The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1886-08-21
A SHOCKING SIGHT.


Poverty Disease and Death, Supplemented
by storm, Reduce Family of Movers by
Flat-Boat on the Ohio River to the Direst
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. at Last, But Too Late
for Some of Them.
EVANSVILLE, Ind, Aug. l5.-About
noon yesterday Township Trustee Spie-
gel was notified that his services were
wanted at the river. lie was directed to
a small family boat lying near the water
works. The craft was a nondescript
vessel, and bore evidence of hard usage
It's bow was STAYED in and nearly the en-
tire roof blown off, but if the outside
was, unnviting the inside was even more
so. The cabin of the boat is about ton
feet long and twelve feet wide, and in.
this miserable cooped up box were twelve
persons whose every appearance was an
evidence of pnching and gaunt poverty
Hollow-eyed, emaciated and with scarcely
q rag of covering they lay upon the bare,
dark floor of the boat, huddled together
and all contending with that dread dis
ease, malarial fever. In the midst OF
them lay the dead body of an aged woman,
partially decomposed. Over this a piece
of rag carpet had been thrown, the living
occupants being too ill to remove the
body. .,
Trustee Spiegel at once sent for patrol
wagons and removed the sufferers to the
hospital, and then sending for the cor
oner an inquest was held, verdict OF
al hai
dered.
Mr.. George Bush, one Of the occupants
of the boat, was seen at the hospital last
night by reporter, He was very i'll, but
able to give clear narrative OF the terri
BILE and sickening experience to which
they had been subjected. The story is
beyond parallel, and was as follows:
Until three weeks ago George and John
Bush, brothers, were farmers in Mead
County, Kentucky, about twelve miles
! from the mouth of Salt river. .Theit
! land was poor, and it was with difficulty
| that they obtained sufficient food to keep
the wolf from the door They finally be-
| came disheartened and determined to try
| to better their condition further West.
| To this end they constructed a small
boat, and on Sunday, July 25, both
| families consisting of the brothers, their
wives and nine children, thirteen in all,
together with their little belongings, en-
barked on the boat, and showing off,
started on their terrible trip down the
river. They reached the mouth of Salt
river late Sunday night, and when Mon
day morning broke were in the Ohio.
Two weeks ago Nancy Bush, aged fifty.
seven, Georges wife, was taken i'll with
malaria, and not being able to procure
necessary medicines, it soon developed
into typhoid-malana. The other mem
bers were stricken down one by one, un-
til finally all were helpless. In this con-
dition they were overtaken on Thursday
| night by heavy storm which tossed
their craft about like an egg shell,
throwing them from one end
of the boat to the other.
Their possessions were all swept away by
the waves and the roof taken off. Dur
ing this fearful night Mrs. Bush sud
denly grew worse, and began pleading
feebly for water, which no one could give
her, and Just as day broke she died in in
tense suffering and agony. All day Fri
day they drifted with the current, the hot
sun beating cruelty down upon the little
group of sufferers. The approach of
darkness gave them some relief, but an
overpowering thirst and hunger nearly
deprived them of all reason.
Yesterday morning they had drifted
nearly opposite the city, when some fish
ermen, who were out Juggling, saw the
apparently tenantless boat and boar ded
it, discovering the condition of the people
on it. They secured lines and ran the
boat ashore, after which the authorities
were notified, with the result before stat
= ed.
All the sick people were being tenderly
cared for last night, but hopes are only
entertained for six Of them, the fatal and
fetid atmosphere, tainted with the dead
corpse, having had its deadly effect on the
remainder. Mrs. Bush was buried last
evening and the boat burned