Cleveland daily leader. [volume] ([Cleveland, Ohio]) 1865-1873, 1866-04-24
CATASTROPHE AT ASPINWALL.
Explosion of NftrO-GIyeerine De-
struction OF the English Steamship
"European"-Over seventy Persons
killed and Wounded.
From the Panama Correspondence Of the Ne
NorE Harald

g european
Killed and Wounded.
from the Panama Correspondence Of the New
York Herald.
The European arrived at AsplnwRll on
the I'd inst, from Liverpool. Soon after
her arrival she hauled up to the Long
Wharf. at the head of which Is situated
the large and beautiful freight house OF
the Panama Railroad Company. The
following morning, about seven o'clock
when. had the train for Panama started
on time, half-past six A. NJ all of those
endowed on The wharf and in the freight
house would have been attending to their
respective duties-a most terrific explosion
occurred, the destructive effect OF whlch
wss at once visible 10 those who were
near at hand, and to those distant, out oil
sight of the wharf and its surroundings
the effect of the conclusion was scarcely
less severe The detention OF the tralH
was the salvation of very many lives; but,
as it is, the loss of life is fearful to think
of, nearly all in the immediate vicinity oil
the explosion being killed outright or ter
ribly wounded
To those removed from the wharf, the
| first visible effect of the tremendous force
of the explosion was in The instant and
| almost entire demolition of the treignt
house. Both the end walls of this build
ing were demolished, and the superb iron
roof, ~rrfters, girders, braces, &c, fell into
the interior of the building, forming a
huge unshapen mass of ruin and destrnc-
truction. Of course, in an instant alter
the occurrence, when those unhurt recov-
cred from the effect of the conclusion, a
rush was made for the wharf to suceor
those injured, and here it was that the
| whole scene burst upon the Vlew-a scene
b~eartrending snd awful. The iron plates
of the ships hull we're torn out complete
", and almost everything about decks
was a mass of ruins. The wharf abreast
of where the explosion occurred was COM
| pletely cut through the piles, cross beams,
flooring, and in fact everything was car
ried away, and the entire structure was
shattered, every plank even being started
from its position.
Of COURSE the European was found to be
\ on fire, and as it was feared that the e1-
plosion had been caused by powder hav-
| ing been put on board, on false bills of
lading, it was thought there might be still
remaining some more; hence another was
considered probable, for all this time the
Htrue cause of the disaster was
1t became necessary to get the burning
hull away from the wharf, not only to
save property from destruction by fire.
Il was some time before the true cause
of the disaster became known. The bills
OF lading called for no gunpowder, and
the shin had but & small quantity for mr.
ing signal gyms. No steam was up, n
ali were at a loss for knowledge of what
it was until the seventy cases Of glonorine
or nitro-glycerine, shipped at Liverpool
for San Francisco, told the whole story
and brought to light how much more dan
gerous an article than gunpowder formed
one of the principal items of the ships
cargo.
The effects of the conclusion are visible
over the entire length and breadth OF AS
pinwall. At the railroad companys mess
house, distant about a third of a milo to
the northward, the glass and crockery
were extensively demolished beyond that
in the new church, many of the beautiful
stained glass windows were shattered 10
the southwark, about the same distance, at
the Pacific Mail Steamship Companys
wharf. the residence of the Superlntedent
was very much strained; while to the
eastward nearly everything of a perisha-
BILE nature, such as glass or earthenware,
was destroyed. Stone and brick buildings
suffered more than frame, many OF them
requiring extensive repairs before they
will again be fit to be considered in good
condition. Fragments of the brick were
thrown to immense distances and in every
direction. 1 saw a small iron knee
weighing four or five pounds, that wa:
picked no over g thousand yards from the
steamer. Another piece of metal, appar'
emily belonging to the ships machinery,
fell on the roof of a house fully five hun
dred yards distant and passed through tC
the floor, and hundreds of similar In
tances could be related if the space could
be spared to give them all.
No correct list of the killed and wound
ed has been or probably will be obtained
but it is estimated that about seventy
or eighty will be the number of cas-
ualties. The Captain of the European
and most Of his officers and men are
known to have been killed. Several bod
les have teen dragged up from the bot
tom, they having been blown overheard
and others are supposed to have gon'
down with the vessel. The sharks nave
no doubt, disposed of others; hence th'
impossibility of determining the exac
number lost. Some of the bodies recov
cred were most horribly NUT, ated, burned
and disfgured, so much so as to render /
very dificnlt indeed to recognize them
In the vicinity Of the catastrophe portion.
of human bodies were strewn in every di
~rection pieces of flesh, bones, &c, &c.
were-picked up, and a head not recogniz
able was blown through the cabin sky
light of the Caribbean. A wcman's foo
with a slipper on was found, supposed t
be a portion of one of two Jsimaca wo
men that were in the habit of selling cot
fee on the wharf, both Of whom are miss
ing.
The loss of the European and the terri
bic destruction of life will be sad news IL
England, for it will carry sorrw into man.
a household. The very name of nitr'
glycerlne will long be the terror of tn
people of Aspinwall, and the most harm
less oily fluids regarded with distrust i
not known or tested.