Hand County press. (Miller, Dakota [S.D.]) 1882-1893, 1882-04-05
ROAs1El, ALIVE.

i 10 Oe unhoie 10 nfake -tne least emort toward
saving themselves OF families until reused by
the whites."
ROAs1AaD ALigE.
A steon,er Burned -. sae Mis.is.ippi. and
| Up,card Of THIRTY Urs,an Lfves E.r,in-
| gsished.
The tioIden Citysspproached tho city near
the foot OF Bcale strsetand signaled for hn,i.
ing. just then the hnat was discovered 10 be
| on FIRE. She was difectcd 10 shore potvith.
standing, aud ran into q number Of eoal-flats.
| The fire sprcrd With tie rapidiiy OF lightning
almost, and 800 barrels oil oil fed il into fury
in moment The boat triedto attach itsrlf to
1 the city dump boat. but seuld not succeed in
psmeSaass f Is SP s..s" s..
| the dump-bost and coal flats. Efforts 10 attach
the boat proved unSyailing, and she diifted away
| down the river, a thing OF glttering splenGor.
| Quite number Of people were OH beard, and
| as the whole boat was mass OF flame, fed by
the oil, they must all have been burned TO death.
| Ii was unlike most fires. IL was quick and
deadly IN its results that women did not have
time &c shrek nor nfen % call for help Everybody
Was parslyzed with horror. great crowd soon
collected on the river banks and watched the
fire. All sorts OF rumors we're soon spsead about
the disaster. The loss Of life was variously
reported from twenty to 100 souls.
The fire was caused by the captain OF the watch,
who vert through the engine room to see il any
one was in it. Accidentally the bottom dropped
from his lamp into some hemp, which caught
fire immediately and spread rapidly, and in al
most an infant tue boat was doomed. Those
who escaped had to do so Immediately, and they
were not very particular how they got away.
One individual WAS seen TO leap over upon coal
Hat in his night shirt, holding his clothes i'll his
hands. When he reached terra frma he was
go possessed with fear that he ran away up the
levee with the speed Of Kentucky thorough
bred. When last seer he had stopped and
was pulling on his pants. One gentleman
aboard who had two or three ladies and the
same number Of children under his charge,
pitched the children over upon the float, know
ing that they never could get of otherwise,
and then jumped over with the ladies. Several
persons who were about to be left
jumped into the water and were
pulled ashore, or swan ashore, or
were drowned. The condition of those who
escaped with their lives was pitiable in the ex-
treme. The women had but scant clothing on,
and the men were no better of. Many of them
had sustained pecuniary loss. One gentleman
sat alone by himself In his night clothes, shiver-
ing and crying- HIS wife and children we're
lost. He seemed TO be totally unconscious OF
his plight For some time so great was the
excitement that no attention was paid to him:
but knd-hearted lady living on Shelby street
sent him her husbands dressing gown.
As the boat was carried away by the current
il was noticed that seveyal women and children
in their night clothing stood in the stern. with
the alternative Of rushing into the flames OF
jumping overheard. As no one saw them fall
over it is supposed that they were literally
burned to death. Additional fuel was furn-
ished the flames by several tiers OF oakum which
were consumed like tinder. Those
on board hardly knew how they were
awakened. The main point was
how TO escape. The flames had the
completest possession OF the boat in five min.
utes AID fearful sheets Of flame shot into the
air. while immense ciouls Of smoke enyeloped
the scene. The one rope h. lding the boat was
unable to stand the strain, and the Golden City
began gradually to be drawn into the current.
Down the river she foated, furnishing to those
on shore picture of unrivaled and fearful
beauty The waters cleaned in crimson, and
the Arkansas shore was distinctly drawn in red.
The steamer did not make long trip TO her
doom.
A trail Of fire followed her close to shore,
then out short distance into the current. All
the time the boat was burning furiousy and the
fire was eating its way to the water. The boat
drifted OF beyond Presidents island. some 800
or 400 yards, and when within 100 yards
Of the Tennessee shore the vessel with its
poor, dead bodies, Its cargo and everything, was
imprisoned in the waves, and the fierce Gle
ments were soothed IN the twinkiing Of
an eve. 1t Is the general impression that those
who died were suffocated TO death rather than
burned. Afterward those who passed the
place saw only part of the debris and few
chairs upon 1t. That was the only evidence Of
the wreck. II was a wonder TO most people
that there was not an explosion. and the only
way this can he accounted for Is that the
steam ripe burst, and thus allowed the steam
TO escape,
The most horrible feature OF the fire was the
death Of children. 1t Is supposed that several
others in addition to those reported we're lost.
The little ones were kindly lent q helping hand.
The struggle Of all classes 10 get from the
boat resulted in great confusion. Agreat num-
Der OF those on board had to leave without