Fort Mill times. (Fort Mill, S.C.) 1892-current, June 22, 1904, Image 1
f
> . ?VOL.
XIII.
A PLEASURE I
Over Seven Hundred Li\
Excursion Steamer
? - 9
WOMEN AND CHILDREN FRANTIC
Story of a Frightful Disaster That
Cost Many Hundred Lives?Fixing
the Responsibility?Heartrending^
Scenes.
The latest facts obtainable concerning
he nwaful disaster that befell the
excursion steamer General Sloeuni near
New York on Wednesday have been
liven out up to Saturday. No gr-ater
calamity has been recorded in modern
times. The 2,000 pleasure-seekers from
8L Mark's Lutheran Sunday school
were exposed to sudden and frightful
death, and it seems that not less than
700 nf tllPKP npriahml pltlmi- l>ir
J? ?-?v?n . WJ l#U? IllUh
cr by drowning.
The Btory of the rnlamity is told by
the following press dispatches:
i
A Tragic Tale of Death.
<One of the most appalling disasters
la the history of New York, tragic in
Its immensity, dramatic in its episodes
and deeply pathetic in the tender age
of most of its vlcitms, took place Wednesday
in the East river, at the entrance
?o Long Island Sound, within a
ahort distance of the New York shore,
within sight of thousands of persons,
the majority of whom were powerless j
tc minimize the extent of the vatastropho.
By the burning to the water's edge '
of the General Slocum, a three-decked
excursion steamer, the largest in these
waters, more than 600 persons, the majority
of whom were women and children,
were burned to death or drowned
J>y jumping overboard or by being
thrown into the whirlpool by the
lurching of the vessel and the frantic
rxjo-h nf the punlc-strlrk.n nasseugers.
'! * |
Approximately 500 bodies have been
recovered and are now being fragged
at the morgues of Bellevtte Hospital
and Harlem. Divers were atlll bnsy
at a late hour taking bodies from tne
hold of the vessel, which they say is
choked with the remains of human beings,
while the bodies of scores who
leaped or were thrown into the river
have not been recovered.
It is the season of Sunday school oxW
eursioas in New York and Long Island
Sound, the latter one of the most ple^
turcsque bodies of water in the ooiin
Great preparations had been made
W for the seventeenth annual excursion of :
J the Sunday school of St. Mark's tier- I
man Lutheran church, the congrcga- j
tion oi which Is drawn from the dense
!>oprlatnn of tne lower Fast and West '
Side', and the General Slocum liad {
^ei chartered to curry the excursionists
to lx>cust Grove, one of the many
retorts an Long Island Sound.
Tj?r*excursion was In charge of Rev.
George C. F. Haas *?- - '
, \mx uir
ehtir^h. The vessel was commamj^
uy Capt. William Van Schaik, one of
'the Li >st known excursion boat cap- !
tains in New York harbor. He lias
commanded the General Slocum for al- j
most the entire time Rlnce she was '
halt l in 1891. The number of excursionists
or. board Is variously estimated ,
at from 1,500 to 2,500. bu* ncrording to .
an officlci statement Issued by the
Knickerbocker Steamboat Company,
1 Talliafer'r? Renominated.
Jacksonville, Special.?The State and
Congressional committees mot separately
here to canvass and report the
vote In tne last, jmlmary. The vote j
was officially announced as follows: 1
For Senator: J. p. Taliaferro. 24,050; i
J. N. C. Stockton, 20.095. For Con- j
gress, ascend district: Frank Clark. ,
9.800; J. M. narrs, 7,839. For Governor: j
' N. B. Brrward. 22^,7h; R. W. I)avis,|
' 22,265.
1* Killed by Mine.
Tokio. By Cable.?While the Taihoku
was engaged in laying mines at the
entrance to J'ort Arthur last night a
initio exploded killing two officers and
seven men. The Taihoku. which is a
naval transport, was not seriously injured.
Chicago. Special?A special! to the
Daily News from Toklo says: "The of- '
fleer killed in the accident to the torpedo-laying
ship. Taihoku, was T.ieutenant
Commander Oda. He was the
Inventor of the .!ajm.nese mine and. by
his great activity and skill throughout
the operation* before Fort Arthur, had
?<dded largely to his reputation. The }
Taihoku nt the time of tho accident ,
was pndcr a heavy fire ftvm the Rus* ,
plap forts and torpedo boata."
