Newspaper Page Text
Murat Cabinet.
VOL. 11.
THE CABINET
Is published every Saturday by T. L.
IIUBIYSON, JVarrenton , Geo. at
three dollars per annum , which may be
discharged by two dollars and fifty
cents i f paid within sixty days of the
time of subscribing.
Advertisements conspicuously inserted at
seventy jive cents per square for the
first insertion , and fifty cents for each
subsequent insertion Monthly inser
tions charged as new advertisements
Advertisements not limited when hand
ed in , will be inserted until forbid , and
charged accordingly.
■HaeZKZZS —IS-El—ll LUILJUf. ‘■■L “M*
From the United States’ Telegraph.
We are indebted to an intelligent
gentleman, a passenger on board the
Helen McGregor for the interening
narrative:
Ok the morning of the 21th of Feb
nary, the Helen McGregor stopped
at Memphis to deliver freight and
land a number of passengers, who
resided in that section of Tennessee.
The time occupied in so doing could
not have exceeded three quarters of
*n hour. When the boat landed, I
went ashore to sec a gentleman with
whom I had some business. I found
him on the. beach; arid after a short
Conversation, returned to the boat. I
recotiect'looking at my watch as i
passed the gang way.—lt was half
past eight oi lock. A great num
ber of persons were standing on what
is called the boiler deck, being that
part of the upper de< k situation imme
diately over the boilers. It was
Crowded to excess, and presented one
dense mass of human bodies. In a
few minutes wc 3at down to breakfast
in the cabin. The table, although
extending the whole length of the cab
in whs completely filled, there being
upwards of sixty cabin passengers, a
mong whom were several ladies ami
children The number of passengers!
on hom'd, deck and cabin united, was
between four and five hundred. I had
aim >st finished my breakfast when the|
pilot rung his bell for the engineer to)
put the machinery in motion. The
boat havingjust shoved off, I was in the j
a t f raising my cup to my lip, the
tingling of the pilot bell still on my
ear, when I heard an explosion, ro
sembling the discharge of a small piece
of artillery—the report was perhaps
louder than usual in such cases—for
an exclamation was half ottered by
ne, to the effect, that the gun was
well loaded, when the rushing sound of
steam, and the rattling of glass in
pome of the cabin windows cheeked
my speech, and told too well what had
occurred. I almost involuntarily bent
fr*y head and body down to the floor,
a vague idea seemed to shoot across
my mind that more than one boiler
might burst, and that, by assuming
this posture, the destroying matter
would pass over without touching me.
The general cry of “ a boiler has
hurst ‘* resounded from one end of the
table to the other; and, as if by a sim
ultaneous movement, al! started upon
their feet. Then commenced a gener
al race to the ladies cabin, which lay
ci, ic towards the stern of the boat.
AU regaro to order or deference to
sex seemed to be lost in the struggle
for which should be first and furthest
removed from the dreadful boilers.
Tin* danger had already passed awaj!
1 remained standing by the chair on
’ hich 1 Imd been previously sitting.
Only one person or two staid in the
• abin with me. As yet not more than
halt a minute had elapsed siinc the
explosion; but, in that l>ri< f spare how
bau the scene charged!—ln that ‘drop
of ime* what coi fusion, distress, amt
dismay! An instant before, and all
v%ere ip quiet repose of securi y—an
ther, and they were overwhelmed
with alarm and consternation. It is
but justice to say that in this scene of
terror the ladies exhibited a degree of
firmness worthy of all praise. No
screaming, no fainting; their fears,
when uttered, were for their husbands
anti children, not for themselves.
