Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1873-04-04


Many, again, who were reused out OF
their berths, had scarce time to put their
clothes on, and reached the deck to per-
ism with the cold. One cabin passenger,
a young man, came up with only vest
on. He chung to the ships side as long
as be was able, and finally rolled off in
the sea, frozen to death.
CAPTAIN WILLIAMS INTERVIEWED.
HALIFAX, April 3.-The following is
the substance of an interview between a
reporter and Captain Williams, of the
Atlantic:
Reporter-To what causes do you
ascribe the disaster?
Captain-I can hardly say, unless it
was because we had overTun our dis
tanee. 1 thought we were going about
eleven knots an hour, but the speed
must have been greater or we could nev-
er have got so far out of our course.
Thecaptain was serious and composed,
yet at intervals, whenever particularly
narrowing incident was being men
toned, he would break down and seem
completely overwhelmed with sorrow.
Once he observed to the reporter, "To
think that while hundreds of men were
saved, every woman should have per-
ished, is terrible. If l had been able to
save even one woman, could bear the
disaster, but to lose all is terrible" He
seemed to fully realize that the world
would
HOLD HIM TO A STRICT ACCOUNT
for the disaster, and that, whether he
was blameless or culpable, he would be
by many held responsible.
Mr.. Markwald, of New York, will
stay at Prospect, to look after the bodies
of the passengers, and will send Ameri-
can ones home, if possible. The latest
report shows the loss of life to be much
less than at first stated. Of all on board,
four hundred and thirteen were saved,
and about five hundred and sixty lost.
There were among the latter,
THEE HUNDRED AND FIFTY WOMEN
AND CHILDREN.
Strong parties of men are engaged in
recovering dead bodies, a large number
of which are females. The ship is
broken in two near the fOremast and the
after part is buried in the water. She
struck twice on a ledge and finally held
on. In a short time she careened
the seaward waves dashing over the
deck and sweeping off everything,
smashing boats and making a general
havoc. Still later accounts say the YES
sel's cargo was beginning to come ashore
1t is a general one, and the larger part
of it Icing fashionable dry goods, the
value is estimated at five hundred thou
sand ddollars. The scene of the wreck is
very dangerous, and many wrecks have
occurred near there. Marr's rock is ten
miles east by south of Sombro, the
lights on which the captain sighted and
took his direction from.
A sEAMANis THEORY.
NEW YORK, April 3.-The Tribune
furnishes the following from first-ofiiceI
Small, of the Anchor line steamship
ANGELA. Says ''he couldn't imagine
how Captain Williams had mistaken
the lights; SOmbro must have been on
the Atlantic's starbOard bow, whereas,
had she been steering into Halifax il
would have been on the port side OF
Meagher's head. Where the vessel
struck was about midway between
the Sombro light and Peggy's light.
The Sombro island light is white; one
fixed and visible twenty miles to sea
while the latter, which is sixteen miles
northwest of SOInbrO, is red. Either
would have been distinct from Meagher's
had not the night been clear. 1t was in
credible that one light could be mistaken
for another, being so different in char
aeter and clearly marked on the chart
When the captain left the bridge, al
midnight, he had reckOned himself
twenty-nine miles from the SombrC
light, or ferty-four from Meagher's
head. That the fatal mistake occurred
in his calculation, is evident"
SAD INCIDENTS.
The Herald has a special from Halifax
which says: "Of the thousand souls OF
board the Atlantic when she struck
most of them were at rest. Those who
could made the utmost speed to get OF
deck. Hundreds of the steerage pas
sengers and many of the less vigorous
inthe saloon were unable to do so, as
the water poured in. Many of those
who succeeded in gaining the deck tool
to the rigging. The passengers agree
that throughout the terrible scene Cap
tain Williams acted like hero. 1t wa'
| impossible to save any of the ladies, al
though strenuous efforts were made t.
do so. Captain Williams conveyed
Mrs. Merritt and her sister t.
the life-boats, but finding it impractical
ble to launch boat, he placed them il
the rigging. They were lost, as wer'
also every woman and child on board
Among many sad incidents of this ter
rible calamity was the death of Mr.
| Price, who peTished upon the side of the
vessel from exposure. The ladies be
haved with the utmost heroism. No
one cry was heard from them as the,
perished. Mother and daughter part eC
from each other in silent agony. Mr.
Fishers wife besought him to save him
self, but he heroically refused to leay,
her, saying,
81 SHALL REMAIN BY YOU.n
1--WE shall meet in another and better
wOrld!u They were both lost. A youn,
man named Wellington, who had beeI
travelling in Europe for the past fiv
months, and who was bringing home
valuable collection of books, trinkets
etc, to his friends in Boston, was prob
ably drowned in his stateroom. Tht
sailors, mostly Liverpool men,
BEHAVED oUTRAGEoUsLY.
The body of Mrs. Fisher was found
and some fiend in human form har
mashed her finger with rock towrencl
from it her wedding ring.
NEW YORK, April 3.-Harrowing de
tails of the awful scenes attending tn
loss of the steamship Atlantic eondnu
to be received. All the women VIII
were asleep at the time the ship strucl
were
DROWNED IN THEIR BERTHs,
the heavy seas which constantly poure'
over the ship and filled her preventing
them from reaching the deck. SOM
showed remarkable presence OF min'
and appreciation of the awful situation
but only reached the deck TO be washed
into the sea and drowned. One woman
following the example of the sailors an
the stronger males, took to the rigging
and was lashed there to prevent he
from being washed away; and she wa
frozen to death in that position. 500
after six men on shore wrote on black
board, ''Cheer up, boats are coming 3
your assistance" and the announce
ment was responded to by hear
ty cheers from the ship. Afte
\ about half an hour of aWfl
suspense, men We're seen on the islam
/ carrying the boat over the rocks, an,
soon it was launched, and took Off thre
boatloads from the outlying rock. Will