Los Angeles daily herald., 1888-12-26

in very short time after the alarm was
given she had burned to the waters
edge. The hull sank and nothing was
left of the Hanna but floating timber
and burning cotton.
THE CREW OF THE BOAT
Were ]. s. Holmes, Captain; George
Powell and James Gordon, clerks; Lew
Rawlins and Henry Jolles, pilots; j. H.
Handley and j. G. Merriman, engineers
Daniel Carroll, Steward; Saml. Bryant,
first mate; Mike Cussatt, second mate
John Gibbon, sailor; Ben Duclos and
Willie Higgins, barkeepers two cham
bermaids, Mrs. Demery and Mrs. Hunt
Jimmie Handley and Charley Thomp-
son, firemen; John Rucker and Tom
Cullen, stokers. Among those that were
lost are Captain J. s. Holmes, mas
ter of the boat; Samuel Powell,
chief clerk; Bob Smith, pilot
from Smithland, Louisiana; Mike
O'Neill, night watchman; Joe Crane,
cabin watchman; Monroe Deck, first
cook; Jack Duff, second cook; Joe Har..
vey, cabin boy; Jim Watson, second
baker John Grafton, carpenter. Among
bHOSo WuO WeIc Uduly DuIu0u arc Ian
Carroll, steward: Jim O'Neill, deck
hand; John Gibbons, sailor; Louis
Welsh, roustabout, and a number OF
others. Coming down on the boat as
passengers were a number OF
the crew of the steamer Josie W.,
all of whom were saved. The survivors
were warm in their praise of the humane
people of Plaquemine, who spared no
pains and no money to furnish them with
clothes and shelter, after their terrible
experience. w. L. Brule, Mayor of the
city, was especially kind to the survivors.
None of the men could say what was the
origin of the fire. The general impress
sion, however, is that
SOME CARELESS SMOKER THREW A
CIGARETTE
Among the cotton bales and thereby
caused the disaster. The death of John
Grafton, a carpenter, was sad one. He
was in the upper portion of the boat
struggling to get near the front end. The
flames were twisting and sweeping all
about him. He tried to reach the bow,
but dropped and burned to death before
the eyes of scores Of people who were
unable to tender him any help. The Sec
ond baker of the boat said Mr.. Powell
was standing near him when
they both jumped into the water.
Powell, who could not swim climed on
floating cotton bale, but two deck
hands jumped on the bale, turning it
over throwing Powell into the water
and he disappeared. The beat was
about fifty yards from the shore when a
great many people plunged into the
river and several who reached the bank
in safety became begged in the soft mud,
and 80 intense was the heat from the
boat that they were burned to death be.
fore they could climb up the steep bank
| to the levees. The fire was 60 rapid that
before the pilot had finished sounding
three alarm whistles, the entire boat
from stem! to stern was
ROARING MASS OF FLAMES;
And the scene that ensued was terrible
in the extreme. Men yelled and ran
about the decks Of the burning steamer
like maniacs, and others screaming al
the top of theiy voices, threw themselves
into the dark waters and were lost to
sight in the twinkling of an eye. The
second barkeeper said several persons
near him struggling in the water, begged
for help. but he could not render them
any assistance, because the water
chilled him to the marrow,
and his clothing clogged his every
movement. The cabin boy, who was
assistant of the steward said the crew
who we're in the Texas were aroused
from their slumbers by the flames which
roared over them, and were compelled
to dive headlong from the roof of the
boat into the river, and many of them
were burned to death while in the water
This evening the impression prevails
that the number of lives lost may moi
exceed thirty, although owing to the
fact that the steamers papers are all
burned, it is difficult to get at the exact
number of people on board the fated
boat.
THE INJURED CARED FOR.
On the arrival of the train in this city
ambulances were at the depot, and all
the survivors of the disaster who were
suffering from severe burns were at once
conveyed to the Charity Hospital
Steward Carroll says that the last of the
lady passengers on the boat coming down
got off at Baton Rouge. He claims that
the passengers that were aboard at the
time of the fire were Captain P. G. Mont.
komoEy, MI. A1Arplu, VI Guo DOaTu Vi
Underwriters, and drover and his son.
They were all saved.
LATER DETAILS.
A Picayunes. .Plaquemine special places
the number known to be lost by the
Hanna disaster as FIVE whites and six
teen colored.
The names of additional persons saved
are: Mary Ramsey, Priscilla Wright
and Millie Tentry, colored passengers
Will Marshall, cabin boy, and Jackson
and Thomas Garrow, both seriously
burned. There were on the Hanna
thirty-three roustabouts, and eleven be-
longing to the Josie w. which had been
laid up at Monroe. Of these thirty-three
are known to be saved, leaving eleven
| unaccounted for.
Following are additional names of the
lost: John Barlow and Jim Blank, col
ored, rousters; Dick. Blank, coiored,
mess-room tender; Steplo, John and
Monroe Diggs, cooks, and a child of
Priscilla Wright, colored.
A Times Democrat special from Plaque
Vniuo voc tho r,>1lou,s oooo-ck of Il. -