The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1858-04-26
The Loss OF the Ocean spray.

Oy the reprehensibie practice OIL racing
The Spray left the levse at st. Louis at
4 o'clock on Thursday afternoon Tor the
Illinois river. The Hannibal City for
Keokuk backed out at the same time'
Just astern Of the Spray, and both boats
began race. They had not proceeded
more than four miles from the city. when
the terrible calamity happened:
A passenger on the Spray says, that after
the boats got fairly iato the stream, the cap |
tain told him lac wanted TO beat tho Hanni- |
bal CITY, which boat was just behind the |
Spray and gaining on her. The iremen on
the Hannibal were seen breaking up rosIn
and casting it into the furnaces. When The
boats were rounding the point above the city,
they were very close together, the Hannibal
City having steadily gained upon her rival,
and almost coming alongside. At this june
ture, the fires of the Ocean Spray were fed
with rosin and turpentine, and with the IN
crease of steam she was just beginning 20
gain upon hor competitor, when the alarm
OF Arc was heard. The gentleman who de-
scribes the scene says he became alarmed at
the heat Of the boilers, and thinking there
was some danger OF an explosion, went up
on the hurricane deck, aad passed back until
was considerable excitement on board, and
many were extremely anxious to bet on the
success of their boat. lie says he had been
standing over the ladies' cabin but few
minutes, when he was startled by q faint cry
| OF '.fire," coming very indistinctly from the
| forward part of the boat. This cry was i'm
mediately followed by several shouts, and
casting his eye towards the pilot house, lie
/ saw the pilot give the wheel q very sudden
! turn, and not ced that the boat, which was
| about twenty yards out i'll the stream, began
! to head for shore. At this the confusion was
| great, and the cries of the passengers began
| 10 be fearful and agonZing. The women
| and children, craZed with alarm, were heard
| in the cabin below, while the hoarse shout
| ings Of the men in front made the moment
| most terrible. His first impulse directed him
| to rush forward. lie can TO the wheel-bousc
steps, and had placed one foot on the first
| step when q rush of flames and smoke from
| below drove him back. lie then ran along
the roof until Just forward of the pilot house,
and before the boat had struck the shore,
jumped for his life, landing safely on the
shore, somewhat shocked and numbed from
the fall, but not seriously hurt. Just as he
landed, heavy trunk passed over his head
| and knocked his cap off. Having recovered
his full powers, lie began to throw into the
river sticks of wood, which he gathered from
a log heap near the spot. While doing this
he was the witness of some of the most
agonizlng scenes. The head of the boat
having struck the shore with much violence,
and the wheels still being kept in motion she
began TO shove along and up tho bank until
her further progress was arrested by the
steamer Kcokuk, which was lying up at that
point for repairs. Tho movement of the
wheels, and tho strong wind blowing at the
time, seemed TO force the stern of the boa,
out from the shore and up the stream, which
resulted in the more speedy burning of the
after part of the boat, and made the ESCAPE
of the ladies and children more perilous than
before.
The Hannibal City, seeing the smoke ant
conjecturing the cause, dropped off towards
the Illinois shore, and maLning her yaw
sent it over TO assist those who were com
PEELED to jump in the water.
The yawl, also, of the Ocean Spray wa:
manned, but became so unmanagable by
reason of the numbers that chung to it, tina
} it drifted down the stream a hundred yard
before landing, though it was not moro thar
ten yards from the shore.
r The men Us q general thing, jun ped, an(
, reached the shore safely, though he saw fou
Of them hanging to one log out in the river
7 Three of them were on the upper side of j
and one Oh the lower. The log kept turnin,
j over and over towards the man on the lowe
S side until he, becoming exhausted with hi
efforts TO keep on it, sank below tho surfac
u and was drowned.
0 lie also saw u lady who was cndeavorin,
to keep herself up by small piece of boar
not more than afoot square. Her dress for
: time seemed to buoy her, but becoming
- thoroughly saturated, the piece of wood wa
J insufficient. She would sink almost below
t the surface, and then by a strong effort
g straighten her body, throw back her hea
and stiffcn her arms, but all of no avail
u She sank and was seen no more.
n The spectacle from the shore was mos
heart-rending. The ladies at first tried t
!. save their baggage, some of them THROWN.
, in their trunks and then jumping in ate
thom; others were concerned only for them
: selves and their children, and ran wildl
}. about screaming and crying for help. \
, the flames approached, they swung them
1 selves down from the guards, while ono {
a two were seen to slide down the ropes an
posts of the rear. How many were sunk o
d lost cannot be ascertained, nor even gucsse
: at. There were some fifteen or twenty VIC
men on board, and some eight or ten are IL
n that arc thought to be saved.
% Several horses, which were fastened
4 stalls behind the wheel-house were burnC
;, up. The kickings, rawlings, and human lii
IL cries of these poor brutes, as the fiam
N wrapped them around, are described us mo
terrible aud affecting,
r Alter the upper part oil the boat had nca
D. ~ been consumed, an explosion of kcg
at powder took place in the hold, which addC
to the CONSERVATION of those on shore. On
woman was buoyed up in the water b
~ her clothing, until she foated down again
" the Star of the West, whore she was aSsistC
IN by gentleman and was saved.
IN Another passenger says that when L
:, Ocean Spray was within about mile of whe
10 she took fire, she saw the Hannibal CT
gaining OH her, and the command was gi
ON en- to put turpentine in the furnaces.
nd says he had been very much interested
-. the race, and had taken position in fror
ut where the steps come down together, so tn
or he could sec them firing up. They iii
he threw in rosin, and then the mate suggest
We turpentine. The captain was by when t
,s order was given, and some of the men we
- down into the hold and brought up u bari
of of turpentinc, which had been consigned
some person in Peoria. The men took
+, h axe and split a hole in the head of the ba
&C. rel, and then, under orders of the mate iii
ch ped the fluid out and threw it over the &C
IL that was lying by. This was not expeditio
,r- enough, and the head of the barrel W
mo- knocked in, and a bucket with n piece
rope to it was used to dip cut the turpe
tine. The barrel at this time was standi
ba not more than six feet from the furnG
~ doors. After dipping with the bucket a
r. sprinkling the coal, sticks of wood W.
m taken up and their ends plunged into
"a harrpl and then laid down hntveen tho n.