The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-05-13
Repetition of the Story that the Steamship
City of Rome Disregarded Plainly
Shown Signals of Distress.
France Succeeds in Negotiating an Adj
vantageOus Treaty with China.
Prime Minister Gladstone Makes Strong
Speech in Support of His Egyptian
POlicy-0ther News by Cable.
THE LOSS OF THE FLORIDA
The Officers of the City OF Rome Charged
with Refusing Assistance.

The Officers of the City OF Rome Charged
with Refusing Assistance.
QUEBEC, May l2.-The bark Theresa having
on board the remainder of the survivors of the
steamer State Of Florida, has arrived. The sur
vivors were taken in charge by the agent of the
steamer, and refuse to talk of the accident The
officers are much depressed, but the seamen are
less reticent; however, they are unable to throw
much light upon the cause of the disaster they
having been abed when the collision occurred
The Theresa had small accommodations and
spare rations. Those saved from the Ponema
are Captain Hepburn Angela Rosa and Thomas
Nicholson; the names of the lost of the Ponema
are not known The Ponema was in ballast
from Liverpool for Miramichi.
The sailors of the Florida were secured by the
agent of the steamer and kept away from
newspaper men. There seems to be
an impression that Officer Thompson
is to blame for the collision One sailor of
the bark perished from exposure in boat Cap
tain Hepburn lost everything. Nicholson, who
was on lookout at the time of the collision, as
cribes the fault of the disaster to the steamer.
All speak favorably of Officer Allen, and agree
that the City of Rome refused assistance. She
could not have seen and understood the signals
All cOrroborate the bravery of Engineers Balm
and Anderson, and testify to the activity OF the
second officer of the Florida, who was lost.
Captain Hepburn of the Ponema makes the
first statement coming from that vessels crew.
He says he give no information as to the
cause of the accident He retired half an hour
before the collision, which knocked him out Of
his bunk Three minutes afterward he found
himself in the sea without his ship. Ali hands
were washed off while trying to lower the boats
The other two saved from the Ponema are
Thos. Nicholson, of Shetland, and Angelo Rosa,
of Trieste, The lost are as follows:
Williams, first mate Knudsen, second mate;
Fullerton, steward; Blon, the carpenter, and
Norman, Shaw, Davidson, jacobson Paul Bu-
sick, Lyons, Johnston and two Italians.
The captain saved no papers. Mate Williams
was on duty when the disaster occurred. The
captain none of the officers after the collis-
ion. Hepburn said he did not see the Florida
and did not know she had gone down. He did
not know what struck them. They were i'll the
boat thirtyfou hours The Theresa picked
them up about half an hour before she came
upon the first of the Foridas boats.
Captain Hansen, of the Theresa, made the fol
lowing startling charge: ''The steamship City
of Rome was sighted on Wednesday, April 81
The sea smooth and the water clear, and it
was one of the finest days since taking the ship
wrecked parties on board"
''How near did she pass!"
$50 near that you could have tossed a biseuit
on her deck; at all events said the captain,
within three ships lengths We had our en-
sign upside down, the usual signal of distress.
She hOisted an answering pennant but never
slowed, and proceeded on her way
Captain Hepburn. Captain Hansen, Miss McFar-
land, VIM. Hislop, and several others agree to
the correctness of the above. They also deny,
positively the story that the signal was not seen
When they We're told that the City of Rome re
ported the Theresa. with portion of the ship
wrecked crew on board, they insisted that they
never signaled that fact, but shouted to that eff
feet from the top of the barks forecastle. They
shouted Come back, come back. we have the
crew of the Florida" But beyond hanging out an
answering pennant, the steamship took no
notice of them
Thomas Nicholson was on the deck of the
Ponema when the collision occurred. He was
not on duty, but was merely walking the deck
He says the bark was on the starboard tack
showing her port light There must have been
something fearfully wrong about the steamship,
he says. when she could not keep out of the way
He added that it was reported among the sailors
of the Florida that the barks light was reported
three times that night by the lookout on board
the steamship.