THE LATEST.

Manawatu Times, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 12805, 1 June 1914, Page 5

THE LATEST.

1032 PASSENGERS DEAD AND 355 SAVED. IRVINGS KILLED BY EXPLOSION. HEROIC SIR HENRY SETON KERR. Received 12.30 a.m. QUEBEC, May 30. Miss Thompson, of New Zealand, wes rescued. The final official total of the Empress of Ireland is:— Dead 1032 Saved .. .. .. 355 Laurence Irving and his wife secured life belts. "Dearie," said Irving, "there's no time to lose." Irving then placed a life belt around his wife and calmly donned his own, and they climbed over the rail as the huge vessel careened. Mrs Irving was terrorstricken, and Irving carried her to the deck. The first explosion occurred as the Irvings prepared to leap into the water, and apparently the shock killed them.

Sir Henry Seton Kerr gave up his life belt to another, insisting on him to accept it, saying, '' I can easily get another myself.'' He then entered a cabin to procure one, and was never seen again.

Many women could easily have escaped, but waited to procure articles of dress.

"DIED LIKE SALVATIONISTS." Salvation Army Ensign Pugmire declared that all his comrades died like Salvationists. Commissioner Rees ran back to rescue his wife, and another Salvationist tried to save him, but failed. Major Atwell swam half a mile carrying his wife on his back, and then succumbed through cold and exhaustion. His wife kept up her husband's head, and both were saved.

"LIKE WALKING DOWN A SLOPING BEACH." Another Salvationist described walking down the side of the careened ship just as if walking down a sloping beach into the sea. There was some disturbance and a little panic. Once the ship turned sideways it was simply like entering the water in order to take a swim. SILVER AND VALUABLE MAILS LOST. Silver bars amounting to a million dollars en route to England, and large quantities of valuable mails were lost. CAPTAIN OF THE STORSTAD'S OPINION. ENTIRELY DUE TO FOG. Received 12.35 a.m. QUEBEC, May 30. Captain Anderson, of the Storstad, has arrived aboard the Storstad. He declared the collision was entirely due to fog which shut down on both vessels quickly. The Storstad picked up 300 persons, transferring them later aboard the Government vessels. This fact gave rise to the belief that there were additional rescued than those first reported. The Storstad's bows were stove in and the anchor was lost having sunk with the Empress of Ireland.

CAPTAIN KENDALL SPEECHLESS Captain Kendall is incapacitated by nervous shock and is speechless. STORSTAD FAILS TO ALTER COURSE. It is understood that Captain Kendall signalled in the customary way indicating that the Empress of Ire-

: l°nd maintaining her course. The ! officers of the Empress of Ireland asI sert that the Storstad answered tke signals but failed to change her course. The Empress of Ireland was moving slowly when the Storstad struck her full on the side. ! WOMEN AND CHILDREN FIRST. A HEARTBROKEN CAPTAIN. Mr Thomas Smart, of Toronto, says Captain Kendall, when the crash came, was on the bridge and shouted: "Keep your heads there; don't get excited!" Then he ordered the stewards to assist the passengers, shouting: "Women and children first! j Break open any locked doors."

There was so much screaming and moaning that although the Captain spoke through a megaphone his voice was drowned.

When told by the ship's doctor that the ship was lost Captain Kendall buried his face beneath a tarpaulin whereon he was lying. After his rescue he cried as if heartbroken. Several passengers assert that the lifeboats fell from the port davits and crashed across the sloping deck killing a passenger against the further rails. MISS TOWNSEND'S RESCUE. SHE HEROICALLY AIDS SUFFERERS. Miss Townsend swam alongside Clinton Burt, a motor car manufacturer, until they caught a suitcase. Burt held up Miss Townsend until the Storstad picked them up. Mrs Price, Miss Townsend's aunt, was lost. After being rescued Miss Townsend busied herself amongst others heroically aiding the worst stricken.

CREW ACTED LIKE MEN. An Englishman named Duncan declared that everyone of the crew acted like men. They attempted to rouse the women and secured numbers of lifebelts and placed them on the deck for those below should they reach there. A TIGHT TOR LIFE. When Duncan was thrown into the water by the ship's lurch five men attempted to grasp him and he' was obliged to fight them off, otherwise he would have been drowned. LIKE A TERRIBLE NIGHTMARE.

The rapidity wherewith the vessel careened and sank made it impossible to do more than was done. The whole thing was like a terrible nightmare, wherefrom one might awaken any moment. The thick fog, the dark waters, and the sinking ship seemed wholly unreal. The passengers did not grasp the danger until they were thrown from their berths or torrents of icy water fell in cascades down the companion ways drowning the people before they were able to make a single effort to save themselves.

HORROR-STRICKEN WOMEN. Some women describe in horrorstricken tones how they slid down the deck into the icy waters, sinking and coming to the surface and grasping One women described the senthe boats half unconscious. One woman describing the sensation sation as being chloroformed in order to undergo a surgical operation and then reviving to find death had taken some loved one meanwhile. The rescued are being cared for at Quebec. Many lost everything they possessed. CANADIAN PREMIER'S REPLY. MISS TOWNSEND SAVED. X M!ii ■3S - BUT BLOOMFIELD S AND MRS PRICE MISSING. DUNEDIN, May 30. The Prime Minister sent two messages to Mr Borden, Prime Minister of Canada—one of condolence, and the other asking for particulars of any New Zealanders travelling on the Empress of Ireland. In reply to the first Mr Massey on Saturday afternoon received the following message, sent from Ottawa at 12.45 p.m.: —"On behalf of Government and the people of Canada, we send deep and sincere appreciation of your message and our warmest sympathy for those in your Dominion who have been bereaved by loss of relatives and friends in this appalling disaster." —(Signed) BORDEN.

In reply to the other message the following was despatched at 1.35 p.m.: —"New Zealand saloon passengers on Empress of Ireland were Colonel Bloomiield, Mrs Bloomfield, and Miss H. Bloomiield, of Auckland; Mrs F. W. Price and Miss Townsend, address not known. Miss Townsend saved, but fear Colonel Bloomfield and family and Mrs Price were lost.''—(Signed) BORDEN.

COLONEL BLOOMFIELD. AUCKLAND, May 30. Colonel W. R. Bloomfield, his wife and daughter, who were passengers by the Empress of Ireland, left Auckland on April 12th on a twelve months'tour. Colonel Bloomfield is a barrister and solicitor who formerly practised in Auckland. He is very well known in hunting and Territorial circles, and took a prominent part on various local bodies. His wife is a well known society leader. SCENE OF THE DISASTER. (Father Foint is situated on the southern shore of the St. Lawrence estuary, about 100 miles from the mouth.)