or otheT passage 10 III upper d-,k with
. III thIs spuce-I and th Ose around eudeaTor-
= cd 10 compose ourselves iOr death, which wesoe
= Heved inevitably Gnd speedily approa ching;
when the crowd IN which stood, moved again
iuiward, and w passed out oE the toward deck
ana l was carried along up a steep acetiVfy-
a (which supposed, (H being very dark,) was a
yang plank" leading mp to the vessel. or Walat-
> ever lse we had nlnto; uatl came to get
v hod OF thenet work or corda agcw hich surronn-
ded the bow;it thef-occurredst0 me that tue boat
: Was broken IN two.n l- rsees
= then saw these iorw ard of me the bow
sprit, throwing themselves over thisehu lwark,
kand upon toHeNTug theIrsexampie found my sell
n upon lhe ground. Ehis the first intItaatton
Il received that were aground. On examIna-
u uon 10y daylight lliis island which struek
proved to ue roek. c0Vered partly with grass,
about ~ by 5VIeetin size,2Rd 10 or 10 teel poye
the wafer
The boat is broken little forw ard OIL The
u wheels lie or1yarl psIrTunniug up on III island
al u eu angle OF 45 Shortly alter / tumbed over,
"a tail ol ahout ieet.l ladder was brought,
% und IN al THINK about lGo persons escaped that
: way
The Roehester and Express. which were
T. known TO lie close behind, soon. 70 in the
channel, and most OF the passengers were sap-
lpossdto nave gone on board them, by aid ol
Doats from Athens aud hudson upon euher side
OF Us After Remaining on the islaud uniil halt
I'd. past 8, finally got of the Alheus shore.
IS where renamed uaul last evening. Durpe
e yesterday ehotts were made to search the beat,
n winch resulted IA talniug oi the baggage
aud bodes2 Misses " eods of A Albany; Miss
- Briggs aud Mrs. Coffin OF Trov; Mr. Davis oI
~ Albany and a lady unknown, having the init
~ Ials OF w NJ CT on her manifestation go-
. ing, on board the John Mason last evening. | wa.
n informed uat lhe coFoner's jury had just reiur-
n ned verdict aequitttng the pilot Of char
II gng him with blame. This verdict has not been
>, satisfactory to any one o. the passengers with
OH whom esconversed.1 -
ne Indeed the question: OF Hegl gence seems to me
te lie in very small compass, Tor if ii wers Sc
D.. dark as TO prevent the pl OF from seeing. he
Il should have stepped while, on the other hand
NJ u he could see, he was bound know better
e. than TO ieave sra ght, lar chanHel-a quarter
go OF q N. le wtde-and ruDhis boat upon a " ell
known island, at aU angle with the channel 0
Se 20 or 25 degrees, and pointing almost Into the
village OF Athens II il Is sud that he had Jus
come up rom supper, The above reu,ar5 VIII ap
81 piy.to the person iett III charge, Tor on such
night as hat, it ever. none but pc rsons OF known
fsktltand prudence should be at the wheel
GFea praise Is,due to VI. p. Hinsdale, otNeW
o Y oris, who, with the aid OF a smal buard. sup
NJ Epofted Miss Plat, OF detrait, fora long tune il
" the water, uptil they were picked up aud I ak
ashore small boat qnlle helpless,
- Mr. J. A. Hicks OF Detroit, Chandler Root 0
~, CooperslowN, and Os1orn Spencer OF Albany
> also deserve honorable mention Mr. Hlnsdai
'v. contained 81 5000 IN gold, belonging to Mis
fPlait (which wa< lost. FROM a careful exami ma
ton OF the above named persons aud others y h.
were in the water, (each el wbemslett diieren
paris oi the hoaO y hos,ate that a number o per
IN, sons were around them crying for help. saH tn
,ta they couid not swim, &c, am of oplnisn thu
-, Euot less than 20, and probably 40 lives wer
r. loSf No seotch had yet been made in
~ he river, nor rad that part OF the boat where tn
H. latfies would most likely be found been reache
Ie when I'lett last eveuing-the LADIES' saloon be
-, Being entirely submerged
4 save yet heard no blame atached TO Captai
Squires, out would he glad to know who it Wa
i thdt started that unfortunate cry wdeh SCI
sef those baek 70 perish who might otherwise hav
lei been saved. II $50 seems Ia me that some on
,Ifu ought to have known that one end OF the bot
r3h was high aud dry and there lore safe, and hal
All maze known that tact 20 the passengers-l
ted which event | verify believe not Ii lie need
mo have been lost Being aware that those inte
eat estedbave made Staten eats n arrived at
a. II