Clarksville chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 186?-1872, 1868-12-11
THE STEAMBOAT DISASTER.
Loss Of the Ohio River Float
ing PALACES. Il
Burning or the United States
and America.
Terrible destruction Of Hu-
~ ' man Life. n AN
CrNcINNATr, Sunday Morning,

One OF Ine most tefriuie caiUfn1tieS
whicheveriecc,Tred on the Western
waters happened en- friday night,
near Warsaw, Kentucky, about six
ty-five miles from. Cincinnati. The |
United States, of the Louisville mail |
line, struck the America upon her |
bow, and in moment almost both |
vessels were the scene of death iniits |
most appalling shape. - So tii
The river where the catastrophe oc-
Cured, is nearly or quite equal in
breadth to the distance between Gin
cinnati and Covington. Both boats
were heavily laden and crowded with
passengersof both sexes and all ages.
A part of the cargo OF the United
States consisted of petroleum, ranged
in Barrels upon the deck, and imme-
diately after the collision the Goals
from the furnace reached the oil, and
the vessel was soon aenvelopetll in
flames. Pie women and children
were peacefully sleeping The cool
waters quietly Tapped the sides of the
steamers, butin an instant all was
changed. Tongues of FIRE Ieaped from
from deck to deck, and to add to the
horror, the river was covered with a
sea of flame. It seems an almost un-
natural combination Of horrors, but
when the gloom ofthe night was dis
PEELED the frightened passengers hasti-
~ and half clad, rushing from the
cabins saw all around them d sea Of
liquid fire. lil2 Eniiss5,@ l3A i'7
Martyrs have passed through fire
to the gates of Paradise contrasting to
their faith, but on Friday night 1t was
not So lUnprepared or not, more
than forty souls were hurried IN agony
to meet their Judge. lltH ~
There We're tive bridal parties upon
one of the boats That very morn-
ing the pledge binding them together
niThey were imperilled, but by the
providence of God they escaped the
iiery flood. Another, when the YES
sci sank, threw her two children into
the water and then leaped into the
river to swim with them TO the land,
or die with them If she could not save
! them. I4 i.y'"" iu Af@ih
A husband calmly fastened life
belt around the waist of his young
wife and then dragged her through
fire and water ashore. -N " igA
Another passenger tells us that
upon being awakened by the crash,
he half dressed and rushed upon deck.
A mixed throng Of men and women
swayed hither and thither, all con.
; fused and few seeming capable Of de-
vising any plans for escape. Twice
he fell under the pressure Of the heav-
ing mass, and twice he regained his
footing, and then burned and bruised
he precipitated himself into the burn
ing waters and contrived to reach the
, shore. p" ~ ',''i
The steamer C, F. Dumont was
sent about teno clock yesterday morn
ing to the scene Of the disaster, and
returned about half past twelve last
+ night. She had scarcely touched the
wharf, when q young girl, scarcely
seventeen years OF age, leaped on
board and asked for a gentleman
: whose name, we did not learn.
Captain Wade says that the boat
/ left with only 65 passengers on board
, 10 of whom were ladies'. Seven o.
tiitse fatry passengers are niIowII 70
be saved. ..,
l ~ THE COLLISION.
/ The collision occurred about .
n quarter past ii o'clock. The Ameri-
ca struck the United States little
aft the capstan, cutting deeply into
$ her bow. The forward guards of the
!. United States were taken up, with
|, OLA quality of freight which re
quires to be carried where the air will
: get at it. Almost simultaneously witt
e the collision, the flames arose from
!, the bow of the United States, reach.
4 ing as high rs the hurricane roof. /
flashed up like the explosion of gun
. powder. The fire ran up the boat
! stairway, and within a very few min
n utes the whole forward part of the
h boat was on fire, the flames leapine
: up as high as the tops of her chin
% neys. The wind was blowing VI
Q stream and directly against the heat
> of the United States, and drove thu
:, fire right into her cabin, and it wa
: not more than two minutes until !
EXTENDED to the aft of the steamer
e and the whole cabin and the uppe
, ldeck of the boat We're in flames. +. Is
< HowTHE FIRE ORIGINATED. =
= The fire originated from a lighte,
=. lamp that was setting in the bow 0
:, the United States. The shock of tn,
IL collision burst some Of the oil barrels
e. and the oil took fire from lamp
II The boats struck with full head on
re- and so violent and tremendou
was the shock That the bow iof tn
y America was driven into theEuard
NJ of the United States to her cal box
IN One passenger on the United State
10 says that the progress of DIE fr
from the bow up the United Shtes T.
re the stern, was about as fast asa MAJ
m could walk. t,....i.l.i.. 4, ,n. Il
m The America, after striking th'
va United States, began to back toyar'
y the Indiana shore, and the Unitet
X States swung round so hat Htl
y; boats were alongside each othpH-
- Then the flames were communiglket
:, to the America in the toward patio
her cabih, but, ~ the wind was blow
as ing up stream, did not spread over I'll
o. boat very rapidly. The two boa
H. We're not over one hundred wards fioi
y the Indiana shore when the eollisio
" occurred. The two boats comm
so alongside undoubtedly enabled man
ch on the United States to escape thi
ed would not otherwise, probably, ha'
!, been saved. A large number of u
We passengers leaped from the cab
In guards of the America, then almo
lee completely enyeloped in flames, \
NJ the lower deck of tho America, al
!, got in SO near the shore, where 81
hu burned to tho waters edge. The pill
lite of the United States, who romain'
ON at his post Ia the last moment, o
n, deavored to run her into the Indlal
y. shore, but as the boat was in sin
~ ing condition, he was unable to ma
lot age her, and she settled down but
he short distance from where the coll
ion occurred. -rs.,,i
no CAPTAIN wHIrTEN's sTATENEN
,yo Captain Written, of the Amerit
"" was IN the pilot house lust before Z