Washington sentinel. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1853-1855, 1854-03-24

ing against the banks Ia rage OF madness, II tore
| up the WATERFALL of loose rocks, smashed the
northern drift trees into fragments, pounded OPP
/ posing "hummocks into pummlce, and then
huge acres of the floating mass balanced Tor an
instant on the verge of the fall ana took the eter-
/ nal plunge into the hell of waters roaring over
the rocks beow.-Spyfngfei tAiass9, hepnbf'ean'
Bold Attempt to Escape.--On Saturday morn
| ing last, Mr.. Reuben McClaunehar, the engineer
on the steamer Pocahonias, plying between this
city and Baltimore, discovereda negro man, named
Alfred, the property of Mr. Aaron L. Burton, saug;
| y stored away beneath the boiler OF The boat,
! ready for departure. Mr.. Nee. made The search
| in consequence OF having been informed by one OF
the colored fremen that the evening before, about
| IL O'Clock, some person had come on board oil the
| boat. The fellow made some resistance when
pulled out from his hiding-place, but was taken
and started with up TO the police court Upon
! getting some distance from Rockets, he again re-
| sisted and attempted TO make his escape; but,
with the assistance of Mr.. w. II. Nuckols, was
tied and brought before the mayor, by whom he
| was ordered thirty stripes for his resistance, and
then committed TO jail-Rietniond enquirer.
|
The Sinking ofthe Steamer j. l.. Avery
/ Slaves from MARYLAND Lost The Cincinnati Cont
mercial has some additional particulars OF the sink
| ing of The J. l. Avery, as miles below Na,chez
| Among the lost were ten slaves belonging TO Vim
4 j. ana JOnn furncI, OF WoiSGS'Si soup'1s WI
| Among the saved are Wm.J. Purnell, wife and
| five slaves; Z. Purnell, and Thomas r. Single or
| Tingle--all of MARYLAND The boat was new
| one, with elegant cabin accommodations. andvery
popular among The travelling public. The Gem
/ merciai says:
"While she was making good Roadway against
powerful current and strong wind, cracking
| noise was heard, the boad careened, and IN tmo
| minutes the hull went down, bow foremost in wa
ter estimated to have been at least fifty feet deep.
Happily the cabin parted from the hull and ioaed.
| When our informant heard the sudden cracking
noise. accompanied by trenor and carcening OF
the boat, he walked through state-room upon the
guards, and saw the hull going down. One the
| chinneys fell overheard, and the other upon the
| cabin, steadying il 10 some extent The cabin
ioated on the arboard side, and persons who first
gained the deck Knocked OUT the windows on the
starboard or upper side and rescued those inside.
| The ladies' were thus saved. The steamer Sui
| tana was about one mile and half behind the
| Avery, and, meeting the floating cabin, rescued
those who clinging 10 il, and lowed that rem
| nant Of the wreck ashore.
Mr.. Pinney informs us that the steerage was
| crowded with persons whose names m
known and Of arhom from, torty t9 Saty certainly
perishedi They were overwhelmed by the water
within two minutes of the first intimation of dan
ger The hull was seen 10 go down with plunge,
| lis afler-part crowded with Storage passengers.
| The boat was but few rods from the shore, and
was instantly headed directly there, but the cur
rent was 100 powerful, and the calamity so sudden,
| that some good swimmers and others aided by
| panks failed to reach the land
| "The exact number lost will never he known. II
/ was by some estimated to be as high as seventy
five. OF the cabin passengers only eight or ten
| were drowned. Among the lost is the Rev. MIR.
/ Benson, of Mount Vernon, Knox county. Ohio.
This gentleman attempted TO reach the shore on a
| plank, but a man, who swan beside him and saved
| himself states that he saw Mr.. b. sink 10 rise no
/ ,ba,p hal md Thne pofa u-na
lost. A child Of Mrs. Parmiean, Of Louisiana, was
| drowned A gentleman who got aboard at Baton
Rouge, and whose name had not been registered
was drowned. A Mr.. Shaw, of La Grange, Miss.
was drowned. The second cook was lost.
"Therc are various opinions as 10 the cause oil
i the accident. The carpenter was of opinion that
! a snag was struck; while others imagined that
! the heavy load and strong current caused the hull
| TO give way There was no time for investiga
tons, and the fact will never be certainly ascer
| tanned"
H0bbs's Lock PicLed.-We see by the papers
that the great Hobbs has been defeated that he
and his locks shorn of their honors. AT the
institution of civil engineers, apaper was read by
| Mr.. Hobbs pointing out what he considered TO be
the defects Of the English locks, and fully describ
ing the peculiar excellence Of his own locks, rem
| derng them safe from the attempts of false keys
and picklocks. At an adjourned discussion on
| the paper at the institution, much astonishmen
| and amusement We're created by the fact thai
John Goater, workman in Messrs. Chubbs en-
! ploy, announced that he had found out simple
! plan by which any of Hobbs's locks could b.
| picked, and that during the week he had p!cket
4 four new locks, without having seen either HI
keys or the inside, bought by different gentlcmei
in the city, who vouched for the truth OF his state
ment. He explained tho way in which he did j,
viz, with piece of watch-spring and two com
mon picks.-Boston Post.
To Drive Away Rats-A friend has just in
formed us of plan he adopted to get rid OF rats
His premises swarmed with them He took {
! small fsh-hook, attached 10 fine wire, and sus
pended on it piece Of cheese, letting il hans
i about foot from the ground. One OF the rats
leaped at it and was hooked and set up such !
horrible squall noise, and rattle, that all the res
forsook him and fed. Not a rat remained on the
premises. few days afterwards his neiehbo
declared that he was visited with plague worse
than those Of Egypt--that the rats would surel!
eat him IN house md all Our friend epo
i the joke, but kept shady. This was not phian
thropic Of him so, for the benefit of his neghbor
who, we hope, takes our paper and the rest
mankind, we g disclose the disclosure" withou
enJoining secrecy or charging the dollar
4 Raral New York.
A Bird Trap.--A gentleman in Ohio, given L
i speculation in the structures OF legs and feathers
| commonly known as Shanghai chickens wa
much annoyed by the rats. Determined 70 endure
| il no longer, he constructed large box trap
which he baited with liberal supply OF grease
/ corn and other articles for which rats are suppos
ed TO have penehant. The next morning, the boy
| ran into him in state Of excitement. announcing
the fact Of a tremendous "bobbery" being kicked
up in the trap, which, OF course, proceeded IRON
n captured raj, In a few moments, the box wa
carefully lifted, and suddenly plunged into tn,
water-but, where it kept submerged unit
long after the commotion had subsidized Then th'
trap was trinmphanty lifted, disclosing TO the as
tonished birdfancier the swollen body of-htsfau
orite Gtieen-doilar Shanghai Observation-Disclosures,
Attempted Outrage.-on Wednesday evening
Of last week, between sunset and dark, as the wifi
oil Mr.. Joseph Cole, ofths county, was going on
mission Of mercy to the houseof a nelghbor, ne
gro stepped up behind her. placing his hands upol
| Snr shnnlders She immediately screamed Whel