Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1867-09-23
THE DEAN RICHMOND SUNK.
Description of the Sceie-Three lives sup.
posed to Be lost.

VHE DEAN N H AuONO SONA.
Description Of the Sceie-Three lives sup.
4-- posed TO q iost.
NEW YORK, Sept. 20.-The Dean Richmond
left Athens last night al 10 O'Clock on her trip
to New York, having On board about one
hundred and fifty passengers and large quan.
fity Of freight The boat had inst passed
Roundout when the lights of an approaching
steamer ". re seen, and thehull Of the steamer
.. Vanderbilt, on her triI rom New YORK,
doomed up through the misty moonlight The
pilot Of the Vanderbilt alsosaw the Dean Rich.
mond, and noticed that sheBeemed to Be direct
ed tow ards his vessel He,therefore sounded
the whistle for her pilot to feep oil to i1e right
But, instead OF doing so, 1t is stated, he Dire "
to the left and suddenly shot across the Van
derbilt's course. AT this time the boats were
only about forty feet apart, and q collision was
inevitable. The Vanderbilt came "a with full
headway, striking the immense st@mer on the
starboard side. crushing throngi the heavy
tmbers, demoliehing the decksand piercing
the hull below the water line The damage
thus done in a moment was terrible In its COM
pleteness, and it was evident mat the vessel
must sink. and that very speedily.
The passeng gers, q great n numoer OF them wo
men, were at this time souBdly sleeping in
their berths, but the crash awakened most Of
them. and q scene of the widest excitement en-
sued. Men, women and children rushed, half
clad, from the state.rooms. aad wildly in.
qulred the cause of the disturbance. The
aeonized shrieks Of the women and the curses
OF the men mingled in q turmoil and struggle
for life ensued among the affrighted beings
who had been thus rudely shaken from their
pleasant slumber to contemplate the norrid
imminence OF death. Therewas rush for the
doors to the forward decks, aud q struggle be-
tween the living masses, desperately forciug
their way from the close atmosphere Of the
saloons to seek the air, and IL poss ible, safety
within. The women. unattended by their
frightened gal1ants, ran to ind fro shrieking z
loudly. irresolutely flying hther and thither,
unconscious OF all about them, and incapable
OF exercising their reason II the emergency.
The alarm and CONSERVATION were heightened
by The appearance Of the passengers from the
cabins in The hold of the vess,I, W no rushed 10
the upper decks with the startling intelligence
that there was already, at aat time, a foot OF
water In the lower cabin, and that 1t was still
rising.
Many, however, had slept guietly in their
berths throughout all this coumotion, and sew
eral persons who had preserved their presence
OF mind in the midst of ali the danger and ex.
element busted themselves With breaking in
the doors of the rooms andstirring up the
slee epsrs to a realization Of thar dreadful situ-
alton. Meanwhile the VandebiIt had turned
about and run down alongstie OF the Dean
Richmond, which was sinking very rapidly.
Such Of the passengers as wer on the for ward
decks, or hanging on by the Guards along the
side OF the boat leaped overheard at once,
taking the greatest risks Of bang crushed or
drowned in their eaeerness to escape from the
tated vessel. The cabins were still quite fun
OF agoEized women and frightened men. and
there seemed 10 be no doubt that the majority
would be taken down with tie boat, which
The crew Of the Vanderbilt and number
OF the passengers OF the Richmond worked
des perately to save those still remaining on
board The state room windows were broken
in, and through these majonty Of the lad les
were taken, the most Of them being without
any other clothing than their hight dresses. In
this manner large number ofthose on board
were taken off
About this time. however, two passing
schooners sent off their boas and took off
quite number, and rescued one man who
was forced to swim from the injured steamer.
By this time the Vanderbilt aad been pretty
heavily laden with the addition of the parties
saved from the Richmond and besides, it was
learned that the Vanderbilt, toe, had been bad
ley damaged, and was ieakingat a rats that
wi, h the Richmond IL any more passen gers
were taken aboard. The Captsin OF the Van
derbilt, therefore. reluctantly hauled off and
headed mp the river, lea wing number OF per-
sons still on board the i'll. fate boat.
The Drew coming along on her trip from
Albany, however, received the saved passen.
gers from the Vanderbilt and the two schoon.
els, and proceeded on her way 10 this city
where she arrived at half. past seven o'clock
this morning
It is supposed that several hands on the
Richmond were drowned, and several others
are missing; but nothing definite has been
learned as yet In regard 10 the loss OF life, il
any, by the accident. The Dean Richmond
sunk in half an hour after she was struck
her upper guaros are out OF water. Captain
Curtis and the crew remained on board TO the
last. Two persons are reported lost; one is g
passenger name unknown, and the ether is
one OF the colored stewards. Up to the pres.
ent writing, fortunately. only three lives are
supposed TO be lost
NRw YORK, Sept. 22.-Further particulars
ct the less OF the Dean Richmond leave but
little doubt that the number Of lives lost by
the disaster is greater than at first reported. 1t
is stated by a waiter that when the after cabin,
below the main deck, was half full OF water
he saw only one man come out, although peo.
pie were sleeping there.
A fireman named Ryan ana a waiter name d
ManDus are reported missing. Wreckers are
at work on the Dean Richmond, and she has
been hauled three quarters Of a mile further
up the river.