The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-11-28
Shocking Condition of Passengers
and Crew When Physicians
Reached the Boat.
TRAIN FALLS THIRTY FEET
NORFOLK & WESTERN FREIGHT
CRASHES THROUGH A BRIDGE.
Prairie Fires in Oklahoma Destroy
Hundred Residences and
Miles of Country.

| STOCKTON, Cal, Nov 27.-The most dis
astrous accident in the history of Stockton
occurred this morning at APO o'clock near
Fourteen-mile Slough when a part of one
| of the boilers of the steamer Il. G. Walker,
which left San Francisco about o'clock
last night was blown out, killing five and
dangerously wounding eleven persons, while
fifteen or twenty were more or less badly
hurt. The T. c. Walker is owned by the
California Navigation and Improvement
Company, and ran between San Francisco
and Stockton. The dead:
JOHN TULAN, captain Of the Walker.
w. A. BLUNT, agent in charge of ship
ping of sugar beets from the Moss tract to
the Crockett factory.
WATSON HENRY, Of Stockton, engineer
of the T. c. Walker.
MRS. WATSON HENRY. wife of the
chief engineer.
JERRY DAILY, fireman.
Wounded
Ferdinand Law, passenger, badly scalded
about face and hands and injured about the
breast.
George P. Smith, a native of Massachu.
setts, deck hand, burned about the face and
body.
James Corcoran, deck hand, will probably
die.
Jack Holberg, known as Jack Sperry,
watchman, injured in head and scalded over
entire upper part of body.
Coratti Dominica, deck hstnd, scalded about
hands and face and back injured.
John Burns, deck hand, burned about
! head.
G. Foppianno, of San Francisco, passen-
ger, injured in face and breast
Edward Paul Jones, stevedore scalded
about face and hands.
Martin McCaffrey, of San Francisco, deck
hand, burned about the head and body.
Louis Brizzolana, of San Francisco, wine
merchant, badly injured
John Figoni, of Stockton, deck hand, head
cut and back hurt.
What caused the explosion will probably
never be known. The steam drum burst
with terrible violence. The four walls Of
the engine room were demolished by the
force. The lower deck, hurricane deck and
texas deck were wrecked in the portion
directly over the engine room. The direc-
ton of the flying debris was upward and
outward toward the bow. If it had been
the other way the loss of life would have
been much greater. An immense crowd
met the Walker, which was towed in at
1890 p. m. The property loss will not ex-
ceed $1,000
| Many of the passengers were in bed when
the explosion occurred and were awakened
by the laundering report. People rushed
from their rooms in their night clothes and
found the whole forward portion Of the
steamers upper works blown away. The
electric lights had been put out and the
| escaping steam enveloped the front portion
of the boat till it was impossible to see how
much of the boat had been carried away.
The screams of the men who were locked
in their rooms near the pilot house were
heartrending Capt John Tulan had been
blown from his bed against the door of the
stateroom and so seriously injured that he
could not move. The door could not be
forced open, as he was jammed up against
it. One of the employees of the boat secured
an AK and cut the upper part Of the room
away and finally removed him, but not until
he was Virtually roasted alive. When
pulled out the flesh dropped from his bones
in large pieces, and although he was suf-
fering excruciatingly he bore it bravely and
not a groan escaped him as he was taken
out of the steam
Watson Henry, the chief engineer and
his wife were in their room near the pilot
house when the explosion occurred. Mrs.
Henry was blown through the roof. The
flooring was blown upward and she was
hurled with great violence a distance Of
twenty feet towards the bow of the boat.
She was crushed and badly scalded. Her
injuries proved fatal at 1890 this afternoon.
She retained consciousness until a few
moments before her death. Her suffering
was so intense that she begged the ply
sicians In attendance to end her life, but
all that could be done was to deaden the
pain by the use of narcotics. Mr.. Henry
was terribly scalded. He was thrown some
distance away, but not far as was his
wife He died shortly after being brought
to this city.
Mr. Blunt was instantly killed. He was
standing on the lower deck, as he intended
making a landing q short distance above
the place where the explosion occurred.
jerry DAILY, the fireman, was in the fire
hold of the boat when the accident oc-
Cured The escaping steam completely en-
veloped him, scarcely a portion of his body
escaping the scorching vapor. lie died at
the receiving hospital.
Under the lower deck forty deck hands
slept Groans and screams were terrible
for the imprisoned men were receiving tho
full force of the steam as it came from tne
boilers. Eight of them were almost roasted
alive. Those who were able made their wav
to the deck as best they could while the
more seriously injured were unable TO get
out. Arms and faces Of those near the
main entrance were frightfuIIy scaIded
Dominica, who was on the lower deck. was
blown into the water and had to swim,
ashore after his back was horribly scalded
Louis Brizzolani. in company win
Charles Maggini and wife, were standing
! near the pilot house on the texas declr
The force threw him 70 one side He was