Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1882-07-12
INVESTIGATION.
The Mystery ofthe Sinking of the
SciOto TackIed.s
KeIlers' Statement Before the Board Of
Local inspectors yesterday-His Testi-
mony at length-custOm His Law
and Custom the Cause of the
Collision.
TESTIMONY OF CAPT. n. W. SMITH.

There has been an apparent inexcusable
delay in the initiation OF the taking o.
testimony in regard to the Scioto collision
of last Tuesday night. Notwithstanding
the fact that Supervising Inspector Fehren
batch has been here for three or four days
Those interested in both boats have beer
industriously at work looking up the test
mony in both cases and taking all the step
preliminary to thorough investigation o
the causes leading to the dreadful disaster
1t was originally intended to begin the eS
animation of witnesses on Thursday, bu
at the instance of Capt. Fehrenbatch, Tues
day was fixed upon, and yesterday morn
ing the pilots, Except Long, Capt. Ingle
bright and others met at the Office Of the
local inspectors in the Custom House
Here hitch took place, and Capts. Young
and Wilson adjourned the hearing until to
morrow, but Capt. Fehrenbatch interfered
and insisted that the hearing should go on
at once.
Capt. Inglebright was represented by
H HGS g. SSaSsfat p Fafs Barr
ESQ, is also one of his counsel, but he Is
absent from the city. B. B. Dovener and
W. p. Hubbard appeared for the transpor'
tation Company. After arranging the pre-,
liminaries, Capt. Young announced thai
the Inspectors were ready to begin, and
called David Keller,
PILOT OF THE scIoro
on the night of the collision, who testified
substantially as follows:
MY name is David C. Keller. My occupa.
patton river pilot, reside in Wheeling.
was on the Scioto when she collided with
the Tomas on the night of July 4, 1882.
was the pilot.
Were you acting as pilot?
Il was the pilot" ] was on watch when
the collision took place. / got on the boat
at Wheeling. We left Wheeling wharf at 8
P. NJ. and went to Wellsville, when we laid
up for the night of the Sd. The next morn
ing, themorning of the Fourth, at 6 O'Clock
we went to Liverpool, where we took
on part of the excursionists.
Then We came back to Wellsyille
and New Cumberland. Then Columbus
Stewart and wife got aboard. These were
all that got on there. Stewart is a brick
boater and has been on the river all his
life. / came to Steubenville and landed
at the wharf. From the time left Steuben-
Vile made no other landings until l got
to Wheeling. When l landed at Wheel.
ing l asked Thad. Thomas, the Captain OF
the boat, if could stay off until the boa
came back. He answered, i would rather
you would go down. After that gave the
wheel to Clint. c. Thomas, that is at Wheel
ing. He handled her to Moundsyille,
where / landed her at Clint s
request. He had steered her
TO that point, and then when we left
Moundsville. i backed the boat out from
Moundsville, after which gave the wheel
to Thomas and he guided her to Wheeling.
/ then backed her out from Wheeling
wharf, and landed her at Wellsyille. Did
not land her there coming down. Wells
burg was the first landing made after we
left Wheeling. l crossed from the Ohio
shore to make the landing at Wellsburg.
When left Wellsburg crossed right back
to the Ohio shore, until l was 200 or $50
feet from the Ohio shore, when l then
came to Corss Creek, Ohio, and West
Virginia, or Indian Cross Creek, where Invent
into the channel between the two bars.
then put back to the Ohio shore until
was 200 or $50 feet from it, and then
Strengthened up the river 200 feet from the
shore. / seen a steamboat coming down
the river, near the middle, as well as
could Judge then noticed that the boat
had no red signal light burning on her
chimneys, and cannot say there was green
one. 1t was somewhere between and 8
o'clock, when dusk set in, and more than
twilight. l knew it was a steamboat,
and made this remark in the. pilot house:
81 wonder if that man is never going to
blow. He is getting pretty close to home"
He was then $50 or $50 yards from me, to
my best judgment When first saw the
boat she was 800 to 1000 yards Off made
that remark to Clint Thomas, j. B. Cook,
Mr.. Stewart and wife and another lady who
were in the pilot house with me at the time.
An effort was made to get Keller to give
the name of the "Other lady, but he firmly
declined, and the matter was passed.
When within $50 or 500 yards of me he
blew one whistle. / blew two whistles.
As soon as blew my whistles | rang my
bells and backing bells on both
engines. am very certain that L stopped
my boat as soon as | got through blowing
my whistles. l then let go of the wheel
and bleR both back-bells at once. Just
then Capt. Thomas came up on the deck,
on the jack staff. He said: Dave. back
reason that answered her by cross signals,
was was so close that had she struck HE
the way she was coming she would have
struck me forward or aft the wheel house,
and cut me in two, and the loss Of life
would have been greater. There was plenty
of river, but the boat was at too little dis
lance away. 1t was three TO five minutes
until all was over. l was driving along
pretty near straight, hugging the Ohio
shore; 200 or $50 feet away. The Tomas
was near the middle of the river.
Afternoon.
At two O'Clock the U. s. court room at
the Custom House was filed with crowd
largely composed of river men. Capt.
Charley Booth, Dave Keller and his brother
and large number of local pilots and en-
gineers were present. Capts. Abrams and
Korn of the Andes were also present, hay
ing been summoned to give their ideas as
experts on the custom of pilots in regard to
the place where the accident happened.
Keller was recalled and testified nearly
as follows: 81 wish to make some correc.
tons: When said, From where l first
saw the Tomas and the point Of collision,
or rather from the cinder dump to the
point of collision, said it was 800 to 1900
yards Ishould have said that many feet "
To Captain Dovener-l think have my
sixth or seventh issue. ! won't be posi-
tive, but think l have my sixth or sew
enth issue.
To Dovener-I have had q good deal of
experience between Steubenyille and
Wheeling. All my work for two or three
years has been done there. What boats
have / been on? Well, i have only been
off the Nail City about six weeks. 1 have
also been on the !0'Neal and Belle Prince.
have been off and on the 0'Neal for the
last two years. Was regular on her for
three or four months at one time. II the
Tomas had kept in her course, that is her
course, she would have passed me
on the Virginia side in the bend, and there
would haye been no collision. The custom
or rule among pilots in regard to boats
taking bends and points is, all down
take the bend and mp
stream boats shall keep to the point. /
were in the point Ny boat was ascending
The point is on the Ohio shore and the bend
on the West Virginia. / vas not within
GOO yards of the Ohio shore, in the point
when / sighted the l. 1mas. From my place
would think was within that. She did not
blow any whistle within 600 yards of the
point; that is, within 800 yards, or in my
hearing. The Tomas has good loud whis-
tie. 1 have heard it good many times.
1t would depend on the wind whether
| could hear it /, 500 or, 900 yards or not.