Rock Island Argus., 1894-06-26

VIII" Simply Invited Their Fate-But
Few Bodies Recovered and Fewer Idcn.
dfed-ProbabiIity That the Number
Lost Will Never BE Known-storv Of
the Tragedy Told by the Captain.
NEW YORK, June 26.-How MANY Der
son were drowned by the capsizing of the
tug James ID. Nicol off Sandy Hook is not
yet known. The excursionists We're from
all over the east side-from College Point.
brooklyn, and even from Hoboken, and it
Is probable that some of those drowned
VIII never be reported or heard from again.
The catastrophe is made more narrowing
by the fact that most of the men were
married and leave large families. 1t is
Thought that not less than thirty-six per-
lshed. So far, however, only few bodies
have been recovered. Those identified
are Frank Dunn, Herman Evard, -
keyser, Thomas Massen, Walter Buck
ridge.
The two last named lived in BROOKLYN:
the others in New York Among the miss
ing are the following, all of New York.
Frank McAleer. William Moor, Albert
Pabst, Frederick Vohiing, Solomon Cries
man, Christian Zahn
The pilot house of the tug was washed
ashore at Highland Beach, and so was a
portion of the life raft. Among the
wreckage washed ashore at Parkertowu
are two kegs of beer.
Story - the Disaster
Captain John Hyde, commander of the
lil-iated tug, was seen ut the office of the
owner of the tug. He is IA young man. -
years OF age, and says that he has hai a
masters licence for the past four years.
For the first time the captain told the
story of :he disaster
IL could count but fifty-eight passengers
on the tug when she left the second stop
pi ng place at Pier 3, East river. There
were five men in the crew, making sixty
three all told. We had been living off
Seabright at anchor when the wind began
TO freshen. We soon raised anchor intend
ing TO leave. We were about three-uuar.
tiers OF mile from the shore. The sea
when we start was not very heavy and
hardly and spray came on board. The
passengers thinking that they might get
wet all crowded to the port side asked
them to divide up and part take the star
board SIDE, but no attention was paid to
my request.
In No Apparent Danger.
The sea was somewhat cboppy but not
what would be called heavy. Outside
some distance from shore it appeared much
caimer than in shore. thought if we ran
out Tor some distance we would make bet
ter weather. We were in no apparent
danger, except for the people crowding to
the prst side of the bost- suddenly saw
henvy swell bearing down upon us, fol-
lowed by second one. called again 10 the
passengers TO take the starboard side of
the boat, but it was not done. The first
sea boarded us clean over tie bow and
rushed aft. The second followed closely.
also boarding us over the bow and washed
down the port side. This was caused by
the heavy list on the boat. When the first
wave hit us l cried: For Gods sake get
over to the other side" ] pulled the
whistle rope then as a signal of distress
and, seeing great danger, tied it down.
Made for the Life Raft
1T kept blowing until the Nicol went
down. After the boat had careened uu-
der the second swell, Al Hammond, a
deck hand. and myself, climbed through
the starboard windows of the polot house
and went overheard. There were a MUM
Der of people struggling in the water all
around. The life raft was near the SPOT
where the tug sank, and / made for it.
There were a number of passengers on it
and hanging to it, and their struggles CAP
sized it. As it went over, was struck by
1t and went down. When arose to the
surface l managed to grasp it again. The
members OF the crew of the boat, Pilot
Raymond Kelly, Engineer John Farrell,
Fireman Lewis Hockiem, AL Hammond
ana Steward james Fleming, were all
picked up by the tug Sayre. / do not
think the boat was ovsrcrowded, and had
the passengers acted as told them, we
would have come through all right"