',v
'i&y- ?
ORT
]
mi BURNED
\?
'es Lost By Disaster tli,
Near New York
ilV? -*1 ' ? *
unuris ui me kiiu>Hiiu. inc uuiuucr U1 i
passengers was 873, that being onethird
of the vessel's lloensel capacity.
The Slocum had reached a point
uear the Sunken Meadows, off 135th
street. Manhattan .which is at the extreme
eastern end of Randall's Island, j
when fire broke out in a lunch room on
the forwnrd deck. The blaze was
caused by the overturning of a pot of j
grease. The headway of the vessel and
a high wind almost instantly fanned
the insignificant flame into fury. Kfforts
were at onee directed to subduing
'.he Are, but they were futile. The
bla*;i spread^ aft with almost lightning
rapidity. Captain Van Schaik, in the
pilot house, had been Informed of the
outbreak of the fire, and realizing the
danger, decided to send his vessel to
shore at I84th street. At this point
there are a number of yards and several
huge oil tanks, and the captain
was wurned that to attempt to land at
this point would endanger the property
and perhaps further imperil the scores
of people, who had already been fright
Plied into a state of almost uncontrolable
excitement.
Changing the big steamer's course
slightly, he headed for North Brother
Island, half a mile away. By this time
the flames were rushing by leaps and
bounds from the forward part of the
ship aft.
The women and children began to
jump from the vessel into the seething
water below, and scores were drowned.
The upper deck fell in, crushing hundreds
in its fall, and hundreds more
were suffocated by the heat. The scene
was heart-rending in the extreme. The
blame has not been fully located.
The Number of the Dead.
New York. Special.?At midnight the
authorities at the morgue made the ofiloinl
announcement that 559 bodies had
been recovered. Of these .117 had been
i identified and 32 of those remaining
wnrft phurFOfl /.n.-nn .1 I *: * ?
, WJ uuU iCl'UglllllUU. liU!,,r
I in the day Friday four ho<ii.o ?iA;re recovered
at North Brother Island by
rescuers at work In boats and taken
ashore. They were removed to the
morgue and are inc'uded in the total.
The morgue officials only Friday
night discovered they had failed to account
for the bodies of twenty-six men,
women and children that had been
j identified at the Alexander avenue staI
tion on Wednesday within two or three
hours after the accident and turned
| over to friends or relatives. These
I brought the list up to 559 recovered
dbad.
Friday evening the body of a girl of
oight years which was declared by
r.cighbors to be that of the little daughter
of Henry Heinz, of Front street,
was washed up against the side of a
pier at the foot of Clinton street in the
j Fast river, hardly a block away from
the girl's home. The tide by a strange
vagary had carried the little body from
the scene of the calamity of North
; Brother Island down through the nar- i
j row channels of the river to this point
so near her home. The girl's mother.
'Mrs. Annie Heinz, is among the dead.
There has oeen grent.diffieulty In the
matter of recovering and identifvinsr
the dead.
There are a number of places where
the living may have landed, and it is
believed that many now reported missing
are safe and eventually will be
heard from by the officials who have
the rescue work in hand. Indeed, tonight
a surprising number of persons
reported to those officials that they had
Transports Sunk by Russians.
Tokio, By Cable.?All doubt as to the
sinking of the transport Hitachi and
Sudo by the Russians has been removed.
Three hundred and ninety-seven
survivors of the Hitachi have arrived
at Mojl and Hi3 survivors of the Sarin
have arrived at Koktrra. Details
ot the destruction of the two transports
and the full extent of the casualties aro j
not obtainable.
Railway Bridge Burned,
Spartanburg. S. C.. Special.?The
Southern Hallway bridge over llroad
river, on the Spartanburg & Asbevillo I
line, SO utiles north of Columbia, was
partially burned at 6 o'clock Wednesday
morning. Passenger train No. 9,
north-bound, was saved from running 1
into the bridge by a negro, who signal- ;
led with a red petticoat. Th > con due- 1
tor and crow and volunteer passengers ,
formed a bucket brigade and succeeded i
in subduing the flames, but cot until !
half the bridge bad been consumed, j
Trains for Asheville are coming by way ;
of Greenville to Spartanburg The I
origin of tbo 1? unknown.
