Connecticut western news., 1880-06-23
THE SOUND DISASTER.
Incidents of the Collision between the Narragansett and the Ston-
 ington as Told by Some of the Passengers.


 Incidents of the Collision between
 the Narragansett and the StOn-
 ington as Told by Some of
 the Passengers.
 ssT$s A SCENE OF. HORROR. F.
 William H. Sanburn, from Richmond, Va, passenger on the Narragansett, stated that when the accident occurred he was sleeping in his berth on the for ward deck below. He heard the whistles blowing Justify and subsequently, felt the shock of the collision, and he dressed himself hastily and ran to. the starboard side, and saw that the shock had thrown the vessel to the larboard side. As he approached the middle of the ship, he saw collected together men, women and children with blanched faces and terri fled looks, clinging frantically to each other. As soon as 1t was discovered that the vessel was on fire the scene was indescribable. Mothers threw their in fants into the water and sprang in after them, uttering fervent prayer. Illus bands embraced their wives as if for the last time, and locked in each others arms plunged into the inky pillows. Doors were wrenched from the cabins to serve as rafts, and fierce hand-to-hand Struggle took place over the possession of ife-p e-preservers, in which distracted females and pleading infants were knocked down and trampled to the deck. As the flames gained in strength and encompassed the doomed ship, MT. Sanburn climbed down the cable anchor and dropped into the Sound among the mass of floating bodies. Being good swimmer, he struck out for the Stoning- ton, which was slowly drifting away. He had gone about seventy-fve yards when he was picked up by 8 ife-boat and taken on board the steamer City of New York. While in the water MT. Sanburn saw several persons sink after desperate struggle. .s--.ySs
 THE CRIES OF THE DROWNING.
 Mrs. Myra Thorndyke, passenger on the City of New York, said < Between 12 80 and o'clock, while we were pass ing a lighthouse apparently about two miles from the shore, l heard great con- fusion overhead and much running and shouting. We inquired what the com motion was about and were told that two boats had been in collision and that one | of them was burning. Miss Morton and I ran on deck and a little to one side saw a steamer lying still. On the other side there was steamer burning. It was | all in flames from end to- end and there was terrible screaming. It seemed as l if the screaming would never end. It came from the boats, the water and every where. People were floating about everywhere with life -preservers. They were moaning and crying. Itmakes me | shudder to think of it now. The city oi New York remained for fully four hours. | All the boats were put out and the crew and some of the passengers went out to pick up the people in the water. There was no wind. z 1t was foggy. The cries of the drowning and the cracking of the fire on the burning steamer could be heard distinctly. Our boats rescued about one hundred and fifty persons. Some had lost their wives, some thei1 | children and some their husbands" DARKNESS AND DEATH.
 MT. J. M. Fuller, 8 detective, of No. 841.Broadway, was on the steamer Mar ragansett. He left Stonington at five o'clock last evening. "Every thing went on all right. he says, s'until half past ten o'clock, when was awakened by g shock. I looked out and saw that an. other steamer had come into collision with us. dressed myself, went uE stairs and there witnessed scene of the direst confusion. Women and children were shrieEng and crying. Every one was rushing about looking for ife-pre- servers. The gas had gone out and we were enveloped in total darkness The concusslon had thrown open the doors ot the furnace and the live coals were fall. 41,o To h steamer. Soon the boat was in flames. I saw near at hand in the water boat or which were, number of ladies and others, perhaps fifty people. I Iplunged overheard and made for the float. We succeeded in getting two oars or Vt should have been carried by the tide against the burning vessel. We foatet around for three-quarters of an ho1 when boats were sent to the aid of those in the water The principal loss of lift occurred, in my opinion, in the steerag cabin. The force of the concussion dis lodged the staircase, and judge that a least 50 to 75 perished at that point"
 WHY THEY WE'RE LOST.
 1 MT. Charles P. Cottrell, of No. Spruce street, New York, was on tn
 Narragansett on his way to his home a
 Westerly, R. I. In regard to the acci dent to the ships boat he says he was ol
 the deck at the time ands the attemp
 to launch it. It was full of women an
 children when; the men began to lowe
 it. "While moving it,'' Mfr. Cottrel
 says, |" the man at the upper end hel
 on, while the other man let his end ru
 down. It went-down so rapidly that i l falling the boat turned over and over
 and not only threw its contents of wome
 and children into the water, but stirre
 them up and turned them over again an again" Somehe saw floating away, an some he is sure were drowned then an , there. But for this accident he think l the casualties would have been fewe } than they were. He also offers an e1 planation why so many good swimmer , were lost. He foated on a raft for neal ) ly two hours, and saw men deliberatel 7 swimming away from the wreck and fro1
 all assistance and getting where the could not be found by the boats. H | thinks they died from exhaustion.
 ) DANGEROUS SPOT.
 The vicinity of the accident is know |, to all the pilots of the Sound as the mo f dangerous spot in the passage of tl ! great passenger steamers. Captain Goo'
 speed, the superintendent of the Ne
 York and Hartford line of steamers, sa
 that the place was ten times more to ] I dreaded than Hell Gate.
 Q "We won't go through Hall Gate
 said he, "when it is foggy, but we ha, O to go past Cornfeld Point because it Q more dangerous to lie off there than I go ahead. You see there are the boa r of the Stonington. line, the Providen line and the Hartford line, that all { q close in by the Cornfield lightship. III n Hartford line has to pass there becau