SHIPPING DISASTER.

Gisborne Times, Volume VI, Issue 157, 15 July 1901, Page 3

SHIPPING DISASTER.

CROWDED FERRY-BOAT SUNK. MEN FIGHT BACK WOMEN. New York, June 14. Within ten minutes of the time the Staten Island ferry-ooat Northfield lefiher Whitehall slip on June 14th she was lying a battered, hopeless wreck at the bottom of the East River. Daring that ten minutes 800 men, women, and children on her decks engaged in a battle for life that was viewed with horror by the. spectators that lined the shore as the sinking craft slowly drifted up the river vrith the tide. The e&nse of the sinking was a collision with the Central Railroad ferryboat Mauch Chunk. Tho latter rammed the Northfield just off the Whitehall street slips. The passengers on the decks of the Northfield were cheering ono minute and fighting for life preservers and trampling over one another the next.

How many lives were stamped out in the struggle or how many were drowned with tho sinking boat may never be accurately known. The police and the crew of tho Northfield are firm in the conviction that none were lost. Eye witnesses, on the other hand, toll of men and women sinking almost within reach of the piers. One man sank, according to a witness,

clinging to one of the stanchions of tho Northfield.

Men acted as craven cowards in that strugglo on the decks of the sinking boat. They crowded and pushed their way regardless of the women. This was so especially on the lower or main deck of the boat. But there were soma stout hearts

among the men on the upper deck, and they supplemented tho efforts of the crew, who stuck to their posts like men and did all in their power for the panic-stricken passengers. Not a singlo effort was made by the Maucb Chunk's captain to follow the boat he had wreckod and save her passengers. Tho Northficld had barely oinerged from her slip when the crash eamo. Both her decks were filled with voyagers. She was said to have anywhere from 700 to 800 on board, and fully one-half of them wero women.

Tho hood of tho cabin on the Staton Island boat was crushed in like so much paper, and the cabin walls sent inboard. Tho Mauch Chunk’s rails on both sides wore smashed and her main deck was peeled back for ten feet. Her rudder forward was smashed. That was tho extent of her dauiago. Sho reeled from the blow and then backod out of the rent she lmd made in tho Northficld. The latter boat, still under steam, but with water pouring below in a volume, staggered on out into tho stream, whilst from all parts of the boat arose wild cries for help.

Right near the point of collision, in tho forward cabin, below, sat Miss Lizzie Ivors, a girl of nineteen. She was pinned between two huge splinters and held there for a time. Her right eye had been nearly torn from her head. She retained consciousness and managed to wrench herself freo. No ono elso paid the slightest attention to her.

Those nearest tho smashed outer doors wero trying to get on tho forward dock, and those nenr-the'companiomvays leading to the upper deck were making offorts to get above. In all the other cabins there wore the samo scenes. Men rushed for tho life preservers in all tho lower cabins and paid little attention to the women. Others struggled and pushed and clamored to get out of the cabins—out on dock, so that they could leap overboard if need be. So the strugglo went on, while tho Northficld slowly drifted with the tide up tho East River, her whistfe giving shrieks of distress. The ferryboat's distress whistles were responded to by more than a dozen East River tugs. They clustered along her sides, and tho passengers dropped off on tho decks of tho tugs. Tho tugboat Unity ranged alongside tho Northfield forward, and called to the women in that part of tho vessel to come on. But the men would not let them. They rushed for tho rail of the sinking ferry-boat, and threw themselves ovor on the tug's deck. Women who tried to follow were pushed back. Men fought also to get on tho other tugs. Captain Slater, of tho Unity, declared afterwards that fully a hundred men had clambered on bis tug before there was a chance to get off a single woman. Tho women had no chance.

From tho cabins thore was pushing and crowding a confused mass of humanity. Shrieks, yells, and curses filled the air. Tho passengers fought as if they realised that their chances of life were numbered by minutes, perhaps seconds. Tho Unity’s captain yelled to the men to give tho women a chance, and called out: “ Shame, you scoundrels ! Let the women come first! ” It made no differ-

ence, ho said. The men fairly shrieked in their terror, and many of them threw themselves flat on the deck of the tug, so weak with fright they could not stand. They rolled and grovelled on the Unity’s deck.

Chief Engineer Michael Boyle stayed in the engine-room until the'water reached his middle. Then he rushed above, and united ilis efforts to those of the two firemen and four deck hands to give the women life preservers. Bub the time was too short, and tho passengers too frightened to pay much attention to the lifebelts. Some that were pulled out were left on tho deck by tho crazed people, who would not stop to don them. Pilot Johnston had turned tho Northfield towards the shore, and she was heading into the slip between piers 9 and 10 when she tromblcd from stem to stern. Tho tugs had to give way to prevent being squeezed between tho boat and tho pier. It was the support- of tho tugs that had kept the ferryboat afloat. The moment this support was removed the Northfield sank rapidly. Most of those on tho lower decks" at least those who had not been trampled or otherwise hurt, had tumbled or been dragged off on the tugs. The decks of tho little craft were crowded with frightened passengers. Those on the upper deck now began a wild scramble to get off the boat. Somo of them rushed to the hurricane deck. Others clambered on the lighter Louise, lying at the outer end of Pier 9. Others jumped overboard, and were saved by the heroic work of the tugboat men and the Crews of near-by lighters. The collision and the sinking had not taken more than ten minutes. A few of the statements made by witnesses ot the disaster show how some of the cowards on board behaved :

I have seen much cowardice in my day, but never to such an extent as I witnessed when my tug reached the scene. I saw great big and strong men push women and children aside and leap over the railing on passiDg craft. —Captain Frank Movarty, of tugboat General Newton. I saw men brush aside women and swear at them when they cried to be saved, so that I decided to take my chances on the lower deck with the water rising round me.—Tillie Schwartz, of St. George, S. I. It made my blood "boil to see strong men trample down women and children who prayed for help and desperately seek to save their miserable lives. I fought them back all I could, but was overpowered. —William Decker, of Tower Hill, S. I. While the sinking boat was drifting up the river I fought for ten minutes, until overcome, a crowd of heartless, cowardly fellows, who tore life preservers from hyssterical women. —Williamson, deckhand on the Northfield. But there were some stirring scenes of bravery on the part of the rescuers, constables and dockhands plunging into the water again and again. Each captain blamed the other for the accident. Captain Johnston was arrested for criminal negligence and Captain Griffin was being kept under surveillance.