The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-10-09
TIE MASCOTTE DISASTER.
The List of Dead Increased to Thirty Heart
less Conduct of Captain Ebaugh. et

ST.. LOUIS, Oct. 8.-Tke following deaths oc-
Cured yesterday among those injured in the LA
Mascotte disaster, making the total numbes
thirty
Marshall Wade, colored, of Walnut Hill, Tenn.g
Albert Rice colored. of Cape Michael; M. q.
Scherer, of Cincinnati. o.; Levi Chatham, col
ored, of Paducah, Ky. Geo. S. Davidson. the
boats carpenter, is in very precarous condl-
ton, and is not expected to live
The coroner resumed his investigation into
the cause of the deaths resulting from the acci-
dent. Adolph Evelyn, pilot of the Eagle, testi.
fed that he noticed the explosion on La Mascotte,
but hearing no signal supposed that the boat
was not in distress. When ne saw that she was
on fire, however, he ordered the deck hands to
lower the skiff and the yawl They did 80 and
aided in the rescue of the passengers and crew.
The captain of the Eagle appeared on deck about
this time and seemed provoked that he, the
pilot, had ordered the boats lowered The Eagle
then ran ashore and took on board all those who
had escaped from the burning boat.
Capt. G. S. Ebaugh, Of the Eagle. testified
that he was powerless to render any assistance
to La Mascotte, for his own boat would certainly
have caught fire if he had attempted to push the
burning boat ashore. The yawl and skiff had
already been lowered when he came on deck,
and were rescuing the drowning passengers and
members of the crew. He did all in his power
to alleviate the sufferings of the injured after
they had been brought aboard the Eagle.
Several Of La Mascotte's crew testified that
Captain Thompson, master of the boat was the
last to leave and that he did all in his power I'd
save the boat and her crew and passengers
They all agreed that the Eagle could have pushed
the La Mascotte ashore without endangering her
SELF
Captain Thompson testified that as soon she
knew the boat was on fire he searched the upper
and lower decks for his and deckhands.
but all but two of them had been too severely
tinguishing the fire, or had made their
escape. Mr.. Gererean and Thomp-
son assisted the ladies to the stage
and supplied them with life preservers. Thomp-
son then went back to the deck to take a last
look, and see if any one was left on the boat,
and two colored men, horribly burned and
scalded, lying on the forecastle, the flames just
about to devour them 1t would have been inn
possible to rescue them. He then jumped over
board, swan ashore, ran down to where the
Eagle had landed boarded her, and repeatedly
called upon her captain to lower his life-b boat.
II told him." continued Captain Thompson,
"that if he did not do so would report him."
He replied that he had no crew, saw at that
time eight or twelve men on the lower deck. He
finally lowered the boat Some one was in it,
but he had only one oar. 1t came ashore, and
was afterward taken back to the boat. When
the Eagle landed there were passengers from
La Mascotte in the river on the stage, or cling
ing to it. and one or two clinging to line on the
bow of the boat, The Eagle could have gone
close enough and sent the life boat even with one
oar, 100 or 200 feet, and taken some of the
passengers off, but Captain Ebaugh refused to
do this. His conduct throughout was heartless
to the extreme and he seemed totally Indifferent
to the condition of the dying and drowning vic
time When called on to go to the Cape he re-
peatedly said he wanted to 60 to Grand Tower:
he also said that he was running that boat and
that too many wanted to have say in running
her / told him that ] had something to say,
and that, if it was money he wanted, he could
have that ! tried all but two or three of the
doors of the state rooms on his boat, and they
were all locked From what saw, the captain Of
the Eagle rendered assistance whatever, ex-
cept to bring the dead and dying to Cape
Girardeau"
After the evidence was all taken the jury al
most i'm mediately returned a verdict generating
the officers of the La Mascotte from all blame and
severely criticising Captain Ebaugh of the
Eagle for his treatment of the survivors and for
not attempting to run the burning boat ashore,
and recommending that his license be revoked.