'' '
" . 4
. 1 >ri
V P
? - ? . v
* r ? . -4
MI]
FORT MILL, S. C? WE
been saved, thus cutting the list of
missing down considerably, as well as
the probable mortality list.
Many persons were injured in the
panic that followed the breaking out of
the flames on the General Slocum, and
.at least 200 persons were taken to the
iChspitals. Not a death has occurred so
far among these, and many of them
have already been discharged.
Perhaps the most remarkable rase in
the many appalling experiences of
those who were on the Slocum was that
of Miss Clara Hartipan, who was picked
up for dead, towed behind a boat for
several miles, wrapped in a tarpaulin
and tagged as dead, and then recovered
consciousness at the Alexander avenue
police station. It is now believed sb?
! will rncnvof
Although many of the bodies taken
to the morgue were very badly uiutila'.ed
and the clothing in many eases
I almost entirely burned off. valuables
have been taken from them and are
I in the keeping of the c ity officials to
the extent of $200,000 or more. Several
or the men and women had the savings
of a lifetime on them when they per|
islted. Much jewelry, it is reported to
[ the police, has been lost, but an expln|
nation may be found in the fact that it
was desroyed in the llrse rather than
stolen by ghouls.
Tlio official investigation into the
cause of the disaster is being vigorously
J pushed, and with a determination to fix
i the responsibility and punish the parties
charged with the appalling loss of
life.
Secretary Cortelyou. of the Departi
ment of Commerce and Labor, will personally
undertake the investigation
into the disaster on behalf of the government;
District Attorney Jerome and
his assistants are working energeti!
cally on the case, and officials of the
; coroner's office have made considerable
i progress In the way of gathering evij
dence. which will be presented on Moni
day, when the coroner's inquiry will
| begin. There is in the coroner's possession
a standpipe taken at his direction
by a diver from the submerged
wreck. The valve of the pipe is closed
tight, showing that no use was made
j of this pipe in fighting the flames on
the Sloctim. Statements were made to
the coroner todav bv several of the
! steamboat employes who will appear as
i witnesses at the inquest that the captain
of the Sloeum sailed his boat a
distance of between three and four
miles after the fire broke out before
beaching her. Several watches showed
that more than half an hour had
elapsed from the breaking out of the
fire unti lthe boat was run ashore, all
the watches which were taken from
bodies of the drowned stopping between
10:10 and 10:20 in the morning.
Estimates as to the number of dead
still vary greatly, and this may be
accounted for by reason of the failure
to report, to the p?oper authorities on
the n? i of many who. though officially
registered as missing, were in
reality saved. Already. 539 bodies have
lionn ? * ? ' ' ' *
muicmi, oi wnicn about ><> remain
unidentified. These include 272
children. 243 women and 23 men.
Thirteen officers of St. Mark's church
are among the dead, one of them being
ja woman. The first funeral from
among the victims was held today,
it being that of a young girl who is
believed to have died of heart disease
from fright. No signs of death from
burning or drowning were found. Her
funeral was followed by a score of
I others, which were attended by thousands
of persons from the East Side
community, where most of the dead
bad lived. Tomorrow there will be
three hundred or more funerals and
thirty-two unrecognizable bodies now
lying at the morgue will be placed,
each in a separate coffin and in a separate
hearse, and laid away in the Lutheran
Cemetery, at Middle Village. L.
I. The city has arranged for their
burial, a plot large enough for the interment
of 250 bodies having been set
aside in this cemetery. All the unknown
dead will be placed here side
by side.
Many thousands of dollars have been
subscribed to the relief fund
General Uhler, o? Washington, supervising
inspector general of steamboats,
Collector Stranahan, General
Clarkson. the surveyor of tne port, and
j Local Supervising Inspector Rodle and
Dumont had a conference this after!
noon and arranged for the inquiry into
the Slocum disaster ordered by Secretary
Cortelyou.
The session was secret, but it was
learned thm ?v.^ m - --
me niniaacr or tne life
preservers and fire equipment of the
General "Sloctini received lengthy consideration.
