EXPLOSION OF THE NEW-ENGLAND. 473 
pared with the destruction of lives, the anguish of the suffer- 
ers, and the affliction of relatives and friends, consequent upon 
this terrible disaster. 
The following particulars are extracted from two letters, 
written by a gentleman, passenger in the New-England. 
Middletown, Wednesday, 2 o'clock. 
Our journey in the steam-boat New-England was very 
pleasant last evening, until we entered the Connecticut River. 
At or about one o'clock this morning, when we were ^11 
asleep, myself excepted, I perceived the engine, or something 
else, was out of order. I was in the forward cabin, and con- 
cluded I was in the safest part of the boat : things seemed to 
go on badly, by frequent stops, until 3 o'clock, when both boil- 
ers burst simultaneously, or as nearly together as a two bar- 
rel gvi]! could be discharged by one person ; the result was, 
two persons were killed outright, about 25 wounded or scald- 
ed, out of which number five or six may not survive. The de- 
struction of the upper works was almost entire. Among the 
num.ber injured, six or eight women are included, being on 
the upper deck cabin. In the main cabin three or four were 
badly injured. In the front cabin no one was injured, neither 
did any steam enter it. I was awake, and knew what it all 
meant. I hastened up, and in the course of fifteen minutes 
got lights and began to look after my baggage. 
Nearly all the baggage on board, together with about 50 
boxes of tea and dry goods, had disappeared ; after day-light, 
some of my luggage was found floating in tlie river. 
When I went on board the boat, I perceived that if an ex- 
plosion should take place, the chief danger was to those on 
deck, and as soon as it was over, I was sure the hull of the 
vessel was sound ; all this happened at a town called Essex, 
10 miles from the sound. The steam-boat was in thirty min- 
utes got to the wharf, where the towns-people were disposed 
to render every aid. The event seemed to be distressing be- 
yond description : the captain and men were astounded, and 
are as ignorant of the cause as the passengers. The fact is, 
the boilers v/anted water. The first boiler, I apprehend, threw 
her broken boiler against the other, which caused its explo- 
sion. 
Hartford, Thursday morning, Oct. 10. 
" On the arrival of the intelligence here of the explosion 
of the New-England, a steam-boat was sent down to the 
scene of distress ; she returned a few moments since with the 
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