Waterbury evening Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1887-1895, 1895-01-31
HUNDREDS LOST.
Steamship Elbe Sunk In the
North Sea.
RUN DOWN IN THE DARK.
Only One LifehOat, Containing Tween
ty-One Persons, Reached Shore.

The North German Lloyd Liner, With Over
400 Souls Aboard. Was ON Her Way to
New York When the steel Prov OF
British steamer sent Her to the bot
LONESOME oT the Cabin Passengers and
Few of the Crew Were Saved. hut the
Rest Pcrishcd Almost Before They Knew
What Had Happened-Not single
Steerage Passenger Rescued Twenty
Minutes of Awful Panic and Then
Fearful sasncc. when Death Came t"
Many.
LONpuN, Jan. 3l.-The North German
Lloyd steamer Elhe Captain Won Gossel.
which sailed from Bremen Wednesday for
New York via Southampton, has been
sunk in collision with the British steamer
Crathie, bound from Rotterdam for Aber,
deem.
The exact Ices of life is unknown. but
report has it that it was enormous. Near
ly all the cabin passengers on the Elbe were
lost The disaster occurred before day
light Wednesday morning at point some
According to the best of Information up
TO the present hour. there We're 400 souls
on the steamer. OF these u were saved,
making the list of lost number $40.
The first intimation of the disaster came
from Lowestoft, Suffolk, one of the chief
English fishing ports Wednesday aft
ernoon a dispatch was received from that
place saying that II was reported there
that "a transatlantic line steamer had boon
sunk in the North sea, and that the loss
of life was very great. The first dis
patches stated that there had been $50 per
sons on the Elbe, and that only 10 had
been saved, tho rescued having been land
cd at Lowestoft by fishing smacks, Later
dispatches to the Exchange Telegraph
company and to Lloyds confirmed the re-
port of the less of the steamer, and still
later it was learned that the Crathie tho
steamer that sunk the Elbe, had put into
MaasSluiS, Holland. in a damaged condi-
ton. She reported that she had been in
collision with an unknown ocean steamer.
Toward evening the agents in this city
of the North German Lloyd Steamship
company received the following cable mes
sage:
Most deplorable news from Lowestogt.
Ii states that the Elbe was sunk through
collision at 4 q clock this morning, Boat
No 5. with Third Officer Stallhurgh. Purs-
er Wescr. Engineer NeusSoll and ~ per
sons, landed ut lowestoft. No further
news so far.
Much Excitement In Germany.
When the news Of the disaster bctame
generally known through tho medium of
the tickcrS of tho Exchange Telegraph
company in tho clubs and places OF public
resort. the excitement was intense Ca
Bile dispatches We're Mt once forwarded Ia
all the principal European cities, AMI soon
II flood OF return dispatches was received
asking for further information VIII 'Ch at
that tlmc il WAS impossible to obtain.
The agents here of tho company did CIV
erything possible to learn all the facts
and as soon any new information was
received it was at once called to the Va,
rious European capitals, The dispatches
from Germany show that the news caused
the greatest Excitement and sorrow. most
all the officers ana crew of the lost steam
er and "a majority of the passengers being
Germans
1t was ct first hoped that the reports OF
the disaster had bccn exaggerated, and
that most If not all of tho passengers and
crew had escaped either by means of the
ships boats or by being picked up by pass
ing vessel. But As time Wore ON it was
ing of tho steamer had minimizod the hor-
rorS of the disaster.
1t is learned that the Elhe was proceed
ing along at her usual rate of speed and
keeping the ordinary lookouts I he night
was dark, hut there was no gale sud
denly tho forward lookout on the Elbc RI
ported to the officer ON the deck that tn,
lights Of n steamer wero close aboard over
the port bow Before tho course of the
| Elbe could he changed so a to sheer heI
| off from the approaching steamer the lat
ter struck her 5ust abaft the engine room
| going through her plates as though they
were pasteboatl and stici ing her nose al
/ Elost compile tNlN through the hull Of thu
| blbe
For a tiIuo the. C1athio acid the Elbe OF
her nose hut ihrn her engines were IT
versed and she backed out of the apcrtur,
she had made. .,As she did So the wato
rushed into tho Elbo in torrent, and sh,
began to Immediately settle
Clear Away the Lifeboats!'
The officer in charge of the ship at ono
saw that tho vessel was doomed and CAV
hurried orders To clear away the lifeboat
| for launching Three of the boats wer
cleared. swung uuthoard on the davits ant
lowered, but one of them shortly after i
| ROb ClostT III lllG SNGsAiilEE NNhlSAA0A anu IL !
thought that all of its occupants wer
drowned. Tho first boat contained tn
third officer. chief engineer. purser AM
| about ~ of the passengers These are tn
persons who were picked up by the fish
ing smack and taken to loweStoft.
From survivors it is learned that Il
soon as the Crathie hacked away from til
Elbe the inrushing water flooded III
steamer aft Of thu engine room SO quickl
that nobody below decks in that part q
the ship had an opportunity to escape.
The shock of the collision was compare
lively slight in view of the damage done
but this is explained by the fact that |
was q direct cutting blow.
Nearly all the passengers were asleep q
the time, but many of them were avail
ened by the shock. slight though it wa,
They could hear the rush of the rapits.
intiowing water, and with cries of terrC
sought tn make their way to the uppt
deck. The steamer Icing loaded by I'll
stern, the water naturally rushed aft, an
this allowed many of the passengers fo
ward to reach the deck.
In the case of the saloon passenger
however, the result was fatal AS the
rushed from their staterooms into the =
loon they were met by the tAent again
which it was impossible for them TO mai
Roadway. They were caught up and swel
aft toward the cockpit where they WEI
probably drowned before the ship foul
| dered.
Altogether about 10 of tho passenge
reached the deck, where the widest col
fusion existed. Wild rushes were mae
for the boats. but the terrible eScitemel
prevailing impeded the efforts of tho
who were trying to clear them ava
Many heartrending scenes were witness
, between parents and children in the fe
moments preceding the sinking of the We
sell
There is some>disagreement among Il
survivors as to tho number of boats tn
: were launched. One survivor, Karl
, Hoffman, declares that only two we
launched. One of these was swamped i