A STEAMBOAT BURNED. Fatal Disastor on the Mississippi. OVER THIRTY LIVES LOST.

Te Aroha News, Volume IV, Issue 187, 15 January 1887, Page 4

A STEAMBOAT BURNED. Fatal D isastor on the Mississippi. OVER THIRTY LIVES LOST.

A Nnw Orphans despatch of December Ist says :— The line steamer, J. M. White, running between Vicksburg and New Orleans, who burned to the water'<s edoro, last night, which lying at the bank at Bluo Store Landing, Points C oupec Paribh, thirty milca above Baton Rouge She hart quite a number of passengers on boai'd. 2100 bales of cotton, and 0800 sacks of cotton seed. The vessel and cargo were a total loss and thirty or forty persons are reported to have perished. The J. M. White was built in 187S at a cost of 125,000 dolb., and was regarded by many as the finest and fattest boat that has ever run on the Mississippi river. The " States" has the following account of the loss of the J. M. White, gathered from her officers and crew : — The boat had landed to take on a pile of cotton seed, and there were between forty and forty-five roustabouts engaged in this •work, when, precisely at 10.15 o'clock, everybody was sturfclcd by the loud ringing of the bell by the watchman, Tom Miller. Immediately after the cry of " Fire ! '' was taken \ip by twenty voices. In an instant the direst confusion reigned ; men darted to and fro, and the work of rousing the sleeping passengers was begun. The fire was discovered by Thomas Bnrry, the second engineer, who with his partner, Stephen Janncy, was on watch at the time. The first intimation he had of the fire was a small light on the top of the cotton bales amidships, which greatly re- : scmblccl the flame of a lantern. Barry left his post to investigate, and was astonished to discover that the light was caused by a bale of cotton briskly burning. Barry gave the alarm, and his voice rang through the deckrooma of Wie vessel. Watchman Miller took in the situation at once and rang the huge bell located on the second deck. Miller stood at his post ringing the bell until ho was forced to retreat by the encroaching flames. After the Alarm. The noise of the clanging bell aroused William McGreevy, the chief engineer, who was asleep. He sprang But of bed and groped his way through the smoke to wake up his partner, John Pallasecr, the second assistant engineer, who was also asleep. About midway ho met Pallaseer, who had also been aroused by the bell and was on his way to hunt for McGreevy. The two men then looked as best they could throiigh the stifling smoke for the others, but not seeing any one and believing that all but themselves had left, they crawled out on the hurricane deck and were compelled to climb down one of tho stanchions to tho right side of tho boat, frdm whence they got ashore. In tho meantime two streams of water wore brought to play on tho lire, hut tho heavy hi ck

volumes of smoke drovo tho engineers back They fought the flames step by step, but wero u.t last forced to drop tho hose and save themselves. The flvo burned with frightful rapidity, and in less time than it takes to tell tho entire loft side o£ the boat was a mass of flames. Tho fire soon caught the railing of tho cabin deck, and before any assistance was to bo had tho boat looked as if she were encircled by a stream of firo. The crackling of ilamos and the shrieks of the passengers and crow caused tho most intense excitement. ; '

Work of the Cook. When the alarm was first sounded Alex McVay, the head cook, was sitting at tho stove in his cabin. Tho first peel of tho bell caused him to rush outside, and seeing the flames leap high in the air, he ran back to the cabin and endeavoured to get the books and money. Tho lire gained rapidly, and ho was compelled to leave tho offlco, but not before he had secured a sum of money from the safe. Mr McVay then turned his attention to saving the cabin passengers, of whom there were about flftcon or eighteen, including eight ladies. Ho ! ilrst awoke tho second clerk, John Callahan, Who ran out of his zoom in Ins undershirt and trousers. Callahan and McVay wont to each room and awoke tho in mutes. Tho tcrrillod passcngcis quickly got out, nearly all of them in thou* night garments. Among them was a Captain Bird, Superintendent of the Vidalia Southern ltailway. He and his wife and two children, girls of 9 and 12 yours, with him. He called them around him and bade them follow him. By this time the flames had reached the cabin, through which a thick smoke was rolling. The panic-stricken passengers quickls made for an exit, wine to the stern and others to the front. Captain Bird was among those who went, to the stern. Upon reaching the dock he grasped his two children, one at a time, and threw them into the rivor. Before he and his wife could lollow, the flames had reached them, and they were burned to death.

Narrow Escapes. The two pilots on watch—John Stout and Bob Smith—were in the pilot, house and were compelled to jump into the rivor, whore they wero picked up. They had a narrow escape from death. The /ire burned so quickly that it wab impossible t" bee who was saved and w ho was lost. The dock was crowded with roustabouts and dock, passengers, thirty of the latter having just got on the vessel at New Texas landing. Nearly all of those were lost While the pu&sengcrs and crew were escaping from the boat the ateamnipe blew up and was hurled :->OO > ards in the air. The force of the explosion caused over twenty bales of burning cotton to be hurled hi^h in the air, whore they revolved several times and then fell into the river. Immediately alter tho explosion shrieks were heard coining from the stern 01 the vessel. iPov an instant two coloured women wore seen standing on tho galley ju>l back ol the wheelhouse, and the next nibtant they w ero hidden by the smoke and ilamos. The first part ot the boat to give way was the wheolhouse. it tell into the water and a draft being created, the flames swept through the centre ot the boat.

Tho Rescued. Those who escaped wore tiiken away from the scene by tho stoamboat Stella Wild, which plies boiw ecu Bayou fefaia and Natchez. As the Wil'i was backing out, three ki-gs ot gunpowder that were m the hold exploded, and the cotton and burning timbers were hurled in ,i'l directions. This "\ mually put the lire out, and what was once a paUuial steamer was now a blackI cued wreck. When the Wild ro.iehod tho river a loud cry lor help c tine from th< middle of the i btiviun. A boat was lowered and was quickly pulled m the direction of the ory. Through the diirkno-s the crow saw the lig'irc of a man grasping a bale ot cotton, but botoro (hey could | H'U( h him the halo turned o\ or, and when it was righted tho man was gone.

The Loss of Life. C.inlam Henry O. Brown. State Engineer, "\\ ho was .1 pas-,enyu % on the 'While, estimates the lo^s ot litu in thirlj -six. He says: "'Tho clncf unite was in eharye of the steamer. I luul about ten feet start of the fire, and although I van rapidly forward, when 1 reached there the bank of. lire was within twent\-ti\e teet oi me. I had on mj underclothing. I did not see a soul in (lie cabin as i ran through. Iho cabin was in full blaze at the time, and tho flames were rapidly eatiny their way to the hurricane dec k. In less than hi teen minutes the boat had burned to the water's edge. There were lour kegs of powder in the macc'i'ine, and the moment the lire reached them the ilames shot up about. .1 hundred leet hiu'h. The s>iy;hl was tho most hcartiendini? one o\er Viitne-sed by a human beintc. The. '-line'cm^r of the wuimn and children tor help was aw in!."