The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1897-05-10
Thirteen Victims of Fire in the
Mallory Liners Hold.
DETAILS OF THE DISASTER
Captain aud Officers Heroic Fight
Against the Flames and Mutinous
Stokers-The Steerage Passengers
Caught Like Rats and Suffocated.
Gruesome Scenes at the Pier.


we're suffocated or burned to death on the
steamer Leona, of the Mallory Line, which
caught fire in the forward hold off Dela
ware Breakwater at 1 O'Clock Sunday
morning, and which returned to this City
at II O'Clock last night, were removed
from the vessel and taken to the morgue
this morning. At early dawn two wagons
loaded with rough wooden cUffns ar
rived a the Mallory Line pier. One by one
the coffins, of which there We're thirteen,
were lifted over the rail OF the steamship
They are down there" said one OF the
ships officers TO the men with the coffin6,
pointing down b charred companionway.
No one of the ships company Offered TO go
down. They had seen enough of it. Even
the half dozen policemen who had clam
bered clumsily aboard the steamer held
back The four men who had brought the
coffins climbed cautiously down the hold,
the boxes were lowered TO them, and they
began their work. Nearly an hour passed
before they came on deck again, each
man pale and trembling with the horror he
had seen The tide had risen by this time,
so that the Leona'S decks were high above
the pier. A port-hole looking from the
charnel house inside was on a level with
the wharf Through this the thirteen cof-
fins were thrust, each bearing a charred
an ID hlackened human body
This was the sequel to one OF the most
thrilling stories OF marine disaster ever
brought into this port. 1t was story
only relieved by the ultimate rescue Of The
major part of the ships crew and passen-
gers, and the undoubted heroism of the
Leona's officers, who risked their lives
time and again in the vain effort to save
the victims caught in the blazing furnace
below
/ The Leona crcpt into port at II o'clock
last night The nature OF the disaster
did not become known until early this
morning, the Leona's commander, Capt.
James Wilder, waiting to notify the owners
Of the line. Then the authorities were
notified, and Coroner Hoeber boarded the
ship at O'Clock He heard the stories
Of the captain and officers and placed
Capt Wilder under formal arrest, pa
rolling him III the custody Of the president,
Charles Mallory.
The Leona left her pier in this city last
Saturday afternoon, bound for Galveston.
She carried a cargo of general merchan-
disc and had about IL souls on board all
told OF these thirty-three were paSSeu-
gers. eleven in the saloon and twenty-five
in the Steerage. The weather was per
feet Through smooth seas and under
sunny skies, the steamer plowed her way
down the coast Saturday afternoon and
evening. and crew and passengers settled
themselves for a pleasant trip. Nothing
occurred to arouse the slightest appTe-
henSion
Most OF the passengers had turned in by
midnight. The steerage passengers were
quartered in hunks between decks, just
forward OF the pilot house. Most of the
crew We're taking a rest. A 2:30 Capt.
Wilder went below and left First Officer
W3llace in charge Wallace started out
to make his rounds. aud almost imnI ,diate-
ly saw smoke issuing out OF the steerage
companion way. 1t increased in volume
every second and Wallace and the lookout
man rushed into the stecrage compartment
crying Fire" and trying to arouse the
Aeeping passengers.
The smoke became so dense that they
were compelled 10 run for the companion
way for life, stumbling on the deck. Those
| of the steeTage passengers who could
| groped their way up the steps and sank
| down on the deck. Capt. Wilder ran to
| the steeraEe Companionway and dashed
| headlong into the smoke, calling on his
| officers to follow him.
The steerage compartment by this time
| was raging furnace Twelve Of the steer
age passengers who had been aroused by
| Officer WallaCes alarm, were pulled up,
| blinded and half SuffOcated with smoke
There was no crying or shrekingfrom the
| steerage, and the steady advance of the
| flames warned Capt. Wilder that unless he
got to work at the fire the vessel was
| doomed He sent part of the crew back in
| charge Of an officer TO arouse the cabin
passengers and quiet them, while he and
| the rest worked to drown out the flames.
| The fire by this time had complete pos
session OF the forward part of the ship,
extending aft OF the pilot-house.
Then occurred the first real panic The
| sto&crs beca ne iike crazed me1. There were
| eighteen of them, all spaniards. Wild
with fear. they rushed pell nell TO the up
per deck. half naked as they were, and
made a dash for lifeboat. They were
slashirg madly at the davits. when First
| OFFICER Wallace and Chief Engineer Taylor
orderedthem away. The frenzied men made
Taylor drew his revolver and threatened
to shoot. Sullenly the spaniards climbed
| down out Of the lifeboat and skunk back to
| their work in the fireroom thoroughly
| cowed
Meantime the saloon passengers had been
aroused. They dressed and came on deck
| Capt. Wilder assured them that there was
| no immediate danger, and they returned to
| the cabin, where they tried to appear as
| brave as possible. Many OF them procured
| life preseIYerS and tied them on securely
Capt. Wilder gave orders to get the life
| boats ready for an emergency, and they
| were stocked with food and water Word
| was passed around that there was plenty
of room in the boats for everybody, and
that ample notice would be given in case it
was determined to use them. As the sea
was placid the fears of most OF the pas
sengers were allayed.
In answer to the Leona's costen lights
and distress whistle the steamship City
of Augusta, of the Savannah Line, was
soon within hailing distance and hove to
within 100 feet of the burning Leona
The lifeboats We're lowered from both
steamships and soon all the surviving pas
sengcr3 of the Leona were transferred to
the City of Augusta, while the crew re-
manned behind to contin theirfire fighting
For seven long hours Capt Wilder and his
men fought the flames, and while the
Leona's passengers were at breakfast on
the City of Augusta word came that the
fire was out. They Were re-transfered to
the Leona, while those of the steerage pas