The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1854-02-23

Dreadful Steamboat Axplosasn At ~ Lssis
SEVEN PERsoNs KILLED AND TWENTY-FIVE WOUNDED
-GaSAT UIr1RINa ar tbs IsJUskD.
From ths IS. lou,s Rspuhd cas-. Feb ~
About seven o'clock yesterday morning, February
l6, the star board boiler OF the Alton pasks, Aato
Ksarney No. l. exploded with tremendous force
She was just in the act Of starting when tae cxso
sion took place, and had bard about twenty or
thirty passeu gers beides the officers and crew. The
explosion heard at distance OF several squares
and SO great was its power thAt the entire upper
works of the boat, rs far back as the wheeleoase,
were literally nddled, and fell vita crash upon
| the main deck.
BY this accident negro and deck hand were
instantly killed, several were blown into tns river
| aud drowned. A gentleman who was on an adJs-
cent boat at the time informs u that he saw three
| men drown.
The number Of persons scalded, 20 far as We have
been able TO ascertain amounts in the aggregate 10
about twenty-five. Rev. 8. G. Gasaway. rector OF
and Was terribly injured. His skull was badly ffac-
tued his face dsfgured and one OF his legs broken
In several places When recognized, whieh was not
done without much difficulty, he was taken to his
residence in almost lifelsss state.
Major Buel, o. s. A., was also on board, and So
verely injured. His physicians fear that he has re-
ceved internal injury from the inhalation Of steam
and bis situation Is criical. Yesterday evening
Major Bues symptoms were more favorable, and he
A short time after the explosion the wounded were
removed from the wreck and levee, and taken up TO
the police Office, and from there to the Sisters Hos
pital. We paid visit early yesterday morning 70
this institution, and visited the ward where the suf
ferers were confined. II was . hgat calculated TO
make the stoutest heart quake.
Fifteen men lay stretched upon beds OF suffering,
their faces and bodies most horribly mang'sd and
disfigured while thowroans that went no from their
agsnized hearts testified how fearful wan Their afnc
ton.
The sufYerings OF some were acute that they had
TO be strapped TO their beds to keep thsmfrom jump
ing cut in anguish. The swollen faces, black with
the Kissing steam, was An evidence that hs work of
destruction was complete.
Below we give list Of tbs names Of those persons
who are at the hospital unasr the charge the Sis
terp. IL is proper to state that several who we're
scaded were taken to the various hotels where they
had been stopping to be proviiea for.
J. Il. Newb9sry. New York, aged forty years.
John McCabe Ireland % years.
Vim. Cheeves, (col0red,) illinois, "a years.
Favorite Hardy Alton, 20 years, second engineer.
james O'Keeie, 2, Ireland, SO years.
Vincent, Pittsburg.
WIZ. Currin, Ireland, q years.
Vim. j. Stewart, st. Louis, rs years, clerk.
Albert Hardy. Alton, 25 years, first engineer
CHARLES Cosence, Germany, Is years.
Daniel Kssie, Ireland, is years
81. Mckenzie, Scotland, 2s years.
James Cavensugh, Ireland, rs years.
One unknown.
Mr. Brown the mail agent, was also on board, ard
standing in the social hall. He fell with the wreck
to the maio deck, and, strange 10 say, was only
slightly injured. One man, whose name We dii not
learn ssys that he WAS standing near tne clerks Of
dee aDo his frat sensations we're gentle rising I'M
der his feet before the crash came. He was thrown
On shore, AMI fortunately escaped with only few
Some idea msy be gathered OF the force OF this
explosion from the fact that fragment Of the boiler,
weighing over one hundred POUNDS, was blown with
h Anl1V HtGYl n ~ hkt m
the wall IL the fourth story of the store occupied BY
Messrs Virgins & Anderson, on the corner Of Mar
ket street sld the eyee, displaced several brisks,
and cracked the wall which is two bricks thick. One
of the fragments struck dray horse standing on the
levee, and blec him profnsely.
/. is Impossible, at the time we are wiring, to es
timate the exact loss. A gentleman who WAS stand
ing Market street at the time the explosion took
place states that he saw man some distance in the
air. with his hands outstretched, and that he disap-
pesTed in the smoke.
Capt Bruner, we understand, is uninjured, and
was either the hurricane deck, or ascending near
the wheelhouee, when the explosion took place. Tho
clerk, Mr.. Jas. Godfrey was in the efice, and was
somewhat injured. The pilot Mr.. B. R. Packard,
had Just stepped to the hurricane deck from tho
wbeehouse when the explosion occurred; he receiv-
ed no injury.
Major Gstlin, Of the United States Army, was on
board but escaped with little injury. little boy,
his son, about four or five years Of age, was badly
hurt
pal and hurt severely that their recovery is
sideIed hopeless. Their names are A. and F. Hardy
brothers.
At the time Of the explosion the boat was lying
owned BY the Keokuk Packet Company, valued at
IS GOO, and insured for S. 900, against fire. in the
Delaware Mutual Insurance Company.
After the explosion took place the boat caught fire
but it was soon extinguisbed.
Mr. Jones, merchant Of Linn Creek, Missouri
is supposed to be lost as his baggage has been found
but he s missing.
Tie Louisville packet Pike arrived few minute,
fifty Of whom intended to take passage on the i'll
fatsd boat, and we're only prevented by being few
minutes too late.
The Rev. 8. j. Gassaway, Rector Of st. Georges
Church in this city. He was passenger on board,
on his way TO- Springfield, illinois, to which he had
been invited 70 deliver course Of lectures. He was
dreadfully wounded; his skull fractured and his leg
broken In two places besides the injury received by
iphalipg steam. Some Of his friecds who went to
the evee after the explosion, recognized him only by
| the white cravat be wore. When found he was
speeches., blackened, and dsfgured by the explo
sion. He was removed to the store Of Charles Der.
by, and thence to his residence where he expired 81
four o'clock yesterday afternoon. Mr. G. came to thia
city from Georgetown, D. c., as associate rector Of
ST. Georges Church, and in that capacity, and
afterwards ss rector he had given much Satisfaction
to his people, and endeared himself to ell true
Christians in the city who had made his acquaint-
ance. II is singular and sad lesson taught by his
sudden demise. Not two week. since he buried
| from bis church one Of his congregation who had
come TO an untimey end, and the text he then i'm
1 pressed on his hearers, was this
All fesh Is ~ lrAsa, and tbs glory OF man ~. the
flower Of gas. The grass withsrsth, and the lower
thereof fadsh away bu% TIE word Of the Lord sndursth
| FOREVER.
True enough-true enough! And in his own sud
den and friebtful death the pastor still breaches
Who will heed the awful word and lesson2 The
vestry of st. Georges Church and the Young Mems
Christian Association have taken measures to marx
their sense Of sorrow on this distressing occasion
Fhvorte Hardy, Second Engineer, died yesterday
afternoon at the hospital. On the way to tue hospi
tai he became insane from the intensity Of his suffer
nys, aud releasing himself forcibly from those whl
were removing him, ran some distance on the street
Daniel Keeie, deck hand, died at the hospital.
Mace, negro man belonging to Capt. Adams
and George Kinney or Kinley, negro fireman, were
| killed instantly, making five person. exclusive d