I advanced from my position to one
of the cabin doors for the purpose of
inquiring who were injured, when,
just as I reached, a man entertained at
the opposite one, both his hands cover
ing his face, and exclaiming “Oh God]
oh God ! 1 am lost, I am ruined J ”
He immediately began to tear off his
clothes. When stripped, lie presented
a most shocking and afflicting specta
cle; his face was entirely black--his
body without a particle of skin. He
had been flayed alive. lie gave me
his name, and place of abode—then
sunk in a state of exhaustion and
agony on the floor. 1 assisted in-i
ptaceing him on a matress taken from
one of the births, and covered him with
blankets. lie complained of heat and
cold as at once oppressing him. He
bore his torment with a manly forti
tude, yet a convulsive shriek would
occasionally burst from him. His
wife, his children, were his constant
theme: it was hard to die without see
ing them—.‘it was hard to go without
bidding them one farewell !’ Oil and
cotton were applied to his wounds;
but he soon became insensible to
earthly misery, lie fore 1 had done
attending to him, the whole floor of
the cabin was covered with unfortu
nate sufferers..—Some boro up under
the horrors of their situation with a
degree of resolution amounting to he
roism. Others were wholly overcome
by the sense of pain, the suddeniss of
tiie fatal disaster, and the near ap
proach of death, which even to them
was evident—whose, pangs they alrea
dy frit. Some imploring as an act of
humanity, to complete the work of
distraction, and free them from pres
ent suffering. One entreated the pre
sence of a clergyman to pray by him,
declaring he was not fit to die. I in
quired; none could be had.—On every
side were to be heard groans and min
gled exclamations of grivf and ands
pair.
To add to the confusion, persons
were every moment running .about to
learn the fate of their friends and
relatives; fathers, sons, and brothers;
for, in this scene of unmixed calamity,
it was impossible to say who were
saved, or who had perished. The
countenances of many were so much
difigured as to he past recognition.
My attention, after some time, was
particularly drawn towards a poor
fellow who lay unnoticed, on the floor,
w ithout uttering a single word of com
plaint. He was at a little distance
removed from the rest. —He w ; as not
much scalded, but one of his thighs
was broken, and a principal artery
had been severed, from which the
blood was gushing rapidly. He be
trayed no displeasure at the apparent
neglect with which he was treated—
he was perfectly calm. I spoke to
him; he said he was very weak; he
felt himself going—it would soon be
over. A gentleman ran for one of the
physicians; he caiuc and declared that
it expedition were U9ed he might be
preserved by imputating the limbs,
| but that to effect this, it would be ne
; ressary to remove him from the boat.
! Unfortunately the boat was not fliifti
I riently near to run a plank ashore
! We were obliged to wait until it coulo
!be close hauled. I stood by calling;
| for help; we placed him on h niatiess
| and bore him to the guards; there w<
were detained some time, from the
cause 1 hftv? mentioned, Never did
Warrenton. April 17, 1830.
any tl.r.ig appear to me so slow as the
movements of those engaged in haul
ing the boat.
I knew, and he knew, that delay
was death— that life was fast ebbing.
1 could not take my gaze from bis
face—there all was coolness and re
signation. No word of gesture indic
ative of impatience escaped him. He
perceived by loud, and perhaps, angry
tone of voice, how much 1 was excited
by what I thought the barbarous
slowness of those around; he begged
me not to take so much trouble; that
they were doing their best. At length
we got him on shore—lt was too late;
lie was too much exhausted, and died
immediately after the imputation.
So soon as I was relieved from at
tending on those in the cabin, I went!
to examine that part of the boat where
the boiler had burst. It was a com-,
plete wre k—a picture of disrruction.
It bore ample testimony of the tre
mendous force that power which the
ingenuity of man has brought to his
aid. The steam had given every
thing a whitish hue—the boilers were
displaced —the deck had fallen down
—the machinery was broken and dis
ordered. Bricks, dirt and rubbusli
were scattered about. Close by the
bowsprit was a large rent through
which, I was told, the boiler after ex
ploding, had passed out, carrying one
or two men in its mouth. Several
dead bodies were lying around.* their
fate had been an enviable one compar
ed with that of others—they could
scarcely have been conscious of a pang
ere they bad ceased to be. On the
starboard wheel house lay a human
body, in which life was not yet extinct,
though, apparently, there was no sen
ribility remaining. The body must
have been thrown from the boiler
(leek, a distance of thirty feet; The
whole of the forhead had been blown
away; the brains were still boating.
Tufts of hair, shreds of clothing, an and
spolches of blood might be seen in eve
ry direction. A piece of skin was
picked up by a gentleman on board,
which appeared to have been pealed
off by the force of the steam; it exten
ded from the middle of the arm down
to tiie tips of the fingers, the nails ad
hering to it. So dreadful had been
the force that not a particle of the
flesh adhered to it; the most skilful
operator could scarely have effected
such a result. Several died from in
haling the steam or gas, whose skin
was almost uninjured.
