New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-03-31
The Crescent City Horror.

| City disaster arrived in this city yesterda
| morning, on the City of ticksbI g. ShOrtl
after the arrival of the boat, Times r
porter went aboard, and was handed th
| list of the surviving passengers. They art
| Pat. Bacon. second engineer; James Et
| boy; George E. Tu'ly, steward; Lizzie Ross
| chambermaid James OConner, cabin boy
! w. P. Hall, Edward Hall. Georoe Hail. A
| Hall. Oracle Hall, DR.. James Hall, Cell
| Starshaw, and George Lancaster, a" of tn
| trading boat IN tow Of the Crescent City a
| the time of the explosion. In addition t
| these are the following OF the crew: Heur,
Murphy, Jack Lackey H. Alenstein, A
Welsch, Frank Maher. C. Harrison, Allie,
| Cooper, NJ. Dayner, Tom McQuaid, j. Nil
Ter, NJ. Smith, A. Saver. A. Jones, J. Thom
as. j. Robinson, Jim Harris, D. Han lis, anl
| A. Acher.
The portion of Captain Ostranders re
mains which were recovered from the
wreck also came up on the boat. The
upper and lower parts OF the body are en-
| tirely blown away. nothing remaining but
| mere fragment. 1t was placed in meta lie
case at Memphis, and on it's arrival here
was Immediately given over to his friends
who viii give it a the attention of a proper
burial
A dispatch from Captain Good yesterday
states that the bodies of Mrs. Ostrander,
William Mundy and the colOred body. have
been sent to Memphis, and will probably ar.
rive in this city TO-DAY by rail. The death
OF Ostrander, together with that Of his
wife, has been terrible blow to their tam
lily Of six orphans. Together with this are
other circumstances which leave them des-
t,tute Of the resources necessary to sustain
them through the long lapse of a dreary
future. They will doubtless be taken II
charge by the friends of the deceased, who
will make all the necessary provisions until
such time as they are able to do for them
selves.
Two of the Hall family sustained injuries
which are thought not likely to prove fatal.
1t was thought that George Van Houton,
pilot, would arrive on the Vicksburg, but
his injuries were such that the physicians
advised his detention in Memphis. His hip
was dislOcated and during the passa ge on the
Phil Allen every effort to replace the joints
was fruitless. Wi''iam Briggs, first engi-
neer, also remained at Memphis. His time
there will be chiefly occupied with the in
spectors.
The most noteworthy among the arrivals
yesterday was Pat Bacon. the second engi.
neer, who was in the pilot house at the
time of the explosion. He was found IA the
afternoon by Times reporter, reclining on
sofa. 1t is unnecessary to say that the
representative of the Times was warmly
received by Pat and his accomplished lady
The reporter was seated, and ascertained
the following particulars:
On the morning OF the explosion the cap
tain had put off two men at White liver,
and while there received some papers. Hav-
ing come Oft watch at seven o'clock, he
took one of the papers after breakfast and
went up to the pilot house to read. 1T was
then about eight o'clock. The captain was
n fhQ Yli1nf hnnsa aS fha opI aSEoI
hum about fuel. He said he didn't know
much about the quantity Of fuel on the
barge, whf the captain started out on the
barges to see how much fuel there was on
board. In a short tune he returned, and
had about got in r's Office when the boilers
gave way. That was the last he had seen
of the captain. George Ven Houton was at
the wheel. and with him in the pilot house
were Mr.. Hall and his two sons. The three
were sitting in the after end, and he
BacOn) was leaning aganst the sash Of the
star arboard window, reading paper, when,
suddenly, the plot house and a. were Efted |
about twenty feet high, and they all tell !
into the hole caused by the explosion.
When he looked up he saw part of the |
pilot-house coming down, and was so |
wedged in that he could only hold down his |
head and receive the weight on the back of |
his neck and shoulders.
AAoNAuey 1oA tuHdtClN, CAlIltdLcu IL, |
he jumped into the river and gained a log |
IN which he rested while taking off his coat,
md then swan toward the fuel barge. He !
was nigh exhausted in the water before he |
vas taken on the barge. Van Houton and
,thers climbed up on the .pbers and got |
N the after-end of the boat, where they re-
NAMED until rescued.
The hands were so excited that he had
.reat difficulty in preventing them from
oil -ivr 41,a al &I.. 4
'arges were all atire, except the fuel boat,
nd having cut the ropes lie ordered the
nen to get poles and shove it off from the
turning boat. They got into the stream
nd drifted down until they were towed
shore by the Allen.
A few minutes after the accident there
'ere over hundred people on the bank,
mo rushed on the barge and began the
Tork OF plunder. He said they were worse
han set of ravenOus wolves who rush
own from the mountains and devour every
hing that comes in their way. One indi-
idual picked up the arm of Ostrander and
ripped the finger Of gold ring. Mr.. Hall
elected the theft and forced him to give |
up.
Benumbed as he was with cold and
ruises, he couldn't get one in the crowd to |
TRY him upon the bank. After the explo-
on occurred he could not find one large
ece of timber. Everything was blown
to particles. He had seen explosions
here there would be some large timbers
it, but in this case the fsrce was SO terrific
at the pieces falling resembled a shower
rain. His opinion is that Captain Daw- {
n was torn into atoms. The thing was so
lick and decisive that none Of those who r
ere killed could realize the transition from ,
9 to death. He speaks very highly of
RS. Ostrander, with whom he had had
nversatiOn that incoming at breakfast on q
Q boat. :
He cites it as remarkable instance that s
lille at breakfast he, Mr.. Ostrander and I
J wife, were speaking about the average
lgth of a mans life, when Ostrander re-
arked that his time ought to be up now,
ice he was past forty, and his wife .
lghed at him. An hour and a half after b
lrd Captain Ostrander was hurled into n
.rnity.
Mr.. Bacon also states that William Mundy
IS passenger on the boat; that he had D
en- IN New Orleans for two or three weeks a
ing to get a position, and did not sue. T
ID. lie was sick IN his room at the time =
the explosion, and was blown through CT
bulkhead. Mundy was very we'll
own'amOng river men, and was married | in
put year ago. Bacon further states :,
It the sound OF the explosion was heard GO
Helena, ten miles OF. as hundreds of st
'ple rushed on the Allen as she was
wing for the scene. The direction of the h,
,losion was downward and toward the ~
board bow. He thinks the bottom was al
apletely blown out, as the boat sank sq
lost Immediately. or
t is probable that the machinery will be
ed. but the boat herself will prove a NC
Al loss. Bacon is unable to assign any r.
tcular reason Tor the explosion. The ca
t was going along as usual, carrying the
mary quantity of steam, and he feels tis
fident that the boilers were all tight, as
had examined them that morning before