, 1869-02-18
APPALLING DISASTER.
DuIn'ug Of tho Steamer DIitlto
Stephens.
sixtY-Three LIVES Lost-0sigin Of the Fira
and Dftonptson Of the DiAatte,.

A1u UtkulIPL3uu Y! VIC 04eAlst1a
From the New Orleans Times, Fcn.1l
Dnring the past two days the public nlud
hus b> cu occupied with Que Ut those who E.
suie cala1n!tles which have occurred by the |
hundred Gu Western waters In the last f0Y |
years, which has wrapped Ia flames magnla |
ccnt floating palaces as If by stagc 1nachlu. |
cry, apu which las sent boats like the United |
States. the Magnolia, Fashion md inuumera- |
bic Others which no recollection can rcnem.
ber, 10 swift uud speedy destruction.
Il WIS On the 5th ot the present month
that the Alttie Stephens, whose loss We arc
now called upon to record, left this po1t.
She had then been five or Eli years u scf,
vice. having bctn bronshl here In 1868, aud
put upon the coast trade, with \. c. Goddiu'
Of the " lid Wegouer, as her commando;
a year or 80 after She Wps transferred to Red
River was valued ut uhout $ls,ooo, ard ~
Aured For sAoao: He5 ; master 1't and J pah5s A.
ill.lated Una. Her pilot was Pete 5utheF'
IL, d, twho was on the Glide nj the recent IT.
1,losi: n, and the only pilot saved, and VINO
had previously run upon a-o.her unloFtu-
na1c bout.) Another pilot was Nm. swain.
The acting first clcrk was Mr.. GsoTee
Ktemtr, II no was lost, and who bud for the
trip taktn the place Of Cad. Hays, tue
proper clerk. The other clerks were Messrs.
ilet thorn and Cline, and who are now known
| to have been saved.
1T tue lime the accident occurred the
| Mlttle stephens was on her way to Jefferson,
| Texas with large consignment Of goyefh-
ment stores on board, some SSo, ,oo In specie.
| perhaps some money in gzecn1ncks tor pay
ipg oil two OF three regiments upon thu from
| tier, mud latge amount OF hay. The hay
was placed, Us is frequently done, four tiers
| tlrrp urop the boiler deck. The danger from
the occidental itnition OF this mass of !ntaln-
| mable materia1 was not unknown TO the pas
SINGERS, but appears 10 have occasionsd no
| protest.
On Thursday the A1ittie Stephens had
reached shreveport. (the last poi.t on the
Red River uavieahlc owing TO the ran thir
ty miles atovc.) aud had now turned aside
into the network Of bayuus, lakes aud "a:
Euons which connect Shreveport ano Jcl
fcrson City. 1t was to this latter point ant '!
thu Inst one affair ab}e by boats from tut
city, that the Mittie stephens WAS maklut
VII. u The accident occurred. -.-
At that time she had already gone NOR
THAI hull the distance b.twe.n Shrevepor
aud Jtncreon-that Is, had left the now cho
I'd up current OF Rcd River altogether. UNI
spled ths,ush UeSota Lake into Lak
Callo. Thu hitter hody Of Watc
lies purity in olth d9uIsa1s na {!ha Gar,,x e
, Texas, and Is fourteen miles lung nnd scve
| wide. -.
: at IN carly t!nur sn the unfortunate boat, an
: | the ttat tsc, grrs-a hundred In lumbcr-atlt
o occupying thems Ives iu thu Iuauucs usual
!. those vic huvc hccn several days on t'oar
OF a bout, had retired. AS early as Q o'cloc
tho eatoons tlnd begun to grow thin. at
% they were deserted, With tue exception I
= pcrhans here aud thcrc parry at poker, M
IS hy l2 q clock or r.tdl igat, as the boat ",
: sill Ior.y miles from j ttcrson, and With .
prospect al rrarhng there before dayhgh
ihere wRn scarcely any one stirring beyond Il
r, RI tRul.rl. appoluted watch.
Tie boat was. It Is now supposed, tatlt1'
>. although the water wni teu feet deap Ia
Il riuu. paris Of the lake, through tho ma
It ctnuurl Tia. Il, through what In d.
N weather, and whtn Tho lake IL 10 large c
D. tent urltd up, constitutes bayou. The ta
!, Tint large number Of c5ptess tree STUN
ign,lun o,lles~isc dangerous. sup msts t.
supposi lun. What confI1ns the pcllrt tA
Tor The main clannci wAs taken Is tAR. l,nats
o. high walcr push stTn'gi't ILL uugh 1t with
hi llLtlu trouble 10 lite pilots.
IN TIE ALARM Or FIRE.
p1e It was rrrci-cly ut this Aour OF midi tx
lIy when the pas tnEcrs aud cr:w "erc buried
slunlber, tlRt tho cry ot lro wss heard
~ ~, lllc u,a.rrl boat-thc most startling ana
~. ,ib.c TINT can be- ralAeu ulm1 ht'y Kind
plo ytttcl cut III from communication Hi.h
ley sIltrc. llic lact that atly alarm 1t nll
~ plyrn meant c'tiail drnth !ur large III
- Srr. The eituutUr Was such rs alur'st
;;anl ;nl' preclude c.rapr. II III tho tnt'snlaahlc e.
en Rvlct VI lile uart,,. and the iAra that no ol
Al bout wn. m t}tWi. What huuru ss1ll II
liz pupl,,z.,.g lrAt,,rr 10 III, cnlami'r WAS
sHcdeut,ekr OF Tin s4slun u trntb which
d. tlnintt,s rustcngrfs. n~aknne.a ~ tl'c.
