The Coconino weekly sun., 1895-01-24
A PACKET SUNK.
The Steamer State of Missouri
 Wrecked on the Ohio River.
AT LEAST FORTY LIVES LOST
In Less Than Ten Minutes After the Boat Struck the Rock She Went Down Scenes and InCi-
 tdents.

OwENsBoRo, Ky, Jan. 2l.-The big New Orleans packet, the State of Mis- souri, struck rock on the Indiana side of the Ohio near Alton, Ind, about q o'clock Saturday evening, and went down in 30 feet of water. She gave a heavy lurch forward and rapidly sank. Four passengers of the City of Ovens boro passing here yesterday evening were picked up near the Kentucky shore. They swan for life on blanks and reached the Will lows One reached the shore and the others remained in a tree many hours until rescued. These passengers report that the boat struck rock near the stern, and gave sudden lurch forward. A yawl was launched, but so many people crowded into it that it was soon sunk. As the boat lurched again second yawl was put off from the sinking boat, in which four women passengers and some of the cabin passengers managed to get places. A man named feathers never swan before, but managed to keep atloat until he reached the Willows. He saw four men drowned near him, but was powerless to act. One chambermaid was picked up by a boat from farm house near by and several rescued pas sengers were picked up further on and taken up to Louisville by the steamer Tell City. One yawl that was upset by frantic passengers was full of women and children, and all are thought to be lost There were fifteen cabin and thirty deck passengers and crew of sixty on board. The surviving pasSen- gers think that at least forty were lost.
 When the vessel struck the rock she ripped the starboard side open from one end to the other and in less than five minutes she was a complete wreck. The crew and passengers, nearly 100 in all, were paralyzed at the shock and before anything could be done the ves- sel was almost completely under water. The upper deck broke away and fioated off. Nearly everybody jumped into the river and made for the shore some 100 yards away.
 The State of Missouri had on board twenty passengers and crew of be- tween seventy-fve and eighty. Most of the crew were negroes. The pas sengers were all ticketed through to New Orleans.
 The trip was uneventful until the dreaded point known as Horse Shoe Bend, near Alton, was reached. Here the pilot slowed down, as the current was very swift, and turned his wheel so as to avoid an obstruction known as Bullock rock. The rudders failed to respond to the wheel and there was a grinding, crashing sound. The boat was first lifted on one side as she struck and sliding along the rock, then she settled and began to careen. There was no time to think, so fast did she go down. Everybody rushed for the upper decks.
 There was flash of fire from the afire. This added to the terror and passengers and crew began to jump into the water. Thirty-fve of them swan to clump of willows opposite Hardman's landing and clung to them until Mir. Hardman came out in a boat and took them to his house on the bank. Thirteen managed to secure boats and floated down to Alton. Many of the crew were not lucky enough to get to the upper decks and they went down with the boat. It is believed that at least ten, if not more, were drowned.
 MT. Joseph McCabe, the barkeeper, says the wreck was something awful, and the experiences of those rescued were dreadful. The officers kept as cool as possible under the circum- stances, but there was little time to think, and none in which to act.
 The cabin and upper works of the boat foated away. The Texas and pilot house were lowed ashore at Rock port. The City of Owensboro got out part of the cabin freight from the cabin deck. In less than ten minutes from the time the boat struck she had gone down. At Rockport and here as well as at intermediate points the bank is lined with skiffs picking up pieces of furniture and watching for dead bodies, but the current is too swift for small craft to go out far.