Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1888-12-26
AN APPALLING FATE.
Fearful Loss of Human Life from
the Burning of a Steamboat.
The Inflated Vessel Carried Heavy
Load OF Passengers, Most of
Whom Met their Death.
Scenes of HerOism-Reign of CONSERVATION.
Cause of the Calamity-Discovery of
the Flames-Other Fires.
-1noher Steamer Disaster.


NEW ORLEANS, La, Dec, 25.-The
steamboat John H. Hanna, from the
Ouachita river, with large number of
passengers and cargo of $500 bales of
cotton, was burned last night at Plaque
mine. 1t is stated that of 100 persons on
board only fourteen are known to be
saved.
The John H. Hanna was built in Madi-
son, Ind. i'll 1887, and hailed from Lou
isville, Ky. She was of 81 tonnage,
owned by the Ouachita River Consolidated
line, valued at SIS 900, and was insured
for SD 900 i'll local and foreign COM
panieS.
Captain J . w. Blanks, president of the
company, says the latest adyices he has
are to the effect that the steamboat left
Monroe landing Sunday morning at
o clOck with 1900 bales of cotton The
captain estimated that enough additional
cotton had been picked up on the way
down to make the total number of bales
$500. Being questioned rs to the number
of passengers on the Hanna, Captain
Blanks said he thought it was small, rs
there was little travel III that section at
present.
The officers of the boat are as follows:
Captain, j 5. Holmes; master, 5. r.
Powell; first clerk, James V. Jordan;
second clerk, Henry Jones; pilot, Louis
Rawlings; first engineer, William Ham
ley; steward, James Carroll.
TERRIBLE DISASTER.
New ORLEANS, La, Dec. ga
special dispatch from Plaquemine to the
States says the burning of the steamer
John II. Hanna last night near this place
was one of the most terrible river disas-
tiers that has ever happened in the south
ern waters. The loss of life is very
heavy. About thirty persons persisted
in the flames, and a large num-
Der jumped overheard and were
drowned. Among the lost are
Captain ] S. Holmes and First Clerk
Samuel r. Powell. Their bodies have
been recovered. Captain Holmes body
was terribly burned. Bob Smith, the
old pilot of the J NJ. White at the time
she burned, was passenger on the
Hanna, and was burned to death. His
body has also been recovered. The en-
gineer and pilot were saved.
1t was just before Christmas was being
ushered i'll that the fine steamer was
coming down the river. Several of the
passengers were seated in the cabin hav-
ing merry time, with no thought of the
impending catastrophe. Many of the
crew and passengers were asleep when
the fire broke out, and it spread with in
describable rapiditY.
THE DETAILS OF THE SUFFERING
and death of sOme of the passengers are
narrowing i'll the extreme. The boat
had reached a point which was but
short distance above town, when a negro
roustabout near the boiler room
Il
shouted that the boat was on fire.
John Cutler, Il stoker, was near the
place at the time, and seeing the flames
bursting forth from the big tiers of cotton
near the boiler, ran hastily to the engine
room and gave the alarm. Engineer
Merriam took in the situation at a glance,
and at once sounded the alarm by blow
ing the whistle and ringing the bells. In
an instant certainly in Il much shorter
time than it takes to explain it, the
flames shot through the cabins and over
the sides of the cotton, enyeloping the
entire boat i'll fire. Clerk Powell was up
stairs at the time, and when he
saw the flames he herOically ran through
the smoke which filed the cabin and tried
to arouse the sleeping people. He kicked
at the doors and in a short time almost
everybody was awake. Then confusion
worse cOnIOuuucu dpptdItu anu IhO
frantic people on the boat ran to different
exits to make their escape, but the boat
was piled high with cotton and the pas
sage ways were filled with smoke. Many
dropped before they were able to get to
the forward part of the boat and were
dead when
THE STEAMER WENT DOWN.
As soon as the fire was discovered Engi-
neer Merriam set the steam pumps work.
ing and tried to battle with the flames,
but the fire swept through the boat like a
blaze on the prairie, and the engine
room was soon on fire. Then, to add
further to the CONSERVATION, the steam
pipe burst and filled the place with
scalding steam. Engineer Merriam was
forced to abandon his post, and
he and the stokers and Others ran
to the side of the boat and rushed
through pell nell in order to save their
lives. AS soon as the smoke and flames
began to start up the sides of the boat
Captain Holmes pilot swung the wheel
around and headed the boat for shore.
A full head of steam was on at the time,
and the boat was soon run into the bank.
Before she did so, however, she was
doomed. All of her timber was then fu-