Page:New Brunswick Magazine Issue 1.djvu/100

jand to hear the band play on the deck of the steamers.

When the Royal Tar left St. John it had all this large caravan aboard, and save for the greater proportion of human beings must have appeared like a modern Noah's ark. There was heavy weather along the coast in the latter part of October, 1836, and when the Royal Tar left Eastport on the evening of the 21st, the wind was found to be blowing so hard from the westward that the steamer put into Little River for safety. The gale continued for three days, but on the afternoon of Monday, the 24th, another attempt was made to resume the voyage. Finding a heavy sea outside and the wind still from the westward, the steamer put into Machias Bay and again came to anchor, remaining until midnight, when the wind shifted to northwest and the voyage was again resumed.

According to the narrative of Captain Reed, published in the papers of that time, all seems to have gone well until about 1.30 in the afternoon of the following day, Tuesday, Oct. 25, when the engineer reported that the water had been allowed to get too low in the boiler. This appears to have been a case of carelessness, due to the neglect of the second engineer. On hearing this report, the captain ordered the engine stopped and the safety valve opened, the steamer being brought to anchor about a mile and a half from Fox Islands, in Penobscot Bay. The fire in the furnace was extinguished, and it was supposed that all danger from the overheating was over. The force pump was set at work to supply more water to the boiler, but in about half an hour the steamer was found to be on fire under the deck over the boiler. The discovery was made by Brown, the steward. An effort was made to extinguish the flames by means of hose attached to the pump, but it proved unavailing. The fire spread rapidly and it was plain the steamer was doomed.