The Plymouth weekly Democrat. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1860-1869, 1860-05-10


DTsTREssrNG IEcDESrs.-Tne steamer
A. 7. Lacy was burned on tie Mississippi
river. blow Cairo, on Thuraday las. The
following Incidents Of the calamity are
taken from the accounts Of the river pap
pers. The boat had On board between =
200 and 500 tons of freight, the princi
pal articles of " hich were -four. pork, corn,
oals, hay. bacon, iqrd, whisky, merchan-
disc, 200 head of cattle. and large quan-
tity of baled roPe-the whole valued at
$4,000 which is lnlly insured.
INCIDENTS.
Mr Worley says; Seeing Capt. Lacey
with his boy in one hand and his little girl
in the other. his wife frantic with fright,
was cingng 10 his person, he approac led
the Captain and told him if re would give
him The liule gi,l he would try to save her
The captain gave her up she going will
lingly, without a word of objection, while
her lillle brother clung to his father, and
in a moment after with his arms clung
around his neck he bravely plunged into
the water. The child strangled very much
at the first immersion, but still clurg to our
informants neck, who struck out for the
shore
He had swan but short distance when
he was assaild by Il large german woman,
who, in Ler struggles, pushed him and
the little girl beneath the surface, which
again caused her to strangle, but she still
held on. Nea Ing a drift pile, both OUT
informant and his precious charge were
sucked under the logs by the treacherous
waves and curIentand while under, strug
Gin for his own life, having become bad
ly slrangled, he missed the grasp of the
little gill around his neck. and size prob
ably caught by her night dress in the drift,
was lost. Our informant on emerging
from.'he drift happily caught log, on
which he hoated unul rescued by the
yawl about mile below. Caption Lacey's
! little boy was taken from his father and
saved BY the noble exertions Of Mr. VIM.
Mundy. the pilot, who. after his safe ar
" or shore. was so exhausted that he
had to be drawn upon the bank.
A large numbsr of deck passengers
threw themselves overheard, and many
were drowned. Ore German most inhu-
manly lefi his two ,ans children in their
beds to be cod7ume1 by the fire while he
made good his escape 10 shore.
One poor IRISH woman. who was con
fined to her berth by the ST. Yiius dance,
was lost. Another Irish woman, with
whom the maternal feeling was strong as
life itself, wrapped her little babe in her
blanket aud safely reached the shore with
the precious bundle in her arms. Her
anguish may be imagined when, on un-
winding the blanket, she found her little
child suhocateG and dead.
The number of caf;ie on board was ll6.
The groans and howlags Of these poor
animals as the fire ran along their backs
and roasted them alive. all tied by their
horns 10 the forward and after guards.
with no way Of escape, is described as
most awful and distressing.
Mrs. Hutchinson, of Pine Bluff. Ark,
had succeeded in reaching the shore, WAS
assisted up The bank, and fell backward
injo the water a life preserver which
she wore assisted by her crinoline. buoyed
her up amid the drift wood by which she
was hemmed in. All saw her but a. the
moment it was impossible to assist her,
and she remained in the water about txen-
ly minutes. Finally, Pilot Mundy, who
had been unremi,ting in his exeitions to
rescue those in he water plunged in and
brought her safely to shore.
A gentlema1, who was unable To swim,
picked up lille babe belonging to a deck
passenger, and into the water. HIS life
preserver prevented him from sinking and
he succeeded in reaching the drii,wood
which had formed along shore Placing
the infant on "A large stump. he scrambled
upa a tree beside it. and was seen to throw
water in his vn and the infants face, to
brotect them from tae heat emitted by the
burning bout The tree and stump pc
came separated, and in doing 50 the stump
turned PARTLY around and the child would
have been lost but for the fact that its
head lodged on another piece of wood. In
maner. lying upon sort Of raft formed by
the the two pieces of timber, which the
least wave might seperate, lis cries could
be plainly heard on shore The second
cook of the boat. In com pany with one or
two others, went t. its assistance, and sue
ceeded in getting it ashore; but its suffer
ings had been too great, and there, on the
I,,.i IL,