The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1893-11-27
A TERRIBLE VOYAGE.
A LAKE PROPELLER BECAME A FLOAT
ING cHARNEL HOUSE.

After Being EAttackcd-A Coci hec~pioL
at Miiwaukee--A Treacherous Agent.
Tho AlIeghany was one OF the best pro
pellers OF her day. She piled between Duf-
falo and Milwaukee. One day in midsum-
rner, 1850, she left Buffalo hArbor on her
regular trip. She was In command Of Cap
tain Morrison. The passenger list included
20 cabin and $50 stoerage passengers, ths
latter all Swedish immigrants. These were
going In body TO Milwaukee, where sew
erAl hundred cf their countrymen ha1 pre-
ceded them. They were being forwarded
by some colonization society and were In
charge of a Swede named Jansen, an agent
OF the society With the exception of Jan
sen, not one Of these people could speak .
word Of English. Their collective wealth
amounted 20 100000 in cash, which was
all In the possession Of Jansen for safe
keeping.
The Allegheny always stopped Mt Beaver
island, which was held by King Strans
with his colony Of Mormon and free love
followers. During the propeller's stop on
this trip little girl among the steerage
passengers sickened and died. her sickness
coming suddenly and death resulting two
hours later. This little ones mother had
died on The ocean voyage from Sweden and
on King Strang's island.
The propeller proceeded on her way, but
had got not moro than an hours sail from
| Little Beaver island when the father OF the
child died in the same manner sat she had.
Before the Allegheny arrived at South
| Manitou island IS OF the Immigrants had
| died of the same mysterious disease, which
was spreading rapidly among them. The
sudden appearance OF this deadly plague
caused panic on board
The cabin passengers were placed In
| quarantine in their quarters. and the crew
of the propeller were kept busy caring for
| the unfortunate Swedcs. The propeller
| landed at Menitou and buried In one large
trench the score and half who were then
lying dead on board the vessel From Mani.
tou there was no place where the steamer
could touch before arriving at Milwaukee,
and she left that island literally floating
charnel house. Scarcely an hour passed
that an immigrant did not fall victim TO
the terrible plague. the origin OF which no
one at that time knew. 1t at ast.bccame
impossible to attend to the wants OF all the
sufferers, although the entire crew devoted
every minute, night and day, to their serv-
ice. There was no mistakins those who
were doomed to death among the immi.
grants.
The victim became hollow eyed and had
q vacant, faraway look that was hard for
another to meet. When that look appeared,
death was but an hour or two away. Death
always came with the most intense agony.
One could look about among the stricken
md count to a certainty those who would
be dead within the next hour. The victims
were weighted and cast overheard as soon
AS they were dead. Such thing as shroud.
ing or giving funeral service to corpse was
an impossibility. They were cast into the
water just as they died
Up to the day before the propeller arrived
at Milwaukee none OF the crew or officers
had been attacked by the disease. but on
that day the cook fell a victim to it, and
was cast into the lake as tho others had
been. The clerk of the steamer, a young
man named Gardiner, about this time had
found among the stores cask of New Eng
land rum. The story Is that the engineer.
a man named Curtis. soon after the cooks
death, was attacked by the disease, and
that Gardiner, without any idea Of the re
suit, had caused the doomed man to drink
a glass of the rum. What the virtue Of the
rum was as remedy for the disease nc
one ever knew. but the engineer did not
die Gardincr then dosed the immigrants
cases the victims were saved. Gardiner, Mt
the time he discovered the rum, discovered
what he had reason to believe was the orr
gin of tho deadly disease. Ii was q barrel
of putrid FISH among the immigrant stores,
of which poisonous food some of tho poor
people had eaten early In the voyage.
The propeller reached Milwaukee in the
evening. There were then 10 dead 6wedes
aboard. The captain sent for physicians
They decided that the disease was some
kind OF fever usual in ships where pessen-
gers were closely quartered, but is exact
nature they could not determine The news
OF the terrible state OF affairs on board the
Allegheny was not slow In getting abroad
in the town. No one, not even the officers,
was allowed TO remain anywhere in the city,
and they were driven back to the melan-
choly surroundings on board. Next morn
ing the authorities ordered the propeller TO
move away from the dock and out into the
lake. This was done.
A new element then appeared in the I'M
fortunate situation, and it for time threat
encd serious trouble. The Swedos living
in and about Milwaukee were made ac
quainted with the scd straits their fellow
countrymen were in on board the Allie
ghany, and they marched to the dock in a
Douy, oup AronV. lney scnJ Woru 10 Cap
tain Morrison that II he would run his ves-
eel back to the dock they would prevent
any Interference with his landing For n
time q riot seemed inevitable. but a COM
promise was effected by the authorities
making an agreement with Captain Nor
rison that he might land his passengers on
scows and have them towed TO an old store
house that stood on the outskirts of tho
city. Three more deaths had occurred on
tho propeller pending this arrangement.
The immigrants, or the 0s chat remained of
the 100 that left Buffalo. were quarentined
in the storehouse. and the terrible disease
was got in hand without any further
deaths
The wretchedness OF the immigrants was
m6de still greater by the bas,neSs Of the
man Jansen, who had them in charge. Be
fore the survivors OF the plague were able
10 look after their interests Jansen disap-
pesrcd, taking With him the 100000 be
longing 20 the party lie wss never heard
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