Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1891-03-19
ILL-FATED UTOPIA.
She Carries Down Over Five
Hundred Unfortunates.
AN UNEQUALLED MARINE DISASTER

The OfficiaI List of Missing and Doubt
less Drowned Reaches 569-A Weird
and Awful Scene Lighted Up by the
Electric Refiectors of the war.Ships-
Gallant Work of the Rescuers in the
Wild Waves-Terrible Scenes on the
Deck of the Doomed Vessel and in
the Tumbling BiIlows.
LONDON, March 19.-The official state.
ment in regard to the disaster to the Ito.
pia In Gibraltar bay Tuesday is as fol-
lows: Number of persons aboard leaving
Naples, $50; number saved, 81; number
missing. probably all drowned, 500. The
scene after the collision has probably
never before been equaled in the history
of marine disasters. On one side was the
sinking passenger steamship, crowded with
nearly 300 immigrants, who filled the air
with wild appeals for help and shrieks of
terror as they saw death awaiting them
In the dark, angry waters of the bay of
Gibraltar. Overhead the clouds rushed
furiously, driven along by the strong
southwest gale, which had been one of the
causes of the calamity
Lighting Up the Awful Tragedy.
Right and left of the sinking vessel
were the two monster battle-ships. the
Rodney and the Arson, huge specimens
OF Britain's most powerful fighting ships,
pouring the light of their powerful electric
retiectors upon the disabled steamship.
lighting up the agony of her passengers
and showing clearly the terrible position
III which they were placed. Here and
there were the war-ships' small GOATS,
manned by sturdy blue jackets, who
strained every nerve as they bent to their
oars In that Eeavy sea, while striving gall
Iantly to be first to reach the drowning
passengers of the Utopia.
A Frantic Struggle for Life.
An eye witness gives the following ac
count of the wreck: THE shrieks of the
Utopia's passengers could be plainly heard
above the roaring of the gale The sea was
so heavy that the boats of the rescuels
could not with safety approach the wreck,
so they were compelled to lie to leeward
where they picked up the people as they
were swept from the decks As the ITO
pia's bows settled terrible scene was
witnessed from the boats. Those still on
board the sinking steamer made a sudden
rush en- masse to the forerigging struy-
Cling for their lives and vainly seeking
places of refuge. Twenty minutes later
the forecastle was submerged and large
number of persons gathered there with
the hope of being rescued by the boa;s
and who had failed in their efforts to
ascend the rigging were carried away by
the waves.
On the Decks of the Utopia.
Peterson, a quartermaster of the Utopia,
l. -
ships cutter. He says that while on
board the Utopia after the collision he
was surrounded by terrified mass of
human beings fighting their way des.
perately and savagely regardless of sex or
age towards the boats. Men, women and
children tumbled and climbed over each
other in that fight for chance of escape
from browning. One poor woman who
was rescued by the Arson blue Jackets
went raving mad when she was convinced
that her children were drowned There
were similarly distressing incidents by
the score, the most awful of all occurring
when the Utopia, with final desperate
lurch, sank with her human freight
clinging about her
The Dreadful Final Plunge.
Many who had sprung into the sea as
they saw the steamship could not float
much longer were drawn in the whirlpool
caused by the Utopias disappearance
Some came to the surface again fol- a few
moments before sinking finally into their
watery tomb Others were able to cling
to pieces of the wreckage, floating Spas,
etc, and thus kept themselves above
water until rescued by the war ships
boats. Shriel,ing. praying women sank to
rise no more with their terrified offspring
olasped to their breasts Children chung
to their parents so desperately as, in sew
eral cases, to cause the death of both,
where both might have escaped had better
judgment been used. Husbands and
wives sank while graspng each other in
frantic efforts TO keep each other adoat,
and many good swimmer went down
with some Mortified, fear .maddened per-
son clinging to him with the tenacity and
desperation of DEATH
Cause of the Disaster.
There was report that the disaster was
caused by the Arson ramming the Utopia,
while the former was drifting in the gale,
but the officers and crew of her majesty's
ship Arson state that the Utopia fouled
the ram of the Arson, and thus caused
the damage which resulted in the passen-
ger steamer sinking within few min
utes after being struck The Anson's off
GERS assert that no blame can be attached
to the war vessel.
a Shamo<in Miner i'm Luck.
SHAMoKIN, Pa, March 19-Mrs. Charles
6.