Richmond, Va.. Special.?Dr. Richard
Mcllwdino has tendered his resignation
as president of Hampden-Sidney
College. He also resigned as professor
of moral philosophy and Bible
study. The t>oard of trustees accepted
his resignation and then elected him to
the professorship above named. He reserves
his decision for a month.
$150,000 Fire in Virginia.
Richmond, Special.?F're at Norton,
Wise county. Va.. Wednesday night destroyed
the whole business section of
the town, causing a loss of about $1.'j0.000,
partly insured. One man was severely
Injured by jumping from a window.
Omtion to Cortelyou.
Westfleld, Mass.. Special.?Secretary
of the Department of Commerce and
I>al>or George B. Cortelyou, received
an ovation bore when he re-visited the
town where he formerly attended
school. That night Secretary Cortelyou
delivered the jnincipal address at a
banquet given by the board of trade.
LL
I)NKS1>AY. JUNK 22.
A GLORIOUS MARCH.j
Veterans of Southern Confederacy
Cheered at Every Turn.
WAS A LONG LINE OF HEROES.
The Old Men Marched Unflinchingly,
Though the Step Faltered at Times
? rue Marchers Representative of
the Whole South.
Nashville, TVnn., Special.?As a lit tins
climax to tho reunion of the
Cnited Confederate Veterans, Nash
ville and her thousands of guests
Rave the veterans as they marched
proudly through densely crowded
streets, an ovation which will live
long in the memory of its recipients,
as well as those who paid the honor.
The day was warm, but the old men
marched unflinchingly, although the
step at times faltered. There was
much confusion, caused by poor polic
ing along the route, but the start was
made at the hour set. and the last veteran
passed the reviewing stand two
hours later. The Seventh Cavalry
Uand, United States army, led the
parade, and this organization, as well
as the mnnv other hnnils iii the 11 in it
ling, played only four pieces, but gave
them over and over again, as follows:
"Maryland, My Maryland," " My Old
Kentucky Home," "The Girl 1 left behind
Me," and "Dixie." United States
mail carriers, at several places along
the line, supplied ice water to the
thirsty veterans.
The parade was representative, not
only of every Southern State, but
many camps located in the far West;
one in Montana and another in Ohio
had delegations in line. The Fourth
division, composed principally of
! cainps from Tennessee, Alabama,
Georgia and Mississippi, carried away
tbe honors for the greatest number of
men in line. The Virginians were an
j Imposing body of men and were given
1 many a elieor. The Fourth Brigade,
i North Carolina, headed by a camp
! from Anii< Vllle bearing hornet nest.s
in the branches of trees, and headed
by a drum corps of veterans,
which now musters but four members,
was one of the features of the parade.
Alabama's "yellow hammers" were
heartily applauded. Many of the
< amp representations were noticeably
! small, but the pride with which they
j held aolft their tattered battle Hags
made up for the deficiency in numbers.
One Louisiana camp carried a
Hag so frayed by bullets and time that
I it was held together by a net.
In the reviewing stand 011 Spruce
! street was a distinguished company,
j including Mrs. John 11. Gordon, the
widow of the former commander-inchief,
and her daughters; Col Phillip
Fall, of Houston. Texas, a member
of General Lee's staff; Mrs. John C.
Hi-own and Bishop and Mrs Fitzgerald,
of Tennessee. Mrs. Go r A on stood
at the front of the reviewing stand,
and drawn up across the street were
General Leo and his staff. The veterans
cheered their leader to the echo
as they passed, and many rushed out
of line to grasp his hand. Then they
turned and saluted the widow of General
Gordon. Mrs. Gordon was deeply
moved at tho manifestations of affection.
Her emotion was quite perc< ptlblo
as the Georgia division bore past
tlu? reviewing stand tho tlag of the
Confederacy that, had been made from
the ribbons that bedecked the grave
of her beloved husband.
Another affecting incident was tho
welcome and salute of the old Stonewall
Jackson Brigade as it passed.
The grizzled warriors, bearing the tattered
and battle-scarred fine- tunv
carried through victory and defeat
alike, stepped out of line and with one
accord saluted Mrs. Gordon and (?enj
cral Lee. |
Eloped from Bedford City.
