The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1861-10-11
The Disaster to the Great
F' r Eastern.
She Breaks her Rudder and Becomes
zYsTo' a.. Unmanageable. ... H5
FEARFUL ROLLING OF THE VESSEL.
TERRIBLE SCENES ON BOARD.
She Reaches Cork Floating Wreck.

She Reaches Cork Floating Wreck.
FARTHER POINT, Tuesday, Oct. 1.-The
following in regard to the disaster to the
steamship Great Eastern is taken from the
English papers
The Great Eastern left her moorings in
the river Mersey at half past one o'clock on
Tuesday, the 10th of September. The
pilot boats left her at o'clock. She i'm.
mediately put on full speed, and all went
we'll with her until o'clock on Thursday
when, strong breeze prevailing, the aft
tackle of one of the forward boats on the
port side became unlocked, leaving it sus-
pended by one tackle. The captain endeav.
ored to steady the ship while this was recti-
fed, but found to his surprise that she did
not answer the helm. The fact was, though
it was not known at the time, the rudder pin
was broken. The fore staysail was run up
but it was blown away. The paddle en-,
gines were now stopped, and the the boat
lashings cut away, when the Great Eastern
once more started on her course. The
passengers then went down to dinner,
and from that moment commenced chaos
of breakages which lasted without inter-
mission for three days. Everything break
able was destroyed. Furniture, fittings,
services of plate, piano-all were involved
in one common ruin. 1t now became
known that the rudder was unmanageable.
About six o'clock the vessel had to be stops
ped again owing to two rolls of sheet lead,
weighing several hundred weight each which
were in the engine room, rolling about VI tn
every oscillation of the vessel with fearful
force. These having been secured, another
start was made, when a tremendous grind
ing was heard under the paddle-boxes. The
shaft had become twisted, and the floats
were grinding against the side of the ship.
The paddles were stopped, and thencefor-
ward the scene is described as fearful in the
extreme. The ship rolled so violently that
the boats were washed away. The cabin,
besides undergoing the dangers arising from
the crashes and collisions which were. con.
stantly going on, had shipped, probably
through the port holes, great deal of wa
ter, and the stores were floating, about in
utter confusion and ruin. Some of the
chandeliers fell down with crash. A large
mirror was smashed into a thousand frag-
ments, rails of banisters, bars, and nume-
rous other fittings, were broken into NUNS
berless pieces. Some idea of the rough.
ness of the night may possibly be
gathered from the fact that the large
chain cables polished themselves quite
bright with friction on deck. A spare rid
ing bit gave way on the cabledeck, and
knocked hole through the ships side.
Two oil tanks, also on the cabledeck, were
so much damaged by another conclusion
that 200 gallons of fish oil contained in them
ran into the hold, and caused, during the
rest of the unhappy voyage, most intolers
able odor. The luggage of the passengers
in the lower after cargo space was lying in
two feet of water, and, before the deliver
ance OF the ship was effected, the luggage
was literally reduced to rags and pieces of
timber. Twenty-Five fractures OF limbs
0ccurrel from the conclusions caused by
the tremendous lurching of the vessel Cuts
and bruises were innumerable. One of the
cooks was cast violently, by one of the
lurcbes, against the paddlebox, by which be
sustained fearful bruises on the arms, put
ting it out of bis power to protect himself.
Another lurch drove him against one of the
stanchions, by which conclusion one of the
poor fellows legs was broken in three
places. The baker received injuries of q
very terrible character in vital parts and
one of the most striking incidents of the
disaster was this poor, brave man, crawling
in his agony to extinguish some portion Of
the baking gear, which at that moment had
caught fire. .a
On Thursday night the gale was from the
southwest, but on Friday morning it had
turned round to the northwest, and the ship
was drifting an unmanageable log in the
trough Of the sea. She did not ship much
water On deck.
1t was soon discovered what was the
matter with the rudder. The pin upon
which it turned had broken off three feet
above the point where it entered the stern
of the ship. 1t was wrought iron, ten inches
in diameter-and the iron appeared thor
ougly good, breaking at that particular
point where it appeared the strongest, which
was one of the most curious incidents OF the
disaster. 1t was now found necessary to
rig up some kind of steering gar. A spar
was thrown overheard with the anchors
duke attached, which, dragging in the water
behind the ship, might bring her head to the
wind; but the swinging of the rudder made
1t useless and a plan was then suggested
to the captain by the passengers, to which
the escape of the vessel is probably attrib.
utaole. 1t was to pass two or three turns