,,., sram aeep k1r"l', "cru called nI"n to
nsn ftuttt. ,--..,-
''"'' ,,,r, tlr wtnrtrd I'M! asra Ind rrnItxrl
II rrr plu AID siulritt HrAth "ha awning
fo,r twu out ~ every tnrsh Ai"tl t'naf'!,
~ srr,,r lint nlL.~.it nuas 1,nxr httM h'.l
'A"' and appalling ii thr last slrgftF. 1he az
trsl tAnt l'H's t:hete" ~ ~, ~ so II, H. ,',a,Inn,i
rni,t,,*r that nm line "As iTet III tirta.
Thai woMer and children wcre Filnnl'
every din elton like rtIl!d Bperlrca. '
r.h'v aulea!iLg fur a help which wunld
"''' Another feature which attended the {
,o.cd Of tlr.e uni, rltluate rlc' inns was thu slo'
atro. Of The Jcat1-itu og0hlzlug suspense '
ae a! they wire callvd upon 10 undergo IN
ltl1 r,rr nrcft]ept. nt,yr, tont6-ior Inst an
. .:ti ais' c1rlosfoA.--tht sudden and uncxpecte
,n.' ,,,Hs ot the calauily dlvest It Of nre elcnc
::i moi horror. supposi. Z that be passcnEe. ct
obce the lsuger Is oyef-there is thcT
asu!y Ut II. else to fear; or, ordinarily, when q
., catches fire, 1t Is, perhaps. In the . J.
uaray anu ~ /, asr .ns - s~,,, or rnn thc
Id+n's aatlorc- ...........
ensoa In lhc present ca the passengers
:.lny. weo were unable. or had mol the pre.et
very mud, to save themselves By honllug,
a;sh- aa.n.,cii.d IN Al orr dra1h steldity III LII
apple 49, ..s - .t,rr1- a. .,u,.d IN e
d. arc ally retrcat to the rear us the tamt
-Tfo. vanced, and fina1ls leap to certain de4t
Has the black waters belo =. ... .
y aco Why, II will now be asked, was nc
III; II boat run to the shorc? The answer t
apes. -. @ ta,n"1 .ieca1v -rE.rrtd Ia Y
.1cmpt shallow to admit OF close approach
n ret. | low swa1n{y shorr. The boat, in all
AIDED bility, grounded In attempting some
e,,,, movement. .-...
-rfte ctia .ue 1s, nHn'o 49, h.@o att,fd.
:-ass are 10 1he Inc ouEn' " pase 49, -
it f1rst | passengers 1o!h. once sacs nau
r-llaa them. until daybrcak. The first duty
&c tim CAPTAIN which, doubtless, was PeTlol
u; M: was TO throw overheard cVsry hale
that could ne res cued from the t!atncs
Bs,nty. duor, shutter and ltsc-preserser, anu
torn, nj the samc time. the passenger
ihcy had IL d., to rave llIe Supposis
this va- prccau iers to have been taken, and
Il rot bale Of hoy ought to support fo1lr o: Il
- y % r., =" that people from the surrounding
. OF 'tt he were eton attracted By the asmes !:
eLo3sh | situation and Fenuerea uelP' ~
10 cul. easy to understand how So man
tree tins mt o watcrv crave. What
n ea8sy' SINGULAR, too, is thst some Of tho
gers IN board, who nre known, like
ear u4,, clerk, or Sir. N. A. Broad~ell lone
:. nu.hsi largest cotton buyc's in the city),
&c pQoE | DNcH 1uEu !" cAIS 1IAeSt 9tt1A4A 4AaA -
not w.eh 1shcd by The accfdtDt. The fact that
!ssha' SINGERS were asleep and that Eome
NJ a as{w {o- perishtd in til. flames, accounts tJr
"a aonje the number, but By no means all.
s1bcz.t One thirg. howeyt-, l. certain, thI
on tro cphens bad ut the ttmo OF the
mnffe than hundred souls on board
- Enca passengers aud crew at the time Of
! ns taks s; dert, and Of that number cnly foI
es.s,;sis mere saved. The remaining slxty-ft
isbcd By drowning, OF, still uore Mist
the general holocaust oil the
cken eft. aud the carpscs Of these, as those ="
!; neves e1'cd upon many other uell.kpoWu {
"a tfee. are aouht!css nt tiis moment ben
enc ~ sluggish and sul1cn waters Of the lak
&c eZCt. --'---~ ~~-S--
QualtJ THE n1fTA1,AS ESTA
Bsgart-
cnltiv3. - ~ 81
Domtne. | IL tsrsT0 III HtoeAt soa VI ~
wig, ben S>rpheA n. Douglas.
':ry Rus rnt,e E;,to, of rhe Chfc.ro Tribune
/ &@xh II