The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1868-12-25

vouring element. About nine O'Clock
AN. q fire broke outin the old Bull
Head property, en- Main Street, be-
yond the passenger depot. and despite
the efforts Of the fire department,
that spacious building, which had
been put in very thorough repair
some three years since, was entirely
consumed. The fire originated in the
upper portion Of the building, to the
rear, probably from defective hue,
and spread with such rapidity, the
house being a frame, that the entire
building was enveloped in flames by
the time the engines got fairly to
work.
The Third Street Engine got the
first water on the burning building,
and the Vine Street EDgine was also
soon at work. The Union Engine
got as far as the Court House on
Main Street, when in attempting to
get off the track of the street rail-
road, the forward axle broke short
off, and the engine was disabled. The
other engines did good work, but the
same fortune attended their lahors as
usual. The cisterns became exhausted
about the time they had sot the lanes
ehe elzad, and 81 he time they chang
Cd locations che IRE had revived to
such an extent thai all efforts to save
the building proved Intellectual. They,
however, succeeded, in saving the ad
iacent stables, which were filed with
hay, and IN dangerous proximity to
the burning building. Had these
stables taken Ere tho destruction
would have been widespread and
disastrous.
The building was occupied by
family named Young, as a boarding
house, who, with the help Of neigh
bors and citizens generally, succeeded
in saving almost all their furniture
and household goods The house
belonged to Mr.. Carpenter, but had
been leased for twenty years by VIM.
S. Shannon, who had made the i'm
provements to the premises. The
loss we have heard estimated at IS ,000,
aud was, We are told, insured in the
Phenixiof Brooklyn, represented here
by George Stackaouse. for $4,000
Mr.. Young lest a few bushels of
apples by fire AID by pilferjng boys,
but his.householdg goods were handled
with more than usual care, and were
but little damaged. The family OBJ
tanned another house fortunately, AID
were moving to It yesterday afternoon.
THE VoLANT DIsAsTER.-We were
pleased to see Captain Morris, Of the
i'll fated Yolant, on the stFeet again
yesterday, but iittle The worse from
the effects of the explosion OF the
Yolant; and we are also glad to learn
that Alfred Cooper, brother Of David
Cooper, was scarcely injured at all.
From Dir. Morris, Sen, one of the
owners Of the Volant, we learn that
the explosion was more terrible in
force and effect than was at first sup
posed. The bottom and the upper
deck of the boat, for nearly two-thirds
its whole length, were entirely blown
off, letting the machinery fall into the
river, aud leaving nothing of the boat
except a small portion of the bow and
the two sides.
David Cooper, the engineer, was
sitting 10 the cabin reading one of the
New York weeklies, and from ten to
twelve feet forward of the boiler. Al
fred Cooper was standing by the table,
preparing dinner, and not more than
three feet from the boiler. Morris
had, a moment before, stepped out of
the pilot house to get a drink, and
had just returned to the pilot house,
aud in his haste had taken his posi-
ton on the larboard side of the pilot,
when properly he should have been
on toe starboard side. To this mad
! vertenee Morris probably owes his
lie, for al that very moment the ex-
| plosion occurred. He and David
Cooper we're blown forward, and
alshted, one on each side Of
the capstan. When Morris came
TO himself he saw Cooper
| lying by him, his face, and head man
gied and bleeding, as he supposed
dead. Morris stepped aft 60 look for
Alfred Cooper. and saw him in the
water, endoavoring to reach the
shore He again went forward TO get
some article to throw to Alfred to as
sist him ashore. AZ this moment the
boat careened over, almost on her
beams cnd, when the body Of David
Cooper commenced rolling toward
the side Of the boat. Morris attempt
ed 10 catch il, but failed, ana the
BODY rolled into the river aud sunk
without motion or a struggle.
1t is supposed that the end of thc
boiler blew to fragments, and some oi
those struck Cooper in the head
killing him instantly, as several o.
these fragments We're found on the
upper deck OF the boat, close by tn,
spot where he allighted.
The cause of the explosion viii, Of
course, never be positively knosn
except from inference. An examias.
ton of the wreck shows no signs o
muddy watsr, and it IS inferred tina
there was no water in the boiler. an,