Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1864-09-08
w-.cL The Wa,ho.,

In the steamer tlSalla, capt. zimmerman,
which left this city at 9 O'Clock yesterday
morning to visit the wreck Of the Washoe
and render any further assistance possible,
went our special reporter, whose account fol-
lows:
The visalia, Captain Zimmerman, had on
board, besides her regular crew, about a
dozen of our most prominent citizens, five or
six workmen employed by the California
Steam Navigation Company-to aid in clear
ing away portions Of the wreck, fishing up
the bodies Of the drowned, etc.-and police
officers P. Rice and !. Brown, who went
along to see that order was preserved and
Justice done. At half past II o'clock we
arrived at the scene Of the disaster, which IS
Just at the point where the waters OF Steam
boat slough flow into the Old slough, as it is
called, and about seven miles this side OF the
remains of the sunken steamer Nevada. The
wreck of the Washoe laid with the nose OF
the steamer thrust up among the bushes on
the north side of Steamboat slough, twenty
feet perhaps east Of the Old slough.
The stem of the steamer was slanting down
stream, sunk in twelve or fourteen feet OF
water, and the port or shore side perhaps one
and half or two feet higher than the star
board side. The stern Of the boat was sub
merged nearly to the hurricane deck, while
the other end, of course, was nearly high ana
dry ashore. The wreck OF the upper works,
of which the principal part was visible,
seemed to be complete, the central portion
having fallen altogether lnwards and the rest
oeing broken up with wide splinterlng cracks
and bullying outwards all around over the
guards, The wood work ut the stem had been
clown outwards, leaving great hole, as If
the boat hud been raked from stem to stern
oy a shot from a" Swamp Angel" The
broken cabin furniture, chairs, Stools, pieces
of lamps, etc., were scattered confusedly
about in all directions. One cane. bottomed
chair was swinging pendant from the boughS
Of tree overhangIng the slough, having been
driven to that position from the cabin oy the
force of the explosion. The smoke stack
was caved in OIL one side and stood leaning
askew over the mass Of broken tlnoers in the
iddle Of the wreck, and the whole interior
Of the boat was Uttered about with contu-
sion Of abandoned cluthing, bloody strips Of
sheets, soiled blanketc and mattresses, all
charred and trodden under foot.
Captain Kid and his pilot, S. S. Baldwin,
and mate, Robert Morrison, were on the
wreck, together with a few Of the uninjured
crew and two or three residents Of the rIcini-
~, all of whom we're engaged in searching
bout the wreck for the dead and their be-
lunpings. On the bank above, behind
clump Of bushes, grave or trench had oeeh
dug, some two and a half or three feet deep,
IN the brink of which were stretched three
discolured corpses, victims Of the catastrophe
ready for their rude and speedy supulcner,
uesdes the body Of another man, supposed to
oe fireman or deckhand, encased IN
rough board box
The Visalia rounded to below the Washoe,
L.. md
was made fast, and Capt. Zimmerman lmme-
diately reported to Capt. Kidd, rendering any
assistance necessary. Capt. Kidd replied
that he thought there was nothing the YiSalia
could do, the Antelope having given all pos
sible aid the night before by removing the
killed and wounded, but finally acceded to the
suggestion that the dead bodies on hand
should be brought up to Sacramento BY the
Visalia, as he had no means OF conveyance:
His appearance was haggard and worn, and
from his manner he seemed to be almost
stunned by the weight OF the dire calamity
which had befallen him and his boat. The
lead brdies were removed TO the deck OF the
Visulia. They were all those Of men OF ma
ture age, and nobody present was able TO
identify them.
CAPTAIN KIDp's STATEMENT.
While the removal OF the bodies was In
progress our Reporter obtained from Captain
Kidd an account Of the catastrophe, IN SUBJ
stance as follows:
The Washoe left her wharf in San Fran
cisco at four o'clock Monday afternoon, har-
ing on board some two hundred passengers
and perhaps from thirty to fifty tons Of
freight. had no passenger list except the
names of those who had engaged rooms, and
that / cannot find, everything having been
blown into confusion and my clerk having
gone TO Sacramento. l broke open the
drawer in search Of that list this morning,
but could find nothing of it. Nothing un-
nsnaI occurred before reaching Benicia. We
came along moderately, and there was no
attempt at racing-at least on my part. At
Benicia the Chrysopolis was from six and
a half to seven minutes ahead OF US ut
the landing, and We made the landings at
the towns Of Collinsville and Rio Vista, which
the Chrysopolis did not. At Rio Vista the
landing detained us six or eight minutes, and
at Collinsyille from three to i've minutes,
and when the accident happened think the
Chrysopolis must have been half or three
quarters of an hour ahead There was no
pretension on my part TO overtake her, and
certainly did not expect to see her again
this side of Sacramento. Anderson, the
engineer, who was badly hurt, and was
sent up to Sacramento last night, told me
that the boilers were full aud no unusual
amount Of steam on at the time OF the eSPlo-
sion, It occurred Just as we were putting
the helm down for the purpose Of entering
the slough there. 1t was in the wheel house
with the pilot at the time, and the wheel
house was lifted a foot or two and thrown
forward perhaps three or four feet. l sup
pose we were carrying lbs pounds Of steam
At the time; We are allowed TO carry lao
pounds. The explosion happened at ~
o'clock or quarter before ten. The assist
ant engineer, Phillips, says that just as we
commenced turning he tried the water, ind
inv two cocks full, and noticed that the steam
tuage marked lis pounds Of steam. He
hen stepped out in front for some purpose,
and at that moment the explosion occurred.
rhe engineer, Anderson, was inside, and
orubablS will not live. The explosion was
terrific and CONSERVATION ensued among all
the messengers their screams were heart
rpnding. All the lights were extinguished,
the whole between decks was hlled with
steam, and the boat seemed to be on tire IN
three or four places. The swing the boat
had in turning brought her in to the shore,
and she ran sshore easily. We did every
thing we could to relieve the sufferers.
There is only one house here occupied by
fishermen, suppose they did all they could,
but there WAS no accommodation. we had
10 carry water from the river for the five or
six wounded we took there. We had 1l9
cabin passengers, twenty three Benicig pas
senRers, and about thirty or forty deck pas.
spnSers' besides a crew Of about thirty, all
told I recollect looking at the passenger list
lust previous to the explosion. l do not
think that any dead are left on the boat, but
there may possibly be. I do not think any
jumped overheard, but there was one man
sot across to the house the other side Of the
Slough and died there; he was taken up by
the Antelope. cannot tell how many or
what proportion Of women were on board. l
am told that two passengers jumped over
board Of their own accord, but were saved. l
think probably the explosion was caused BY
the bur sting Of the connecting pipes, but l
cannot tell the boilers are sunk out ofsight,
and it is impossible to tell whether they are
broken or not. / intend to raise the hull il
it is uninjured and it is possible, and save all
can.