The Savannah morning news., 1902-04-21
A Passengers Experience.


IL. t. Gardner of Tobinsport, Ind,
relates his experience as follows:
About o'clock 1 was awakened by
the electric bells and the screams of
passengers. ] Put on a life preserver
ana my clothes and went out and jump
ed overheard. ] was almost caught un-
DER the wheel,and saw one man drown,
VINO was carried under the boat by
the current. ! was badly bruised about
the limbs, but 1 am good swimmer
ana managed t. get ashore"
Mrs. Sherman McCullom, with her
three children, was going to Caruthers-
vile, Mo-, to join her husband She
jumped overheard and landed in the
yawl, but her three children landed
In the water and she saw them sink
from sight
Another terribly sad circumstance
was the loss of one of the children
of Pilot Al Pritchard. The little one
was tossed from the steamer to arms
awaiting to catch it in the yawl, but
its head struck against the side of
the boat, and it fell into the river and
it was lost.
The story of a Survivor.
One of the surviving members of
the crew gave this account:
THE fire was discovered at 4:05 a.
utes the whole boat was a wreck The
front stairways burned, cutting off any
avenue of escape. We alarmed the
sleeping passengers, bursting open the
doors to awaken them. They ran out
without putting on life preservers and
were crowded. The officers held them
back while one yawl was loaded with
women and children.
The scene was awful About twenty
thiFfV falxnn of N ho
and then those in the water were res
cued. The water was very cold and
the passengers were in their night
clothing. Those who were not burned
in the boat were drowned, all except
those who were able to swim. 1 was
one of those.
when we reached shore we We're
unable to stand. and had to be helped
cut of the water. 1t seemed as though
we were crazed by fright, for we were
screaming with fright after we were
safe ashore
Capt. Phillips says:
THE fire caught in the hold. The
night Waterman claims to have been
in the hold i've or ten minutes before
the fire was discovered. The pilot head
ed the steamer into the shore and the
sharp bow struck in the mud The
boat lies quartering with the bank
Rescuers Saved n Few.
At Caledonia, three miles below the
scene of the disaster, the flames could
be plainly seen and men put out in
skiffs to the wreck. They assisted in
saving some of the passengers, among
them Mrs. S. r. Leach of Bridgeport,
o., who was terribly burned abou& the
head, and Mrs. Fennimore of Arbuckle.
w. Va, burned about the hands and
face Mrs. Fannie McCullom of Leav-
ellsworth, Ind, burned about the
breast
Capt. Doss. who was drowned, was
ar old river pilot. He was making the
trip for pleasure with his son, Pilot
Harry Doss. and when his body was
found a mile or so below the wreck he
had on all his clothing and a life pre-
server. 1t is believed he died from the
shock.
Louisville People Escaped.
Louisville, KY, April 20.-The City of
Pittsburg left Louisville Friday after
noon after taking on three passengers
and twenty roustabouts at this city.
A Louisville man, Benjamin Bridges,
was third clerk of the steamer. A tel
egram received here this afternoon says
Clerk Bridges and his sister, Miss Mar
garet Bridges, and Miss Jennie Bissick
of Lexington, KY, the latter two hav-
ing boarded the boat at Louisville,
were saved. A man, whose name is
unknown. also took passage on the
Pittsburg from this city.