The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1871-08-03
Fearful Disaster at New York.

the Battery at 30 this afternoon, with
heavy load composed mainly the usual class
of Sunday excursionists, to the number OF
about 300, the boiler burst with tremendous
explosion, shivering the entire upper works
of the boat into thousand pieces, and laying
open the whole forward part of the hull from
the keel. The spectacle on the Inflated YES
sci subsequent to She explosion is beyond
description.
A great yawn;ng abyss stretched from abaft
the engine-room close to the stern, aud the
deck seemed to have opened like asepulchre to
swallow it's load of precious human freight in
the hole beneath The dead and dying
we're lying about in every direction among the
debris of broken timbers, splluters and heavy
machinery. From alnidships to the cutwater
the boat presents vast hole filed with frag-
ments of spears, beams and bulwarks and
fragments Of iron. How many bodies still
Law beneath the ruins IN that fearful hole it is
impossible as yet to tell They are bringing
them out every hour Many persons, as IN
Brooklyn, were blown bodily into the air, fall
ing into the water. Some have been hauled
out by boatmen with hooks, and otherwise,
aud a large party arc now engaged IN drag
ging the bottom, and are constantly finding
bodies.
Men, women and children, still alive, are
brought in scorched an9 bruised and mutt
lated to such degree that it seemed almost
impossible that life could remain. AmonS
the dead lay the body of man with the back
of his head absolutely blown off. 1t is said
by some to be the fireman. One man, John
Major, the pilot, was thrown from the toward
pilot house twenty feet in the air, falling on
the boat and escaping without scratch.
ANOTHER ACCOUNT
The following is later account of the fer
ry boat disaster The first bell had just rung
when the explosion was heard The scene
Of confusion and horror which resulted baf-
fes description. The boiler burst, carrying
away tho whole part Of the boat in front of the
steampi pc, and scattering the debris on all
sides Men, women, and children, horses,
wagons b yards, and chairs were hurled in the
all Nothing escaped that was on the for
w~rd part of the boat
The passengers in the rear rushed for the
entrance en- massc, but very few escaped with
out some injuries The scene was frightful,
|
and portions of the wreck fell among the pas
sengers and increased the confuson Many
people fell in the river. and being uaable to
help themselves, were drowned. Boiling wa
ter was scattered in all directions. scalding
those who were unable 10 get out of its reach
The wind was blowing inward at the time,
and forced the water on the part of the boat
near the dock, where the greater portion Of
the passengers had fed to- The injured per-
sous were taken to the Park Hospital, to the
fist district station-house and to Bellevue.
A great number were taken to the ho<pi-
tai in the park, which was soon filled; and they
were forced to send the reminder to Bellevue.
The screams Of the W ,undcd were heart rend-
ing, and the hospitals was terrible scene to be-
hold The wounded were lying everywhere.
some in beds, some on blankets, and Others
were walking around groaning, moaning and
crying. In. Bellevue Hospital at - o'clock
there were ~ bodies in colfins. aud ten on
frightluily scaldcd large patches Of skin b.
ing torn off in many places The most rcli-
able returns ofthc casualties give the total
number of killed at so, and wounded about
800
/
RADICAL FINANc1ERING.-l the people
of Virginia wish to see the beauties Of Rad
ical financiering, and also to learn from what
they have escaped, in clectiug Conservative
Legislature, aud what they may yet escape,
by preserving the Conservative organization
in the State, let them ponder the following
! figures
The taxes collected in Texas for the sup
port Of the State government in 1860 are
given as S454So4. In 1867, under the
Andy johnson restoration Of civil govern
mcnt, they were 1914, 2O8 For this year,
1871, the assessments are IS 837 ,953 In
1860 the tax rate was 124 cents per 800;
in 1867 it was lG cents; and now it is So :
IS. 1t is not remarkable that paper pub
listed in the region tormented by reconstruc-
ton observes: s'Thc patience of the South
ern people is a marvel in the history Of op-
PRESTON
La Tennessee in 1871, with diminution
Of seventy eight and half millions in the
value Of property, the State debt has been
augmented sevenfo!d In 1861 the rate of
taxation was Is cents per 800, aud 35 cents
on each poll In 1871 the rate of taxation
is so cents per 500 on property, and 5
cents on each poll, for school purposes.
The State debt has to be paid. There is
no getting over it. If VIC are not willing TO
pay it, we will be made to do So That is
the long and short Of it, and the least said
about it the better. Let the people lop off
all unnecessary expenses -economize to the
last farthing, and the burden will not assume
sach huge and trightful proportions We
spend enough in superfuities, which do more
harm than good to the physical man, to
meet the annual interest on the debt
In Shelby county, Indiana, on the Both,
Henry Ellington, who had been paying atten-
tons to Miss Lizzie Smith, made a final pro-
posal of marriage. He was rejected; where
upon he seized the girl, threw her to the
ground, anil stamped and beat her so severe