Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1894-06-28
DROWNED.
An Overloaded Excursion Boat
Goes Down Like a Stone.
TWENTY-FOUR ARE. PROBABLY LOST.
q Pleasure Party OF Six Thrown Into the
Water by the Boat CapsIzing and
Five Meet Watery
Graves.


NEW YORK, June 25.-The tug James
d. Nichol, with sixty-three excursion
lists and crew of ten or twelve, sank
at about 1 o'clock yesterday afternoon
8 miles off the Highlands. Fifty-four of
those on board have been accounted
for, the rest were probably drowned
The tug left Fifth street and East
river at 7:30 in the morning, touched
at pier s, East river, and then went on
to the fishing grounds She had, it is
said, a license to carry fifty passengers,
but sixty-three tickets were sold There
was a bar and a lunch counter on
board, whose attendants. with the
crew, made the total number on board
seventy-five. The tug reached the
banks on time, but the fishing was poor
and the sea too rough for comfort and
about noon she started back
When about 5 miles east of the High
lands and about miles south of Scot
land Hghtship the waves began to
break heavily over her starboard rail
To dodge the water and wind the pas
Sengers began to run around to the
port side and to climb on top of the
deckhouse. The boat careened alarm
ingly to port and the water
swept in over the rail The terror
stricken men rushed back to starboard
and the tug swung deeply down on
that side. AT the same moment a num-
Der of heavy breakers struck the boat
in quick succession The captain,
William Hyatt, stuck pluckily to his
post and sounded the whistle in pro-
longed scream for help. Even as he
did so the tug filed with the water
I l.. !, =
and sank out of sight in the water.
She went down like stone, carrying
many of the passengers with her.
The water choked the cry of the
whistle, but not before it had been
heard and needed. The Clyde steam
ship Algonquin, a mile away, heard it
and swung around to go to the rescue.
The tugs Wallace B. Flint, R. ]. Moran
and Governor also hurried to the spot
From further away came the c. E.
Evarts, too late to be of service
The Algonquin sent her lifeboat
with First Officer A. NJ. Rich and four
sailors They picked up ten men, one
of whom, however, died few minutes
later. The tugs rescued the others
who remained af1oat. Some few had
life belts on, but most of them were
clinging to bits of wreckage. A life
raft supported dozen and the top of
the pilothouse as many more The
unconscious man picked up by the Al
gonquin was found in the Nichols life
boat. He was under the thwarts and
entangled in the fishing lines. The
boat, practica bly, unsuitable, was float
ing right side up, but was full of water.
Capt S. C. Platt, OF the Algonquin,
says that, while a stiff breeze was
| blowing, there was no sudden squalL
| There was big, sharp sea on His
vessel brought those she had picked up
| to the city. The living dispersed to
their homes, and the dead body, which
has not been identified, was sent to the
morgue. All were people bearing Ger
man names and living in the lower
east side of the city.
Some OF the tugs, not wishing to
| come to the city, transferred the men
they had saved to other tugs The
Sayres brought up thirty-four sur
/ vivors and landed them on the east
side. The C. E. Evarts brought UP two
| bodies and several survivors The Gov
ernor is supposed to have landed 9th
ers in Brooklyn. Altogether, fifty-four
out OF the seventy-6ve have been &C
counted for, three of them being dead
| The officers of the Flint have, for some
unknown reason, denied having res
| cued any of the men or knowing any
thing about the matter.
John A. Maggie, who was rescued by
| the Algonquin's boat, says he was
caught under the awning of the tug
when it sank He managed to crawl
out and seize a table, which kept him
afioat- Finding his chum, Frank
| Gaiser, in the water, he let him have
the table, which would not support
two, and started to swim Soon after
he was picked up, but Gaiser has not
been seen since. The Algonquin ar
rived at her dock at pier 20. foot of
Roosevelt street, about o'clock. She
had on board nine of the survivors of
| the Nichols and the body of one of the
victims.
A few hours after sinking the tug
was pretty well broken up and the
wreckage began to come ashore. Be
fore dark the entire beach was strewn
with it. Forty-three lunch baskets
were washed up. No bodies have come
ashore
FIVE PEOPLE DROWNED
BROOKLYN, June 25.-A cat-boat was
capsized by sudden squan yesterday
morning off the Atlantic Yacht club
house at the foot of Fifty-siSth street.
Brooklyn. A pleasure party consisting
of six people, two men, two women and
a boy and a a-year-old girl, were thrown
into the water The accident was wit
messed from the shore and the Atlantic
clubs steam yacht at once put out to
the rescue The men and the women
aud the boy sank, however. before as
siStance could be rendered them The
little girl was saved