Jasper County Democrat, Volume 11, Number 68, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 27 January 1909 — PUTS BLAME ON MAN AT WHEEL [ARTICLE]

PUTS BLAME ON MAN AT WHEEL

Report Florida’s Quartermaster Lost Head. STRUCK DOWN BY CAPTAIN One Version of What Occurred at the Time Rep. tile Was Rammed Is That at Moment of Danger Seaman li.s.eaJ cf Obeying Skipper’s Order to. G..;:ngc Ship’s Direction Dropped tc u.i.ce Helpless From Fright, erected With Screech of

Jan. 26.—Less than sevx . . rs alter the crash be- • .. i. c a n liners Republic and i ou tue Nantucket Shoals, uiuen eventually sent the one to the bottom and reduced the other to a slate ol ne.piessness, the survivors of the deep sea tragedy found a haven. The 1,650 passengers from the two vessels brought here by the Baltic, and the rescued officers and crew of the Republic, landed here by the derelict destroyer Seneca today are thanking their lucky stars that they are on solid earth and living to tell their thrilling stories. The Republic lies in what will doubtless prove her final resting place beneath thirty-eight fathoms of water, fifteen miles south of the Nantucket south shoals lightship. Sirens Screech Welcome. No argosy of the olden days bringing golden treasure home was ever more heartily welcomed than the Baltic. Frenzied cheers from the thousands at the pier when she docked greeted her arrival, tears of gratitude ■were shed, affectionate greetings were exchanged and only here and there did a note of sadness intrude Itself upon the scene. Following the Baltic up the harbor was the Florida battered almost to the sinking point herself by the force of the blow she dealt the Republic, and bearing the bodies of her own three dead and injured members of her crew. Attention has been turned to endeavors to learn definitely how the two big ocean travelers had come to crash Into each other. On the Republic’s side little was to be learned. Her passengers told graphic tales of the crush, of the excitement on board, of the bravery of the officers, the good behavior of the crew and of the efficient work of rescue. There are two versions of what happened on the bridge of the Florida. Little could be learned from Captain Rospini. Felled With Captain’s Spike. According to others, something went wrong with the Florida’s steering wheel when the collision was imminent. One story had it that a quartermaster had the wheel when the commander yelled for it to be jammed to starboard. He put it to port instead and the liners crashed into each other. Another version is that the man dropped his wheel altogether and In fright fell a helpless heap upon the Florida’s bridge. Both versions agree in saying that the commander felled the quartermaster with an iron spike following what he must have considered the seaman’s recreancy. An injured quartermaster from the Florida was brought to port on the Baltic. He stoutly asserted that he at the wheel when the accident occurred. Captain Sealby’s Loyalty. Standing out prominently is the conduct of Captain Sealby of the Republic, who. true to the best traditions of the sea, kept his sjhip beneath him as long as there was enough of it above water to afford him a perch. The men killed on the Florida were sleeping in their forecastle quarters and met instant death. It. was not until after the steamer got into her. berth that their bodies could be extricated from the wreckage. Eugene Lynch, one of the Republic’s' passengers, who was severely injured, was on the Florida when she came in. When he was taken later to.the Long* Island College hospital, tt was fdund that both his legs were broken, his right thigh fractured, «nd that he was Internally injured. It is feared he will die.