Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1878-06-07
An Ocean Horror,
Down. England. MAY 81

DONEb. England, may 81.
The German iron-clads Preussen,
Grasser Kurfurst and Koenig Wilhelm
passed down at 8:45 this morning, bound
for Plymouth, whence they expected to
sail for Gibraltar. When off Ludgate,
about five miles from shore, the Grasser
Kurfurst was observed to be gradually
keeling over on her beam ends, and
men we're seen crowding on the bull
warks. In about five minutes the YES
sci went down on her side, her boilers
blowing up as she sank,
LONDON. May 81.
w. H. Smith, First Lord of Admi-
rally, stated in the Commons this after
noon that, according to reports received
by the Admiralty, from 180 to 200 of
the crew of the Grasser Kurfurst had
been saved and 800 perished The
Grasser Kurfurst was the flagship of
the squadron. The Rear-Admiral COM
manding the squadron was among the
saved.
According to telegram dispatched
by Rear-Admiral Batsch from Folke-
stone 1873 men were saved. Most of
the estimates give the Grasser Kur-
furst's crew at about 500. A report
resting upon the authority of the Sand
Gate coast guard says that 255 were
saved. 1t is reported that twenty-five
of the rescued have since died from ex-
haustion.
Eye-witnesses of the disaster say the
Preussen did not lower any boats, and
that nobody was visible in the water
half an hour after the Grasser Kurfurst
foundered.
The steamer just returned from the
scene of the disaster reports that the
Koenig Wilhelm proceeded down the
Channel, probably for Portsmouth.
The Pruessen remains on the spot.
Nothing is to be seen of the Grasser
Kurfurst.
A fisher boat Captain makes the fol-
lowing statement: I" My boat, with
other fishing vessels, was returning to
Folkestone when we noticed three iron
clads coming down. A bark was fetch
ing off shore. The Grasser Kurfurst
ported her helm to clear the bark.
The Koenig Wilhelm pulled hard a
port and struck the Grasser Kurfurst
forward of her mizzen mast. The Kur-
furst went over on her broadside and
sank in five minutes. She went down
in fifteen fathoms. All hands jumped
overheard. Our boats reached the
spot directly afterward and rescued
twenty-seven men, including three
officers. Other boats rescued a number
of the crew, all of whom were trans
ferred to the Koenig Wilhelm. Capt.
Battoch, of the Grasser Kurfurst, went
down with his ship. The boilers did
not explode, but the escaping steam
must have scalded many persons in the
water. The Koenig Wilhelm had her
bows stove, but the leak was stopped
with hammers. The collision was un-
doubtedly caused by the Koenig Will
helm porting her helm too suddenly"
LONDON, June 2.
The latest statement is that out of 500
men on the Grosser Kurfurst about 210
were saved, including thirteen officers,
among whom was the Captain, pre-
viously reported lost. The KOenig
Wilhelm, which was leading the squad
ron, put her helm hard-a-port to avoid
Norwegian bark which was crossing
furst also ported her helm, but not suf-
ficiently hard, hence the disaster. The
Preussen has arrived at Portsmouth
with the Koenig Wilhelm.
LONDON, June 3.
The Times prints the first Ineligible
explanation of the iron-clad disaster
1t shows that the Grasser Kurfurst and
Koenig Wilhelm we're steaming along
on parallel lines close together. The
Wilhelm was on the left hand, or to the
seaward, and slightly ahead. Two mer-
chantmen standing across their course
from right to left, both iron-clads,
ported their helms and passed astern
of the merchantmen. The order was
then signaled to "starboard helm, -
which the Grasser Kurfurst obeyed, re-
suming her former course, while the
Koenig Wilhelm continued to port her
helm. This brought the vessels direct
ly in contact.
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