The number of lives lost will, in sift
probability, never be distinctly know n.
Many were seen lloug-tnto. the river,
most of whom sunk to rise? no more.
.Could the survivors'have been kept
until the Hat of jjassengers was called,
the precise loss%ould have been as
that, however, though it
had been attempted, would, tinder the
circumstances, have been next to im
possible.
Judging from the crowd which I
saw on tiie boiler deck immediately
before the explosion, and the state
merit which I received as to the num
ber of those who succeeded in swim
ming out after they were cast into the
river, I am inclined to believe that
between forty and fifty must have per
ished
The cabin passengers escaped,
owing to the peculiar construction of
(he boat. Just behind the boilers were
several large iron posts, supporting,
I think, the boiler deck* Across each
post was a large circular plate of iron,
of between one <s* two inches in thick
ness. One of those posts was placed
exactly opposite the head of the boiler
which burst, being the second one on
the starboard side. Against this J>lsit
the head struck, und pnne’r | to
the depth of an inch, then broke A flew
off at Hti angle, entering a cotton bIo
to the depth of foot? The boiler head
was in point Marik range with the
breakfast table in the cabin, and had it
not been obstructed by the iron post,
must have made a clear sweep of those
who were seated at the table.
To render any satisfactory account
of tho cause which produced the
explosion can hardly be expected
from one who has no scientifi or
practical knowledge on the subject and
who previously thereto was paying no
attention to the management of (he
boat. The captain appeared to he very
active and diligent m attending to Ins
duty\ He was on the boiler deck when
the explosion occurred; was materially
injured by that event; and must have
been ignorant of the mismanagement,
if any there was.
From the engineer alone could the
true explanation be afforded; and if it
was really attributable to negligence,
it can scarcely be supposed he will lay
tho blaino on himself. If I might
venture a suggestion in relation
thereto, I would assign the following
causes.* That the water in the star
board boilers had become low in
consequence of that side of tho boat
resting upon the ground during our
stay at Memphis; that, though the
fires were kept up some time before,
we Bloved off, that (he head which
burst had been cracked for a consider
able time; that the boiler was extreme
ly heated, and the water, thrown in
w lien the boat was again in motion,
was converted into steam, and the
lines, not being sufficiently large to
carry it off as quickly as it was gen
erated, nor the boiler head of a
strength capable of resisting its action
—the explosion was a natural result.
1 assume this proposition to be cor
rect— that, in every case where a boil
er hursts it is fair to infer that it pro
ceeded from neglect, until the contra
ry shall be proved.
A Cabin Passenger on board the
Helen Af'Gregor.
By tiie bases of tie new Constiltf.
tion of Colombia, as proposed hy the
Congress at Bogota the executive is
“irresponsible, except in cas of high
treason specified in tho Constitution.’*
As in the British Constitution, hi&
minister are to bear the r sponsiftilitv
of the government. Should this pro
vision pas 9, Bolivar, although without
the outward symbols of royalty, wilt
be King in fact, w hich is all his am
bition could desire. The executive is
to be elective, but judging from taa
time Bolivar has already held su
preme power, he may continue to hold
it for a period, quite as hr g ;>s the
ordinary reign of King, or even
should he retire, the “irresponsibility*
of the office is the same. The Cath
holic religion is established under the
protection <f the government—and
the periods of election are to be
I prolonged. The government is to be
central instead of federative like our
jour own, and Venezucala is to be
|subdued. —Thus ends another act of
the'drama of South American Liber
ty.— Geo.
A poor man was recently found
guilty of bigamy in Providence. Tho
law of Rhode Island provides that tho
culprit insiirh a case shall bo sot oti
the gallows one hour, with a rope
about his neck, he fiord not exceeding
one thousand dollars, and imprisoned
j not exceeding two yearn; to suffer any
ior ell these punisbmetsca at the ts.
i cetion of the Court.—So much) |f,r
, appropriating to one’s self a double
]share of the cbiufurts eff this life,— sh
No. 43.