Watchman Of The South

Perils of Western Travel.—The Cincinnati Republican relates a singular incident which recently occurred to the steamboat Messenger, on her way from St. Louis to Cincinnati. When near Shawneetown, on the 26th ult., she snagged—the snag going through her state rooms, three of which were entirely demolished. It struck under the feet of two of the occupants, threw them out of their berths against the door, which being locked inside they could not move, after being thus abruptly aroused from their slumbers. The pantaloons of one, which had been thrown across his feet when he undressed, caught on the top of the snag, and when the boat stopped, was found dangling 10 feet above the hurricane deck. At the time of the accident, a deck passenger fell or jumped overboard in a fright, and being a good swimmer, made for the shore. Here in the darkness of the night he found the banks too steep and slippery to land, and was obliged to swim 100 yards or more down the stream where he effected a landing, and in a few hours was taken on board the William French. He overtook the Messenger at Louisville, his fellow passengers having given him up as drowned at the time of the accident. The snag was a long black walnut log upwards of a foot in diameter. No damage having been done to the boat's machinery, she was under way again in a few minutes.—Comp.