The Cape Girardeau Democrat. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1876-1909, 1895-01-26
WRECKED ON A ROCK,

The Steamer State of Missouri Goes TO
Pieces. Co~nsisninS Her Living Freight
to the EnGulfing Waves-At Least Thirty
Five Persons Drowned-A Life-and-Death
Struggle for Seats in the Boats.
OwENsBOEO, Ky, Jan. 21.-Brief and
fr~agmentary details of the destruction
OF the big passenger steamer State of
Missouri, Saturday evening at 6 o'clock,
at Alton, Ind, 100 miles above here,
have been received. She struck a rock
and sank in fifty feet of water.
The reports say that at least thirty
seven persons were drowned, but no
names are given.
The State of Missouri is a very large
sternwheeler plying between Cincin-
natl and New Orleans. She had On
board a fairly large cargo of freight
n twenty-five passengers besides a
crew of seventy-eight.
At Alton the river narrows and the
water being high, an extremely swift
current results. This threw the stern
of the boat in toward the Indiana
shore. Before the pilot could regain
control of the boat, she hit a rock,
tearing a long hole in the hull at the
water line.
The shock was terrific, and the boat
trembled from bow to stern. Conster-
nation seized upon the passengers,
n in a moment they were frantic.
Without regard to consequences they
rushed to the upper decks, in the hope
of delaying the inevitable, as the boat
was rapidly sinking. Women and
children were trampled upon, but it is
believed all got out of the cabin.
Then the scramble for seats in the
yawls began. 1t was a fight for life,
in which many combatantS are be-
lieved to have gone to their death.
The first yawl launched was sunk
within twenty feet of where it struck
the water. 1t is believed everyone in
it was drowned in sight of the af-
frighted people huddled together on
the sinking steamer.
A second yawl was then pushed off.
1t contained four women. This is be-
lieved to have reached shore.
Just when there seemed some hope
that by means of this yawl the pas
sengerS could be saved, the steamer
gave another terrific lurch and liter
ally broke into pieces, and in ten min
utes from the moment the rock was
struck nothing but the hull remained.
The cabin, texas and pilot house
floated away, dragging down the into
the water every one upon it.
The lighter freight was washed from
the main deck and on this the men,
women and children chung as best
they, could many, however. only to fall
back into deaths embrace. Several
succeeded by this means in getting
into the willows and trees, and were
rescued by farmers and passing steam
erS.
On the City of Greensboro which
passed here last night were four of the
passengers who had been rescued from
the trees. Two of them were W. c.
feathers, of Hopkins county, KY, and
Mr.. Gregory, of Cave-in- Rock, Ill.
The names of the other two could not
be learned
Mr.. feathers thinks at least thirty
five people were drowned. He saw
four men go under within five feet Of
him, but the current was so swift he
could render no assistance. Mr.. Leath-
ers says there were fifteen cabin pas
sengers, seven deck passengers and a
crew of seventy-two on board.
Tie steamer Tell City, bound for
Louisville, hove in sight early yester-
day morning. and took most of the
survivors to Louisville.
The terrific current running at time
can be partly appreciated by the fact
that the wreckage began passing here
early yesterday, which would indicate
at least ten miles an hour. The
is about four miles.
Alton, Ind, where the wreck oc-
Cured is thirty miles from a telegraph
with almost impossible roads.
SAVED BY A PASSING STEAMER.
Survivors of the Wreck of the State Oh
Missouri Rescued.
OwENsBORO, Ky, Jan. 21.-Four sur.
of the wreck of the State of Mis-
souri,, which sunk at Wolf Creek,
above here, were on the mail packet
City of OwenSbOro when she passed
here Yesterday. They saved their lives
by swimming and managed to catch to
a tree some distance below. One man.
aged to reach shore, but the other
three remained in the tree until res
cucd. 1t is believed by them that from
twenty to forty lives were lost.
A yawl, containing a Oma and
children. was upset by men trying to
climb in and all were drowned. they
think. There were 100 people On the
boat, according to their estimate.
The cabin and upper works of the
boat loated away. The texas and
pilot house were towed ashore at
Sockport. The city of greensboro got
,ut part Of the freight from the cabin
leck. One of the men recovered his
overcoat, which he had left behind
when the BOA sank. Most of the pas
saved went up the river ON the
Fell Civ