The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1912-07-09
Reports From Government Locks and
Officials Of the Boat Com
pany Differ in Many
Particulars.
WANT NEWS SUPPRESSED
Government Employees Say That the
Boat Has Big Hole In Hull
While Officials Deny
Report.

After just getting out Of the dry
dock the steamer Quincy" belong.
ing to the Streckfus line, is again in
trouble at Dynamite island, Just
above the third lock- Officials of the
line are not willing to talk about the
boats condition and say that there is
nothing serious the matter with her.
When visited by Gate City repre-
sentative this afternoon, the officials
were ordering provisions for the
Quincy" in quantities indicating that
they realized that the boat would
probably be there for several days.
A telephone conversation with the
employees at the government locks to-
day resulted in the information that
the boat was in dangerous position,
being we'll up on reef of rocks. Ac-
cording to the informant, there is
big hole in the steamers hull and
there Is danger of the boat breaking
in two, unless her position is helped
at once Barges, said the report,
have been tied alongside of the in
jured boat and will be sunk below
and then raised in order to try and
| float the steamer off the rocks. The
man who gave this information
said that there was big hole in the
steamers hull and that her position
was hazardous in the extreme.
William d. Steele, the agent of thu
Streckfus line in Keokuk, said this af-
ternoon: There is no need to print
a sensational story of the "Quincy's
accident. We would much rather that
you say nothing. The story publish
ed a few weeks ago on the occasion
of her previous accident was very
damaging to the boat company's bust
ness and we would rather not have
anything said
When told of the information re-
4 ceived by telephone of the dangerous
position of the boat, Mr.. Steele con-
4 tinued, II have heard nothing Of that
kind. Captain Streckfus is on the
boat but has been too busy to come
down to Keokuk to tell me of the trou-
BILE. | am sure that the report is not
so, though, for in case the boat was
SO badly damaged as all that, they
would have sent for another boat to
take the passengers off. She has been
in that position since early yesterday
morning and no such report has
reached my office. l think that the
barges spoken of in your telephone
conversation are there merely to
transfer the freight that the Quincy
carried. l do not know who is the
pilot on the Quincy on this trip,
but Capt. Streckfus is in charge Of
the boat and on that account / am
sure that the accident was unavoid-
able. I have no idea how long it will
| take them to get off the bar
| Mr.. Steele said that the boat was
not on the rocks but had merely run
onto sand bar and the boat was not
damaged in the least particular.
| From the manner in which the local
agent spoke of the accident it was
evident that he did not think the aac-
cident was at all important and he
hurried away as soon as possible.
/ 1t was learned from river men that
the Quincy" had been in trouble at
Dynamite Island since yesterday morn
ing and was hav>Ng a hard time to
get off. She is at almost the same
place that the &c. w. Hill" was
stranded last week and the men fami
liar with the river say that it is the
most dangerous place in the river for
many miles in both directions.