The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1879-11-15
HORRORS.

70
ON land and sea, though as to the particular
/ horrors of the past week which we are about
to mention, they might as well have happened
: in midsummer, so far as wind and weather are
concerned.
COLLISION AT SEA.
On Friday morning of last week, just at
break of day, frightful collision occurred OIL
the Delaware capes, IN the Atlantic, not over
forty miles from Lcwcs. The iron steamer
Champion, Of the regular line between New
York and Charleston, while proceeding on her
regular southwark course in a calm sea with
clear sky, was suddenly run INTO by the sail.
ing IRON vessel Lady Octavia, sailing north
ward, with a cargo of coffee from Rio Janeiro.
Though the officers of both vessels admit that
there was no very heavy fog at the time-noth-
ing in short to prevent the vessels from seeing
each other in time to AVOID collision, so neg
ligent had they been in the matter Of a look
out at least on the steamer that they were
upon each other almost the minute either was
aware of the others presence. The result OF
the collision was, that the Champion went
board 30 were lost together with the ship and
cargo The Octavia was but slightly injured
and moved on up the bay to Philadelphia
The Champion was built some II years ago
| for Vanderbilt, and had for several years run
IN his line from New York to Aspinwall. For
the last eight or ten years she had run regu-
larry between New York and Charleston and
had never before met with any serious acct
dent. The Lady Octavia was an English built
ship, exclusively of IRON, and regarded as one
of the safest vessels atloat
LOSS OF THE SCHOONER PETRAL.
On Saturday the Austrian bark Rebus ar
rived at New York, having picked up IN mid
Atlantic SIX passengers, the only survivors of
81 souls that had sailed a week before from a
Spanish port on the schooner Petral. She was
caught in terrific storm on the 18th of Octo
Der and dismasted; then tloated several days
at the mercy of the winds and finally capslzed
Capt. Fischer. The SIX rescued took refuge
on IA raft add after indcscribabe sutierings
were finally saved as above
FRIGHTFUL RAILROAD DISASTER.
A frightful diaster occurred on the Sth inst.
at the bridge where the Kansas City and
Northern railroad crosses the Missouri river
at st Charles. About 8 80 in the evening, as
Il regular freight train, with 10 cars, loaded
with cattle and hogs, was crossing the iron
bridge at the place named, the span between
, n,,I ;,l t1,n c,l,.
gave way with crash falling into the river
and taking with it the whole train except the
engine and two cars. OF course all the cattle
and hogs were drowned. Josiah Weaver and
a Mr.. Hyde, stockmen' of Malvern, Iowa, and
one brakeman, went down with the train and
are lost. Half dozen other persons who were IN
the caboosc at the time escaped, but with many
serious bruises. The bridge was an iron one,
nearly new, and was believed to be one of the
safest on the river. 1t had been built at cost
of 100000 and Its destruction is so heavy a
loss to the company rs to be next to financial
ruin.
ROASTED.
At Kansas City, Mo, on Friday afternoon
of last week, a roof and a portion of the walls
of Corless cracker and candy factory sudden
ly caved in with tremendous crash, and in a
few seconds flames sprang from the mass of
debris In the building at the time about six
ty persons were employed, and from the wreck
at once issued screams and shrieks amid the
crash of falling tlmbers and masses of brick.
The furnace, which was in the third story was
T.. III hi Il
tlnder so that the fire burst out ont almost i'm
mediately after the fall. Considering the fear
iulness of the situation, it Is yet wonderful that
so many Of the inmates escaped alive. Seven
only were taken from the ruins dead, and
eight or nine others more or less mangled or
wounded, the other forty-five, of whom a ma.
jorty were girls and children, escaping un-
hurt. The cause of the disaster is believed to
have been the overlooking of the building with
stock and machinery, though others attribute
the calamity to an explosion caused by mill
dust something in the way of the explosion
Of the Minneapolis mills year ago.
TORNADO.
A small district of country around Higgins
vile, about eight miles south of Lexington,
Mo-, was ravaged on the 18th inst. by n tornado.
The depot building of the Pacific Railroad
was demolished, a two story stone building
was torn down, a blacksmith shop carried
away, &c. Half dozen of persons were bad
ly injured but fortunately nobody killed
STRUCK BY AN ICEBERG.
The ocean steamer Arizona, of the Gulon
line, said to be the finest steamer on the Allan
tic, which had left New York on the 4th inst
for Liverpool, early on Friday morning, 9TH
while off the grand banks, in dense fog, ran
into an iceberg, bounding back from the col
lision with frightful recol. The vessels