The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-04-19

sions resulting IN serious loss Of life which every
now and again start the community and send the
lifeb ood freeAng through the veins occurred
q Long Island Sound yesterday morning, at about
fifteen minutes before four o. clock between the
large steamer Citg Of Nor'cich and the schooner
GeRCrdt S. Vdn Vttet, The accident occurred dur
ing the prevalence of a slight tog, while the vessels
& were standing upon opposite couT5es and when
they nearly abreast OF huntingdon Light.
Eleven lives supposed TO have been lost and
Eve or six persons we're severely injured. The fol-
j. nP facts re atlr the dlsastr gathered from
those on board of the different vessels:-
THE STEAMER UNDERWAY.
s. The steamer ity of Nortcich was one OF the large
i freight boats belonging to the Norwich and New
4 York rTanspor alton Company, and as genera
thing but few passengers She left Norwich,
Connecticut, under the command OF Captain d. b.
SturGess, az l O'Clock ON Tuesday afternoon, with a
4 small amount OF freight, and aiI-a-dOzen passen-
gers, bound for New London, where she was to
ceive the balance of her cargo A pleasant sail of
thirty-one miles down the river thames brought the
vessel her destination, where large and valuable
Freight was awaiting Shipment on board OF her.
The busy scenes always attendant upon the trans
ference of merchandise to the hold and deck of one
of our large Sound steamers was accomplished with
\ the usual and proverbla Yankee dash and energy,
\ and by half-past o'clock the city Of Nor1Cch
loaded almost to her guards At 10 O'Clock, after
4 eleven in all, the lines were cast off and, under a
pressure of twenty two pounds OF seam the vessel
York AL on board were IN the bost OF spirits little
DREAMING OF the dreadful calamity that was so
to oveItake them.
COLLISION.
i About O'Clock in the morning a light fog or mist
settled the water but did not prevent objects at
distance being plainly At ab lut fifteen minutes
before the lookout on the city of NOrlOich discoV
cred a schooner about one hundred feet distant
standing to the eastW ard the wind, which course
. was heading her directly for the steamer. When
n first seen the schooner said have had no light
forward but soon as the alarm whistle was
sounded she showed her lights, but il was then too
late; for before the course either vessel could be
altered, clear Of each other, the vessels
collided, and the greatest confusion Immediately
ensued.
The schooner proved to be the General S. Vcns
Viet loaded with oysters and was going at good
as a
She struck the CITY of NoSosch just forward of the
he's timbers and cutting large hole in her port side
through which the water rushed in large quantities
and the vessel commenced filing very rapidly.
THE STEAMER TAKES FIRE.
Amid the hurried hustle aud excitement conse-
queLt upon the steamers settng rapidly into the
water the cry OF fire ralscd and in few seconds
more the forked tongues OF hyid flame seen
darting out OF the vessels hold, aud this added
greatly to the confusion that already existed among
the passengers and crew. The steamer being sup
Piled with upper and lower furnaces, the soon
y reached the lower fires and forced the flames into
the fire room, where they communicated with the
X wood work Ignlted the combus uble materials with
= which the room filled, and but very lew
minutes elapsed before the vessel was enveoped in
~ AS the fire worked its way through the deck a
"a panic selZed those on board rush was made
ior the small boats and life preservers and it was
with the greatest difficulty that the officers could
structoIs could be obeyed. The prevailing dark.
ness, the cracking flames, the dense volumes of
smoke, the pIteous supplcations of the women and
n to the drelul confusion that already existed and
added greatly to the terrors and fearful consterna
ton of all on board OF the ilfated steamer
TRYING TO SAVE THE PASSENGERS.
~ Captain Sturgess ably assisted by his officers and
crew did all IN his power to allav the fears of the
passengers, and shortly after the alarm fire was
s. frst sounded ordered the boats to be lowered for
H the purpose of saving those on board. AT the time
r OF the accident most of the passengers and crew
q awakened from pleasant dreams OF home only t
II find themselves threatened with terrible and
almost instantaneous death. Rushing upon deck
lust they arose from their beds, they had nothing
on but their nght-cothes TO protect them from the
damp, emily atmosphere and IN this condition they
ran wild and franticaly about the deck some vaniy
striving TO reach their rooms again to get their
me % ana Sse. save VIugr fnas Eeey nad with
The first boat, in charge OF Mr.. James NJ Adams
one OF the .fremen was successfully lowered, and
the burning steamer; but when the second boat was
nearly fill ed with such of the passengers and crew as
could be got into it, it capsiZ9d and all were precp
- tated into the water. Some of the poor wretches
Immediately grasped the floating oars, while Others
.4 cung tenacously to the boat for full twenty min
utes before they rescued and sank to rise
= no more AS those in the water clutched the gum
wales in their efforts to keep afOat, the boat wou
turn over and over with them and they could get
! no firm hold with which to hang on to lite, They
remained IN this perllOus position until rescued Dy
the boats Of the propeller Electra.
Y THE ELECTRA" TO THE RESCUE.
The propeller Electra, Captain j. W. Nye, left
+ Providence the same evening, and was in company
during the entire night with the city of NorDicf
The vessels running down the Sound abreast of
each other and about threequarters of mile apart
q hen the collision occurred those on board the
Electra could plainly distinguish both the steamer
and the schooner, and could hear the shouting on
board OF the vessels. Captain Nye instantly altered
his course and stood for the of the disaster,
and II IS mainly owing TO his indeat gable eXertions
in saving the unfortunates that all on board did not
perish
W Arriving within a short but safe distance of the
#. burning steamer, four boats were lowered and
placed in command of Mr. DAVID Crowley the first
mate, J r. Charles b. smith, chief engineer. and
other omcerS Oh she propeiie[; Inc boats sped on
arms nerved in a good and merciful cause were NOT
long IN reaching and saving their fellow BEINGS I'M
distress Their labor was traught with extTemp
danger, but the brave Fellows perseVered in their
won en-, and succeeded nObly in Iescuing from q
W frghtul death and watery grave most of those who
were on board of the Cny OF NOrtoich.
WI Two ladies, sisters, named Mrs OsgoOd and Mrs
III Rousseau, of Norwich, who were thrown into the
water when the liiebOat was capsized, caught hole
OF oar, ana with the assistance of life preserYer
which they had with them were enabled to keeI
their heads above water. They drifted wtn the tide
safely placed ON board OF that vessel.
NAMEs OF TIRE PASSENGERS AND CREW LOST.
The boats made several trips to and from tn
burning steamers but 1t was impossible TO save all
as many were floating about the water upon boxes
bales Dlanks ETC. The folio wing list comprlses tn
N, names of such of the passengers and crew as ar
supposed 10 have pershed:-
- OsPoOd, small boy about ten years old an
" a son OF Mr.. G. 8 Osgood of Norwich, Connechcut
a passenRer name unknown, on his to Europe
John Sullivan New LondOni Daniel Driscon. MOI
wich; Michael Hogan, New York; John KatoI
New York; John Fleming New york; Wilhar
James CrockeT, q son of the Chief Engineers
eOl0red boy (p0rteTA name unknown,