San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1896-05-28


was devastated and laid waste.
The great steamers were torn from
their moorings by the first blast,
and blown down the river for
miles. or the steam crafts OF all
descriptions that lined the river
banks, one only remains to tell the
story. By an inexplicable freak,
the Henry Lousy, owned by the
Mississippi Valley Transportation
company, escaped the storm and
hung steadily to its moorings
throughout. When the tornado
struck the river the light Of day
vanished in a moment and people
at work in the warehouses that
front on the levee could barely dis
Germ the forms Of the steamers as
one after another were pitched and
tossed, and finally with crash,
were blown out into the dark
waters of the river and disap-
peared. The scene was one OF wild
uncertainty and chaos. Nobody
knew whittier TO seek safety from
the storm. After the tornado
passed it left in its track desolation
and ruin, where a few minutes be-
fore hundreds of steamers had
locked quietly at their docks, some
just arrived and discharged their
passengers. others preparing for
departure. Trunks and baggage
were tossed hither and thither,
most OF it into the river, plows
and other agricultural implements
had been distributed up and down
the leyee as far as could be seen,
and the whole general appearance
was that of water and wreck. The
steamer j. j. Odill, an Illinois
river packet, was blown out from
its wharf at the foot of Morgan
street, crashed into the second pier
of the Eads bridge and sank. Her
boilers blew up before she disap-
peared. She had crew Of II men
and three women passengers, be-
side her captain, George Town
send, an old river man, who has
his home in st. Louis. Three of
her crew, Jack Morrlssey, Pat
Milan and a man named Dorsey,
reached land in safety. The two
former jumped before the explos-
ion and caught driftwood. Moore
was blown overheard by the ex-
plosion and was cut about the head,
but managed to swim ashore.
Three others Of the crew
chung to the pier and made
their way up the to bridge proper.
There is no way Of properly esti-
mating the number of lives that
were lost in smaller craft that
happened to be on the river when
the cyclone came up. Hundreds
OF barges and wharf boats were
moored all along the river bank.
In some instances as many as 10
and II persons were on board when
the anchorages gave away under
the terrible strain. Men were
blown into the water, the barges
were overturned aud the destruc-
ton of life in these instances will
be large.
Several tugs were jerked from
their moorings and carried far
down the river. The tug Baton
Rouge which was anchored above
the big bridge went down the river
rolling over land over and finally
struck the dock OF the Virgins
ferry at the foot Of Choteau avenue
where it sunk. When the first evil
dence of the approaching storm
began to appear every engineer on
the river got up full steam in or
der to be able to combat the ele-
ments. Had it been anything but
a tornado 1t is probable this would
have aided the officers OF the
steamers In saving their craft, but
the onslaught was so violent that
few found the power at their COM
mand sufficient to aid them slight
ly in directing the course of their
boats. The steamers Pittsburg, OF
the Diamond 10 line, City Of Vicks-
burg and City of Providence, of
the Column bia. Excursion company,
the City of Monroe, of the Anchor
line, and all sorts OF smaller crafts
were pitched and tossed about I'M
til a final blast rent them from
their anchorage. They were swept
diagonally across the river and
struck the bank within a few
blocks OF each other. The loss or
life on these boats is thought to be
eight, as everybody was cautioned
not to jump and they would be
brought safely to land. The Pitts
burg escaped with few injuries.
The City OF Vicksburg is almost
total wreck. The City Of Provi-
dence was blown upon the Illinois
bank, her cabin is gone and her
smokestacks were blown away be-