St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1871-08-04
A Frightful Catastrophe
rj:TY PERSONS KILLED, AND ONE HUNDRED
AND TWENTY-FIVE WOUNDED.


explosion, shivcring the whole upper
works of the boat into Il thousand pieces,
md laying open the whole forward part
# the hulk from the very keel. The
spectacle on the i'll iated vessel after the
.Nplosion WIS beyond description y
.rcal yawnin" abyss stretched from abatt
he engine room close TO the stern, and
he deck seemed to have opened like a
,cpulchrr 10 swallow lis precious Inln;'n
.rei.ht intU the dark hold beneath. The
lead and dying were y Ins nbo;'t in every
direction among tIi, debris oi broken
iimhcrs, splintcrS and heavy machinery.
From amid~hips to cutwat.r lie boat
presented a vast hold filled with fra.
mcnt, OF spar, hcah-, iiouiin", buiwark~
and fragments, OF IRON. How many h..'i
les still lie beneath the ruins III that fear
Jul hold, it Is impossible 10 tell They
are bringing them ont every hour. Many
persons, and a. in the case ri l'r"i. Mar
chi Chcmvicr of Brnoklyn, were blown
bodily into the river, falling into the WA
ter. Some have been hauled ont 10y boat
men with hooks and otherwise, AMI 4
large party i; now engaged IN dtig''n'%
the bottom, constantly finding bodies
\ TERRIBLE SCENE.
The scene was utterly in,lr~cribahlc.
In the slip lay the dism1nll'd hull, sur
rounded 10y heavy cloud OF dust, steam
and smoke On the ducES on either side
were the dead bodies Of those who had
been blown thiihrr. with pieces 81 boiler
iron. huge beams ri OAK and shattered
limbs. ilIc hail OF the Wc~iiirId was Il
complete wreck Forward OF tn wheel
house the upper works OF the boat. even
t. the side raiIii.s, were shattered int"
fragments, some q! which had been blown
to great distances, while others h1I llIl
eli into the hold Of the boat. The h1Ii,I
had lrok,n inio pieces, which .vii Ia AL
directions. some OF !hrm hiiiim@ an!
wounding numbers ot iho.a VI" MI.
standing a!ruut mil-hii>. The dag "".
warm and .uIiry, and naturally when
the passengers went CA hoard most "i
them crowded to The forward pa; Of IL
~ a..
AZ ''' H. |.,,.'| 49,,
49, ~ ,1n',,I,, f.,..,..,r1 In. .,cr, -,
!, .,',,.',.,,;,.l H. ,,..;.,i.,..I
Wv '''''''
hi.-' EiiIi"N ~ 'f'. "''N'.'9''
those vino Witnessed the fearful -. II IS
LAY that the c>p!"~'"m was H'''mi'I'' Il
10y three distinct reports, ~ihiilr III -o'lir'
To the report ol @untoWd'r "Api"i'i. 'h
AN mclo,cd space. y tn Ia! duIi tim.
was heard, fragments oi the wreck ami
human bodies were seen t" mount hi2i
in the AR with fearful N"l"rl!y, ani i!'l
TO lail mt" the water ~ "n i'' rI''+ 'i
either -,ir-
The hurricane does, m'I-' 81 Inn! 'l
probably thirty 10y iliy i'rt, WAS l'!i'|
bodily from the Vessel, raised TO ia,
hight OF twenty or twenty-five i''.i, ";d
then icll into the water near the e! "i
the Sip. linen cam" 4 cloud ct -in'''
and hot steam, and Ill" >r'Hr WAS Tor Il
moment Invisible t" the hoIrIlI'd "y'i'n'.
crS l'nt when the smoke cleared away
- i.NE On li'l'h'l'
Too intense for description WAS prr.rnt
~ Thnr. Inv fla. Ji,u,,utl.l hn,l It'll
L.,ri,,. :, rnriion of her Ii,ipo ir,i.hi
Will. ,r,nrJ L,r .tru,oIin., in III. wa
for wore. 1T least two hundred person
Of all aces and both sexes. Ginning t,
th, side rail, at tlir Stern If the boat wcr
many terrified women, some of them sui
icring intensely from >cal,i-. Thee @ar'
vent to their fright ami suit rin@ in h';ut
rcndins screams, which were ,wrlird b.
the @roams OF the w"nniei and dJIn2 II
the cabins, on drrk and IN thr i"rwHr'
hold, and ma"nilivi INTO very label
a.onilirg centurion by the outcr".- q
,I,,.., ~, Ia, ,,..r,. .tru,nlin,. far Ili. in Il,