Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1898-03-16

Gen0rai news ana GOSSIP COu-
corning the Boats and Boatmen.
The Geographic columns of the Reg
lister contained an account a few days
ago OF the destruction by fire, near st.
Louis, OF the steamer Grand Republic,
the largest and one Of the finest boats
on the Mississippi river Many old
steamboat men on the upper ONO re-
member the Grand Republic. Capt.
John CrOckard, OF the wharfboat, de-
ScrlDed her yesterday as a verltaDIe
boating palace. The boat was origin
ally the j. b. Nj. kehlor, built at Puts
burg IN 1878, at d cost of 100000.
Sne became the property Of the He
lena and New Orleans Transportation
Company. OF which Charles Z. Chou
teau was president. subsequently the
boat was purchased by the Columbia
Excursion Company, was remodeled for
the carrying OF cotton and renamed the
Helena. During the winter season the
Helena engaged in the cotton carrying
trade, plying between st. Louis and
New Orleans, and in the summer time
was used for excursions from ST. Louis
to points up and down the Mississippi
river. For four years the Helena was
run in this way, but the cotton trade
becoming depressed, the vessel was
again remodeled for excursion purposes
and christened the Grand Republic, a
name which seems to have been a ia
vorlte one with Capt. Thorwegen. For
the past ten years the boat was used
exclusively for excursions by the Co
lumbia company, being licensed by the
United States government as such to
carry $500 people.
The dimensions of the boat were:
Length, 265 feet; beam, so; width, so
feet over all. She had four decks, the
only boat on the Mississippi river hav-
ing more than three decks. Her ton
mage was 1000.
The Grand Republic, one of the most
staunchly built boats on the western
waters, was the ideal excursion steam
er, the space capacity on all the decks
being unequaled by any other vessel on
the Mississippi. Not SO magnificent in
interior finish as when originally en-
gagged in passenger and freight service
on the lower Mississippi, she was, new
ertheless, first class and substantial.
Her machinery and boilers were of the
best pattern and in excellent condition.
Since the close Of the excursion sea-
son last fall the Grand Republic has
been moored to the Missouri shore just
below the mouth of the River des
Peres, and, as is usual when boats are
not in active service, was undergoing
extensive repairs. Capt. Thorwegen
was quartered on the boat with his
family, supervising the work of getting
the steamer in condition for the ex-
cursion season.
The steady downpour of rain yester
day appears from Geographic reports
to have been general along the head
waters of the Ohio, and this fact will
insure a good boating stage for some
days. The river continues TO rise at
all points above, but most of the pres
ent swell will have disappeared before
the result of yesterdays rain is felt,
The marks on the local wharf last
night showed stage of II feet and ris-
ing rapidly. Rivermen are all in ex-
celent spirits over the prospects for
water, this feeling being shared alike
by the packet and tcwboat interests.
The Pittsburg coal fleet is moving
south. A large quantity of the black
diamonds have been sent out on the
present rise. Among the boats which
passed Wheeling yesterday, were the
following in the order of their pass
age: B. D. Wood, Mount Clare Fallie,
Tom Dodsworth, Mark Winnett, Cruis-
er, George Shiras, Hornet No. 2, Enter
prise. Coal City Valiant, Joseph Wal
ton, Little Fred, and others.
Cairo, Ills, March 15.-Deputy
United States Marshal Saup to-day at
auction sold the Anchor line steamer
City of ST. Louis to Capt w H. Thor
wagon, of ST Louis, for $4,000. Capt.
Thorwagen bought the boat for the Coz
lumbia Excursion Company, to take the
place Of the steamer Grand Republic,
which burned Sunday last, at st. Louis.
He will take the boat to st. Louis to-
morrow. From there she will make a
trip to New Orleans, and will then go
into the excursion business.
Pittsburg, Pa, March 15.-The tow
boat Rescue met with a series Of acct
dents on the way down to Cincinnati
to-day and lost almost her entire tow.
Six boats and several flats were sunk,
dDOul IOU,UUU UuSl1tlS. At lOSo 10 tSli-
mated at $4,000. Three boats were
sunk at Merriman, one a short dis
lance below, one at Agnew Station, one
at Sewickley and another in the chan
nel
The total shipment Of coal on the
present rise approximates S,276,00O
bushels.
This is the largest run of coal that
has been made in any one week during
the present year.
The Queen City was several hours !
late yesterday, and was loaded to the
guards with freight.
The keystone State yesterday had |
its best trip of the season. The cargo |
included about 1.700 cases Of eggs and |
400 ccops of poultry.
Ed Dunn, chief clerk of the Ben |
Hur, has entered the hotel business at |
Sardis, o.
The big steel dredgeboat for the Mis- |
sissippi River Commission, being |
built by Ed Howard, of Jeffersonville, |
Ind, is about complete but the testing |
and inspecting of the complicated ma
chinery will require a week, so it is |
expected she will be ready to hand |
over to Uncle Sam next Monday.
Capt. Asa Booth is in Pittsburg.
The Joseph Walton is assisting sew
o. W g