Evening star., 1925-08-19
Hoover Orders Investigation
as Mystery Envelopes
Cause of Disaster on Ex-
cursion Boat Off Newport.
Al SCALDED IN EXPLOSION
ARE FIGHTING FOR LIVES
Merrymakers on Deck of Mackinac.
Smothered in Clouds of Steam.
Leap Into Bay to Escape Fate
of Those Trapped in Interior Of
Ship-Navy Aids Rescue.
By the Associated Press

| By the Associated Press
! NEWPORT, r. l.. August 49,
! Live steam that poured over OH cx-
cursionists aboard the steamer
/ Mackinac in Narragansett Bay last
night claimed the lives OF 81 per
sons, while fl others were so badly
scalded that fear was felt for their
lives. Many more were less seri-
ously burned and one person was
reported missing.
/ Groups OF merrymakers on the
steamer were startled by kissing
sound and surging Of the decks
about IS minutes after they had put
! out from Newport for their return
! voyage 10 Pawtucket In an instant
cloud OF steam enveloped the YES
sci, crowds rushed for the railing.
| many jumped overheard, while al
most all OF those below decks were
/ believed to have lost their lives or
! to have been seriously burned There
was no loud report such as usually
accompanies an explosion, and the
4 cause OF the disaster remained a
mystery today.
Conflicting reports said the ships
boiler had burst and that steam pipes
had been broken. An official inyesti-
CATION was started
Most of the excursionists were
from Pawtucket and Providence.
K. l., and from Attleboro, Mass.
Crew Shares Fate.
/ Many of the Mackinac's crew shared
/ the fate of the unfortunate passengers.
/ Some 20 are injured. several seriously.
and a few are dead.
/ The ships officers, with the excep-
! ton of Chief Engineer John Grant Of
! Providence, escaped injury.
The disaster recalled TO the minds
/ of many of Newport's seamen a like
I experience in the career of Capt
! Thomas McVey, the skipper. He was
! in command of the steamer Larch-
/ mont when she was rammed by the
schooner Harry knowlton off Block
| Island in a. binding snowstorm Feb
ruary II, 1907. Many lives were lost
when the steamer sank.
| United States Senator Jesse H. Net
/ calf was on his yacht Felicia, within
a short distance Of the accident when
it occurred. He gave all possible as
! sistance and proceeded to Newport
when the Navy rescue parties as
sumed the relief work
! A special train took some of the
! survivors home. a train of nine cars
was ready when the first of a feet of
! automobiles. carrying more than 500
! of the less unfortunate passengers, ar
rived at the station from the docks.
/ PitifuI Scenes Enacted.
/ About so of the passengers remained
housed in various homes near the
naval hospital where they telephoned
relatives.
The night of horror presented scores
of pitiful sights. \ girl. whose life is
| despaired Of, cried out continually
/ asking why she should die, as naval
/ workers carried her into the hospital
In the first group of injured landed
at the Government pier was a 10
year-old girl. AS patrolman rushed
10 her side she held up her scalded
arms and pleaded, Please blow on
! them, they burn So"
| Among the dead is John NJ. Hunter.
| a Brown University sophomore and a
! member of the crew. The youth, who
would have been y years next Sun
day, went to work as an oiler on the
! Mackinac a week ago against the
wishes of his uncle, Charles NJ Hun
! ter, wealthy Providence real estate
man, who wanted him to spend his
Summer vacation resting.
The Mackinac was built in Man
/ pauck, Wis, in 1907. She has been
making two round trips a week from
Pawtucket to Newport for several
years past.
Blast Comes Near Shore.
The accident happened less than 100
yards from shore, otherwise the
casualty list would have been trebled,
| passengers said today. The excur-
! sionists, including many women and
children. were homeward bound from
an outing at Newport. Many aboard
were employees of the j. and p. Coates
Co. manufacturers in Pawtucket. The
company had declared holiday for
! the outing.
A patch on the boiler. which had
J been placed there just before the de-
parture of the boat, gave way, ex-
ploding the boiler, according TO
/ one report. Capt. McVey said
| the boat was travelling 15 knots an
hour, its fullest speed, and Was loaded
to it's capacity. At the time of the
| accident he was in the pilot house
with Capt. Ben Thomas, the pilot, and
Herbert Spenard, quarterma ster and
wireless operator.
In a statement made to the As.
sociated Press shortly after the &C
cident, Capt. McVey said: II was in
/ the pilot house with Pilot Thomas and
Quartermaster Spenard when we heard
! concussion aft. This was followed
! Immediately by the kissing of escap-
ing steam and the entire vessel was
enveloped with a steaming mist. Then
| the engines stopped suddenly and I
gave the wheel yank and headed it
/ to the beach, where it's own momen-
| tum grounded it shortly after
Passengers, who described the scene,
said it was one of tremendous con-
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