Hoanoke. Special.?Miss Clara Trent,
a well-known young lady of Bedford
county, eloped to Bristol with Mr. Jack
Hatcher, of Vinton, the couple bent on
matrimony. There was no particular
objection to the marriage, but the
elopement was prompted by a spirit of
romance.
Telegraphic Brief6.
Robert S. Freeman died from the effects
of chloroform in a Norfolk hospital.
In a battle near Vanfangow, 50
miles north of Port Arthur the Russians
claim to have repulsed the Japanese.
Another hitch occurred in the negotiations
with Ralsull, the Morocco ban
dit, with regard to the release of Ion
Perdicaris and Cromwell Varley.
Empress Augusta Victoria received
a delegation of the International Council
of Women in Berlin.
Mgr. l'alconio. Apostolic Delegate
in the United SUitea. arrivod lo Rome
0:1 a yJwt.
riME
1904.
NtVS THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY
Paragraph* of Minor Importance
Gathered From Many Sources.
Through the South.
John McMillan, an old scldlcr, was
drugged and robbed at Norfolk..
Judge 11. G. Turner, for many years
a Congressman from Georgia, died in
Raleigh, N. C.
The tattooed body of a drowned
man was washed ashore at False
Cape, Va.
James Agner, of Roanoke, had his
?ye out out by someone unknown,
who attneked him In the dark.
The Marylanders who attended the
dedication of the Stat" building at the
St. Louis Exposition have returned
home.
At West Virginia University a service
was ueld in memory of three
members of the faculty who recently
died.
Wshington Happenings.
The Honorary Hoard of Filipino
Commissioners. numbering about .">0.
arrived In Washington.
Speaker Cannon. Representative ilitt
and Senator Dryden discussed polities
with the President at. luncheon at the
wmto House.
Records compiled by Gen. Marcus
J. Wright gave 4 lieutenant-generals,
11 major-generals and 51 brigadieras
still surviving.
An Agricultural Department report
on "Plant Diseases in 150.1" shows the
nature and extent of damage done
growing crops.
The honorary board of the Filipino
commissioners spent the day on the
dispatch boat Dolphin and visited
Washington's Tomb.
The attorneys for Paymaster Biscoe
In their appeal to Secretary Moody
against the action of Admiral Evans
In court-martial proceedings against
the former severely criticise the Ad'
aiiral.
i
In the North.
The cost of the various strikes in
: Colorado during the last 10 months is
I estimated at $83,036,000. '
Capt. F. S. Wild was found dying
from a bullet wound at Fort McDowell,
I near San Francisco.
The Western Federation of Miners
decided to appeal to President Roosevelt
to Investigate the Colorado troubles.
Governor Pennypacker, of Pennsyl!
vania, appointed Attorney-General
Philander C. Knox to fill out the unexpired
term of Senator Quay.
Hannah Ellas was discharged from
custody in the criminal case of Extortion
brought against her in New York,
and was released on $20,000 bond in the
civil case.
George J. Gould and ex-Mayor Thomas
O. Hayes testified In Brooklyn, N.
Y., in the suit of Morris C. Menges for
$1,000,000 for services In connection
with the Western Maryland railroad
deal.
Foreign Affairs.
The British force at Gyantzi. Tibet,
repulsed an attack of 1,100 Tibetans.
The Reichstag voted for woman suffrage
in the selection of courts of arbitration.
Great Britain, France and Russia decided
to urge the Porte to stop the
Armenian atrocities.
The Japanese b?gan the attack on
Port Arthur, according to a dispatch
from Chorn, and Chinese refugees at
Chefu reported four days fighting near
Port Arthur before they left.
Oeneral KuropatkJn reported an engagement
on June 7 at Salmatze, in
which his loss was over 100.
There is an unconfirmed rumor in
St. Petersburg that a great naval battle
has taken place off Port Arthur,
In which the Russians lost two and
the Japanese four battleships.
Manuel Quintana was elected President
of Argentina and Jose Pardo of
Peru.
Five persons were drowned by the
sinking of the steamer Canada in
collision with the collier Cape Proton
near Sorel, in the St. I^awrence river.
J. W. S I^aiigerman, Moroccan
commissioner for the St. l?uis Exposition,
returned from the camp of
Raisuli, the bandit chief, where he
found Ion Perdicaris hopeful of release.
