Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1886-10-07
A TALE OF HORROR.
Boiler Of Steamer La Masootte Ex-
pIodes Causing Death and De-
struction on the Mississippi,
Twenty-Five People Known 10 be Scalded
to Death or Drowned and Six
others Fatally injured.
The Register Is Lost and II IL Believed
thar More Bodies stiil Remain
TO be Recovered.
A nlvNR srEAMKR NxrLos1oN.

TO be Recovered.
RIVER STEAMER EXPLOSION.
Sc Louis, Mo-, Oct. CA special from
Cape Girardeau, Mo, on the Mississippi
river, $50 miles below here, received at
very late hour last night, says: One Of
the most terrible disasters which has oc-
Cured on the river for many years took
place at IL O'Clock yesterday at Craw-
foTd's, twenty-five miles above here. The
steamer La Mascotte, Capt. J. b. Thomp-
son, exploded her boilers at That point,
causing her total loss and the destruction
of many lives. A full list cannot yet be
obtained, aud perhaps never will
be, as the register was lost, but
1t Is known that from eighteen to
twenty-five lives have been lost. The
news of the frlghtful affair reached Cape
G..ardeau last evening, on arrival of the
towboat Eagle, Capt @. S. Ebaugh, which
brought down thirtyfiv persons, includ-
Ing the remainder of the crew of La Mas
cote. The scene, when the news spread
among the people, was one OF the widest
confusion, but the active sympathy Of the
people soon took shape and the dead and
wounded We're tenderly removed and
cared for. The following Is list OF the
victims as far as obtaiusble:
PARTIAL LIST OF THE DEAD
JUDGE WILLIAM HAGER and wife.
MISS KRrIGER
Mrs. WILLIAM II WHEELER and two
children.
FRITZ LIND, all of Cape Girardeau
ClIARLEs ANsRLL, colored.
Both chambermaids, names not known.
One lady, name unknown, and two
children.
The bodies Of the three last mentioned
and one Of the clambermaids were re-
covered and brought down by the Eagle
j, II Perkins, first clerk, Miss Julia Ra-
bich of this city and First Engineer Porter,
out of twenty-four, including the crew of
fourteen, were saved. The following
were
BADLY woUNDED
MISS LENA BUCHANAN.
Lon ADAMS, the first mate.
Several persons unknown are more or
less dangerously wounded.
Among those known to be saved are
Capt j. b. Thompson, Harry Lourey,
stewart Jas. Donohoo, pilot, and his
partner; j. j. Hanton, second clerk, and
d. G. MantZ, second engineer. No cause
can be assigned, as yet for the explosion
OF the boiler which caused such great
loss Of llfe. The boat Is said TO have been
steaming along under $50 pounds Of steam,
her usual amount, when the explosion
suddenly occurred, blowing fire in every
direction. The utmost confusion pre-
vailed, the pilot, taking advantage of her
heading, turned her toward the shore, but
the flames caused him to abandon his
post before the stage-plank could be low
cred. The current then turned the boats
bow out into the river and her stern
swung close to the bank, which afforded
the means Of escape for those who were
at that end OF the boat. The stage-plank
was lowered and many were placed
upon it, mostly women and
children, who would have been
saved had not the smoke-stack fallen
squarely across 1t, and all who were not
killed by it were drowned. The boat
drifted 200 yards out into the river aud
across to the Illinois shore and sunk. The
only thing now visible il her wheel.
j. j. Hanlon, the second pilot of the
La Mascctte, says "The steamer Eagle
was near us when the disaster occurred,
and could have pushed us ashore with
out amuch trouble OF danger, but | un-
derstand the captain did not care to
render any assistance whatever. The
pilot OF the Eagle told me the captain
ordered him not to 90 near La Msscotte,
as he did not wish to endanger his boat. IL
he had only pushed US ashore not single
person would have been injured, except
! from scalds and burns"
All who witnessed the disaster severe
| ly condemn the captain Of the Eagle for
InGC as fba n tinsr
boat.
HOW THE EXPLOSION OCCURRED.
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo, Oct G.-The
wreck of the La Mascotte resulted from
the collapse OF one of the boiler hues.
The explosion spent its force directly
backwards into the eDgne-room, and only
the crew and roustabouts suffered from
being scalded by the escaping steam.
Eleven Of the latter were so horribly
burned that hugh scales of flesh peeled
from their bodies. Six Of them have
died. Their names are;
GEoRGE KEY WooD, Nashville, Tenn.
MARSHALL HOLM, Walnut Hill, Tenn.
JACK FINNRGAN, st. Louis, Mo.
THOs. LARRY, st. Louis, Mo.
WM. JONES, st. Louis, Mo.
J. CURRY CARBON, Evansville, Ind.
The following deck hands were 80
severely burned that their lives are de-
SPARED Of;
WIN. DAVIS, Midway, Ky.
ALBERT RICE, Cape Gerardeau.
LEVI CHATHAM, Paduceh, KY.
WILLIAM SPURTsELL, Evansville, Ind.
DALLAS WEBSTER, Evansville, Ind.
The others known to be drowned are
the following:
MRS. WILLIAM WHEELING, md her
two young daughters OF Cape qirardeau.
GEORGE WILLIAM HoGEN, Cape Giral-
deau.
young man, name unknown.
Miss AMELIA KLEGAR Of Cape Girar-
deau
j. y. Roy PERKINS Of Evansville, first
clerk OF La Mascotte.
MISS julia RoBIsCH Of Capd Girardeau,
head cook of In MaGcotte