The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1855-02-28
OVER FIFTY LIVES LOST.

TERRIBLE STEAMBOAT EXPLOSION.
OVER FIFTY LIVES LOST.
We subjoiaa full account Of the explosion of the
steamer Pearl, ON Sacramento river, copied from
California papers just received. Colonel Alexan-
der Anderson, who l. among the number killed
was from Woodstock, Shenandoah county, va
from whence he emigrated to California In June
last, and has been residing at Nevada, since. He
was about fifty years of age, lawyer by profes.
sion, and gentleman Of eminent ability. His bro.
ther, John Anderson, esq, was about leaving Cali.
fornia for the Atlantic States, to escort the family
of the deceased to California. o3 s.s i
Correspondence of the Ban Francisco Herald.
SACRAMENTO, Jan 81
Que OF the most fearful accidents that has ever
happened on the Pacific coast has lust occurred
Inc steamer s Pearl from Marysville, just as she
passed the confiux OF the Sacramento and Ameri-
can rivers, exploded, and sent In 4 moment from
forty TO nifty human beings into eternity Il an :.
pears that the Enterprise Citizens line) and Pesr
Coordination iine)s were racing from Marvsvilie
.n cLy; sno Just as the latter was nearing the
Wnari tne 0oiiers burst, and resulted a. above de-
scrioed. There were ninety three passengers on
board, many of whom were Chinamen-most of
tnem were on the forward part of the boat near the
GUARDS. as Is usual on the landing OF the boats It
- lmpossioie TO tell how many were saved but
from the statement of an eye wituess who assisted
In conveying several of the wounded and diving TO
the hospital 10 believed that more than two tbirds
nave perished-some of them we're drowned.
otners completely blown to pieces, others with
their arms and legs blown of, and Otherwise terri.
bly, mutlated. 'sfll - "'.'y
Captain Davis, Purser Gilman and Mr.. Mcbride,
Of Wells; Fargo Cos Express. are all dead The
treasure n belonging 70 Wells Fargo & Co. Is sunk
They are now about making preparations for its
recovery. Mr.. Kaefer, of Adams & Co.'S Express.
was saved The mRngled corpses of sevaral Chi.
namen are lying on each side of the rivsr-tnost of
them at foio The boat 10 a total wreck. The
Enterprise arrived this moment, being about 60
minutes behind the PEARL 1t is impossible to pro.
cure the list OF passengers a. the clerk was blown
up with therest. All that Il known defnitely 10
that there were ninety-three ON board A rope
was procured, and the wreck has been hauled 10
the river side, abreast of the gas works The after
cabin and the hull is all that remains of her. Those
passengers who were fortunate enough TO be aft in
the cabin, providentiaily, escaped uniDjured
Inc pilot Mr. Williams. was thrown a conslde.
rable distance Ia the air. and fell in the river within
afew feet OF the Yolo shore; he was subsequently
picked up, and will doubtless recover His es-
cape Is certainly miraculous The appearance of
the wounded (and scarcely one escaped) was a soul
sicken1ng sight. The Cinnamon and women sroan
ed and walled In q most awful manner. The ex-
plosion was distinctly seen by many persons from
the levee; and a moment after its occurrence inpu
merable boats and also the ferry boat running be.
shA' oAAu " Spcu u Tue BC600 OF
the disaster The bodies were picked up, and a
party OF men proceeded to clear away the wreck
for the purpose of saving or recovering those re-
naming on board, If any.
The bow of the boat was literally blown into ten
thousand pieces by the force of the explosion and
here 1t was that most of the passengers assembled
to catch the first sight of their destination In the
cabin the floor was torn up by the steam pipe com.
with the engine abaft. Several gentlemen were
found here, badly scalded, and some in a diving
condition. The boat. or rather the wreck, then
commenced parting; one>hslf, being more com
pesely destroyed than the other, broke loose from
the remaining portion of the hull. The efforts of
those on board and on shore were then directed to
bringing the wreck to the shore This was soon ef
fected, and what remained of the boat was moored
along side oi astoreship situated about the foot of
G street. rsgs
In the meantime many bodies (some of them
nutiated in q shocking manner) were recovered
from among the fragments floating In the river
The number of missing is about thirty, while eigh,
dead bodies have been found and also several per-
SONS who have been wounded.
As an incident worthy of note, I may mention
thtf large and powerful dog of the bloodhouni
species, plunged into the river soon after the acc-
dent, and rescued Mr.. James Johnson who was
slightly scalded, but nevertheless helpless and
would have been drowned but for the dog.
A later account says a
Judge Anderson of Nevada, and g A. Shultz of Me-
rysvile, were killed. There were only four ladies
On DOdIu tHe Ie6Ii ali OF WnOm were saved without
was killed. and all the express matter lost Mr. Sam
uel Jones, book keeper of Wells, Fargo & Co was
Of the boat but one were iilIed MT. Randall was
killed. The pilot was badly injured. Mr.. Gilman,
q the h s0as wa; not ne wa: but
badly wounded.
4 great many died after being taken to the hospi-
tai Fourteen bodies were taken TO the station house
in Sacramento, and ofthese three white and six Chi
namen were recognized. It is now ascertain ed that
there were about 14o persons on board of which IS
We annex list of the killed as far a. had been az.
certained:
Col Alexander Anderson, of Nevada, a native of
Virginia, aged 50; Edward 6 Davis captain, Maine,
Ohio, aged 80; james McBride. aged 2s; q Boyden.
yolinist, Msrysvilie aged about 28 Francis Fluker
sipnan formerly Of hi. city, shutz utsle
Springs; w Connor. justice of the peace at Long
Bar, Yubs county formerly OF Lensingburg. New
of Jasper county, Indiana; Risano, fruiterer San
Francisco; John Miller; James Kavanaugh, lste of
Of
Clule, merchant, Mud Springs; Ksnton. Shasta;
David Littlefed, deck hand. Mississippi; Chss Jew
yewett, San Francisco, of the firm of Larrabee l.
Jewettt, shoe deaiers; - Newell, renovstor by
dsel .aosas
cook of ioat; Paul Drsscovitch. Poland Geo Dab
start; - Cohen, pedlar. -
There are four other white men, whose names are
unknown.
THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIc.-The population
consists Of whites, and mixture of white and In
dian blood, together with mulattoes, corresponding
with that of all the Spanish American republics.
A letter says:
"President Santana Is white man, as well as his
secretaries Cuba is by no means preferable to the
island of st. Domingo. On the contrary. the latter
ID much richer than the former having silver, gold,
coal, copper and quicksilver mines; different kinds
of wood, suitable for vessels, besides being the
country of the mahogany and several other pre-
.;cr L Cnho a kou n f1a MpYicau