Carsten Porehgrevink, the Antarctic
explorer, declares it likely th/jt a
peopled continent is at the South
Pole.
A letter from Ion Perdlcans, written
from the camp of Raisuli, the
Moroccan bandit, was teeeived by a |
friend In London.
NO. 14.
ILLINOIS FOR HEARST
*
New York Editor Gets a Solid Delegation
From That State
DELEGATES TO VOTE AS A UNIT
Lawrence B. Stringer, of Lincoln,
Was Named for Governor:?Mayor
Carter H. Harrison, of Chicago,
Was Unseated as a Delegate.
Springfield, 111., Special.?The Demcv
cratic State convention nominated
Lawrence B. Stringer, of Lincoln, for
Governor and instructed the dclegat?
to the St. Louis convention to vohe as a
tir.it for William If. Hearst for the
presidential nomination. The eonvea
tion was controlled by John P. Hopkins.
former mayor of Chicago, and
now chairman of the State central
committee. Mr. Hearst's campaign managers
who attempted to ride into power
by the aid of his name, received ne
consideration whatever from the convention.
The Harrison party, which
enme solely from Chicago, and was
pledged to the support of Congressman
James R. Williams. was routed completely.
Mayor Carter H. Harrison whs
unseated as a delegate and took a train
for home without going near tie convention.
Beth his faction and the
Hearst party were as nothing compared
to the strength and skilful management
of the convention exhibited by Hopkins.
Clayton E. Crafts, of Chicago read
the report of the committee on r*,. olutions.
Ho was frequently iterrupted.?
bv hoots and jeers and insinuating
questions were hurled at him in precision.
The resolution proTb'fng for
ilie endorsement of Mr. Hearst was not
mr.de a part of the report of the committee
on resolutions, hut was submitI
led to the convention as a separate ?
natter. The original resolution provided,
practically that the lltlnoir delegation
should vote for Hearst unless It
was convenient to vote for somebody
rise. A substitute, ofTered by Clarenr?
H. Darrow, pledging the delegates to
litarst as long as his name is before
the convention was then adopted by a
vote of 9.1 G to 395.
Following are the pronouncements of
the platform upon national questions:
"We demand that all departments of
government recognize and act upon the
doctrine that the constitution follows
the tlag in Porto Rico and the Philippine
Islands, or elese that they are free
and independent, so that the true glory
of our country shall not he tarnished
by the exercise of the despotic power,
of denying to a helpless people a ropubliean
form of government. We
favor tho election of United States
Senators by a direct vote of the people.
We point to the growth of trusts and
monopolies as one of the evil results of
the ascendency of the Republican party
r.t Washington. By the present tariff
law and in numerous ways special
privileges and undue favors have been
extended by a Republican Congress and
n Republican President ,to favored
classes and huge corporations. Tho
older trusts have all been strengthened
and new trusts, too numerous to mention,
have been erected since the government
passed into the hands of tin?
Republican party in 1806.
"We submit that the Republican
party, itself, controlled by trusts, cannot
safely be relied on the curb the
trusts, and we demand that the government
be taken out of the hands of
the friends of monopoly am.' restored to
the untrammeled representatives of
the people."
Russian Offices Killed.
St. Petersburg, Special.?Emperor
V 11 r?1 o o line ml ?? *? ?' R * ? ' ? ?- :
..w,..r> i.i?o mancll IlfltUWf T!^
telegram from General Baron Stakelberg,
bearing Wednesday's late "A
battle began at noon around the. ltuasian
position four and one-half mlle?
south of the station of Wafanhoon
(V'afangow), the enemy making repeated
attempts to dislodge our left flank.
The attack was repelled and we retained
our position. The first regiment,
occupying the left flang of our position
sustained severe Iobsps. Its commander,
Colonel Khavastouoff Nadochinsky
were killed. General Oerngros*
was wounded, a shrapnel bullet shattering
the right side of his lower jaw,
but he remained on the field."
Three Killed.
Bryantsville, Ind.. Special.?Throe
men are dead and two woundodg one
fatally, as the result, of a pistol fight,
on the streets of this village. The dead
are James and Charles Rout and Milton
Tow. James Tow Is fatally wountled
and Frank Tow is badly hurt- The
fight was the culmination of a filed betwen
the; Rout and Tow fatnllisK