The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1866-04-19

THURSDAY MORNING. APRIL ~.
matters at Parkersburg.--A Maine
comprehend Teaching West Virgin
ians Loyalty.
We learn that the Union mass meet
ing at Parkersburg last Saturday has
had the double effect of arousing the
/ 1oyal men to earnest work. and of
striking terror in the campof the enc
my. They made an effort to hold a
meeting there on Monday, but cores
pondent tells us it was a rather small
affair. The meeting was addressed by
Gen. j. j. jackson who avowed his
purpose to speak from now until the
election in May, but our correspondent
thinks this don't amount to much. as
the General is not in the habit of max
ing speeches unless there is fair pros
pect of the quid pro quo, which in this
case is not visible to the unassisted Wis
ion. 1t is very gratifying to see how
promptly the General has recovered
from the illness which kept him away
from the Clarksburg Convention.
The same Mr.. Pillsbury, who a4fliet;
ed the Convention Mt CIarksburg,
also made speech, we hear, on
the occasion. This fellow is said TO be a
Democrat at home. He comes down
here on some kind of rowing specula-
ting mission, and it being ascertained
that he is moderately endowed with
'.ths gift of the gab," he is carried
around by the copperheads and put up
to teach the people of West Virginia
their duty towards the returned rebels
in their midst. The Copperhead party
is very hard up for material if it has to
import not only three-fourths of its ed
itors, but its speakers. This Mr.. Pills
bury undertakes in his speeches to
show that the Union men here are not
what they are in Maine. We suppose
they are somewhat different from
the kind of "Union" men he has
been accustomed to associate with
there. A pretty disciple he is to
come down here from that re-
mote region where they scarcely, heard
of the rebellion, o teach loyalty to the
Union men of West Virginia, who
have had the rebellion all around and
amongst them, and knew what 1t was.
BY the way, 1t was rather absurd to an
outsider to hear the Copperheads at
CIarksbprg, after Mr.. Pillsbury had
spoken his piece, giving "three cheers
for the State OF Mime" They forgot
for the moment how the elections go in
Minnie. We are not advised whether
tho same funny circumstance took place
ut Parkersburg or not. They ought to
be careful. There are great many
n very great many-wicked abolition
lists in Maine, and the State of Maine
isn'tat all responsible for Mr.. Pillsbury.
Must steamboats, be finder Boxes?
or late the disasters by fire on our
Western rivers have been appalling,
both by reason of theirrapid succession
and of the loss of life accompanying
them. The public scarcely RECEIVERS
from the shock of one till 1t is startled
by another. We cannot say from sta
tistics that these calamities have been
more frequent within the year past
than in previous years, but we think it
must he the case. If not, then there is
all the greater reason for doing some
thing TO prevent them in future. The
American people are eminently teacha-
BILE in the schools OF experience; yet 1t
lisa singular fact that no considerable
or sufficient effort has ever yet been
made TO guard against these most terri
BILE of all marine disasters.
We have learned to guard most vigil
lantIy against fires on shore,-in cities
and towns. Our houses are made fire
proof IN many instances, aud our cities
are armed with fire apparatus and or
carnations, and every year the securi-
" against this element is made more
complete. Yet day by day, thousands
and thousands of passengers arr
transported on steamers, built almost
exclusively of the Hghtest wood, GOV
cred with infiammable paint, com
pletely at the mercy of carelessness OF
accident by fire. In well regulated
city nobody is allowed to build a house
of such material as is put into oui
steamboats,. If a wooden house takes
FIRE, there Is some chance for life, how
ever little there may be for the proper
ty. If a wooden steamboat takes fire,
il is scarcely possible to save it, and all
on board who cannot swim must divide
the chances between burning and
drowning, If the deyouring elements
permits them even that poor choice.
when a house burns down, it does
not ordinarily endanger the lives o.
any but the family living In 1t but
when a steamer burns, there may be
hundreds of helpless persons aboard,
who have entrusted their lives to its
keeping We speak of this to show
that whatever precautions are proper,
TO guard against fire on land are doubly
necessary to guard against it on water ;
and whatever regulati Ions may be pre-
scribed in the one case are donbly de-
manded in the other.
The community is dreadfully wreck
less of human life. The murder of u
family in Phiiadelp hia excited wonder
faiinterest in that and the neighboring
cities, not because SO many lives are
lost, but ON account of the mys-
terry OF the murder but a steam-
boat burns up and dozen fami-
lies are bereaved-it may be half a
hundred il scarcely attracts atten-
tion and entirely fails 70 provoke COM
ment.
1t is time that thinking mentook this
subject to heart. II Is time that some
earnest aud practical novement was in-
augprated to guard ag.linst this one