The Madison Daily Leader

RESULT OF A COLLISION.
Steamer Priscilla Has an Immense
Hole In Her Port Bow.

Newport, R. I., July 10—The Fall
River line steamer Priscilla is at her
pier in this city with a big hole in her
port bow and one of her crew dead and
wedged in by wreckage so that his
body will be extricated only with great
difficulty as a result of a collision with
the Merchants and Miners Transporta-
tion company's steamer Powhatan, in
Narragansett bay, in a fog. The vic-
tim was John Muniz, a Portuguese
de ckhand. Beside him no one was in-
jured. The Priscilla was struck fair
by the Powhatan and her bow was
nearly cut off. The stem of the latter
penetrated fully twenty feet into the
hull of the Priscilla. The forward
bulkhead was broken through, thus
placing two compartments out of con-
dition and rapidly sending the steam-
er down by the head, so that her stern
came out and the rudder was rendered
useless. The inflow of water very
soon extinguished the electric lights,
the dynamo room being in the vicinity
of the damaged part of the ship.
Thus the passengers, most of whom
were in bed, were turned out of their
rooms in darkness and their nervous-
ness and excitement was intensified as
they found the men on the ship pass-
ing out life preservers by candle light.
There was no panic, although no help
was in sight, and the steamer was ap-
parently in great need. It was the
sister ship of the Priscilla, the Puritan,
which came at first to the rescue. She
was on her way from New York when
she heard the signals of distress. Put-
ting a line on board she took the Pris-
cilla in tow, stern foremost, for New-
port. The vessels arrived here with-
out further mishap and the passengers
were safely landed.