Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1888-12-26
STEAMER HANNA BURNED
Another Horrible Catastrophe
On Top Of the Adams Horror
on the Mississippi River.
THE VESSEL BURNED TO ASHES,
And Sunk-Thirty Persons Probably Killed
and Several Badly Burned-Stl Another
Maritime Horror Reported From
Washington Territory.

NEW ORLEANS, La, December 25.-
1t was Just before Christmas day WAS be-
ing ushsred in thst the fine steamer Hanna
was coming down the river. Several of
the passengers were seated in the cabin,
having a'merry time, and with no thought
of the imfarding catastrophe. Many OF
the crew and passengers were asleep when
the fire broke out and spread with inCred-
ible rapidiiy. The details of the snffsr-
ings and death Of some the passengers are
NARROWING IN THE EXTREME.
The boat had reached q point which was
but a short distance above the town when
negro roustabout, near the boiler room,
ran ont to the deck and shouted the boat
was On fire.
As soon as the FIRE was discovered en-
gire Merrimsn set the steam pumps
working snd tried to battle with the
flames. bat the fire swept through the
boat like blaze on a prsirie and the en-.
zine room was soon in flames. TGen to
add further TO the Consideration steam
pips burst and filed the place with scsld'
ing steam. Engineer Merriman was forced
to abandon his post, sn1 he snd the
strikers and Others ran to the sides Of tbs
boat aud rushed through psll nell in order
to save their lives. Many people in the
confusion ila1
JUMPED OVERHEARD.
Scme of them were able to swim
ashore but most of them were so badly
burned or so Thoroughly exhausted that
they struggled but few moments aud
sank to rise no more. AS the burning
boat struck the bank Of the river, the
c: ew and passengers who had been able to
reach the forward end Of the boat sprsng
ashore: some of them with scorched faces
and bruised limbs, and many OF them
with scarcely sny covering.
PlsUnemtlne was not slumtering when
the fire broke out, and when the discov-
cry was made that the Hanna was burn
ing. almost the entire town
tlocked to the river blnk and
watched the vessel burn. The
STRUGGLING UNFORTUNATES
who reached the shore were taken care Of,
aud doctors and others came to their as
s.stance and tried to alleviate their suffer
iugs. The city and central hotels and pri.
ysie houses threw open their doors to the
ill-fated people and fed and clothed tEem
until this morning. No one saw CLERK
| Ro~ell, who displayed much heroism in
waking mp the passengers, alter he bad
rapped at the dCOrs, ard it is qoite positive
that be WAS burned to death and went
down with the steamer. No attempt was
made to save any of the steamers books or
papers, and everything, together with the
clothes OF the crew and passengers, was
lest The boat burned rapidly after she
reached the bank, and in a very short time
after the alarm was given she had burned
to the waters edge. The hull sank, and
nothing WAS lett of the Hanna bat toatlpg
timber and burning cotton.
KILLRD AND MISSING.
Among those Of the crew killed and
missing are: Capt. ]. S. Homes, master
of the bost; Samuel Powell, chief clerk /;
Robert Smith, pilot, from SUithlsnd, La. {;
Mike O'Neil, night watchmsu; ice Crane,
cabin ws'chmsn; Monroe Peck, first cCOS (;
Jack Duff, second cook; Joe Harvey, cabin
boy; Jim Watson, second baker; Jim Graf
| ton, carpenter.
Among these who were badly burned
aye: Dan Carroll, steward; Jim O'Neil,
deck hand; John Gibbons, sallorman;
| Louis Welch, roustaboat, aGd number OF
others
None of the men could say what wss
THE ORIGIN OF THE FIRE.
The general impression, however, is, that
some careless smoker threw cigarette
among the cotton bales, ard thereby
caused the dissster.
The death of John Grafton, carpenter,
wss sad one. He was in tee upper p1r-
tion of the boat, struggling to get near the
front end of the boat. TIE flames were
twisting and sweeping all about him. He
trisd nobly to reeCh the bow, but he drop
ned and burned to death before the eyes of
ths people who were unable to render any
help.
The FIRE was so rapid that before the
pilot hsd finished sounding three alarm
whistles the entire boat from stem to stern
wss
ROARING MASS OF FLAMES
and the scene that ensued was terrible.
Men yelled and ran about the deck Of the
Burning steamer like maniacs, and others
screaming at the top of their voices threw
themselves into the dark watere and were
lost to sight in the tWinkling OF an eye.
The second bsrkeepsr said that several
persons near him struggled in the water
and beggen pitifully for help, bat he could
not render them any assistance because the
water chilled him to the marrow and his
clothing cloggel his every movement:
The impression now is that the number OF
lives lost will no. excsed tailty.
LATER The Pieayane's Plsquemine
speeisl places the number known to be
lost by the Hanna disaster as five whites
and six cen eolorsd.
The following are the additional names
of the lost: John Barlow and Jim BLANK,
rousters, c1lOred; Dick Blank, eolored;
met IS room tender Stsploe, John and Mon
rOs Digg, cooks; ehld of Priscilla Wright,
eolored.
At the inquest he'd at Plaquemin on the
body of Clerk Powell, 81 900 was found In