Connecticut western news., 1898-10-20
WRECK OF THE MOHEGAN
Over One Hundred Persons
 Known to Have Perished.
CAUSE OF DISASTER A MYSTERY.

The Vessel Is Said to Have Been SIX
 or Seven Miles out of Her True
 Course Was Running at Full
 speed-M.ny Thrilling Experiences.
 London. Oct. 1s.-The Atlantic Trans port lines steamer Mohegan was wreck ed off the Lizard between the Manacles and the Lowlands last Friday night.
 There were 50 passengers and crew of 150 on board the Mohegan when she went down. and more than 100 are he- iieved to have been lost. Thus far 56 bodies have been recovered.
 The reports of the different corre- spondents differ widely as to the res- cues, recoveries and losses. though none has been able to obtain the exact num- Der of those saved or of the bodies re- covered.
 The bodies of the following passen- gers have been recovered: T. W. King, Edna King. Master King. James Black ey. Miss H. NJ. Cowen, Dr. Fallows, B. Franklin Fuller. Mrs. I. M. Luke. George Seymour and Miss L. H. War rener.
 The latest advices from Falmouth say that 56 bodiess have been identified, mostly the bodies of sailors. Four are as yet unidentified. including those of two elderly ladies. One appears to be a German. She wore a watch and a wedding ring. both engraved 'ls71." The other were a silver brooch with the letter ID" in pearls. This is probably the body of Mrs. Charles Duncan.
 Caring For the Rescued.
 Nine of the bodies have been brought to Falmouth. the others to the village church at St. Keverne. The rescued passengers are being sheltered at cot tages along the shore and the crew at the Sailors home at Falmouth.
 Tugs are cruising in the vicinity. de- spite the very rough weather. in the hope of picking up other bodies.
 The cause of the disaster remains the profoundest mystery. Nobody attempts to explain how the Mohegan got so far north of her true course-from six to seven miles. There was no fog at the time, while the wind on her port quar- ter was not sufficient to prevent her an- swering the helm. It has been suggest ed that her compass was faulty. but daylight lasted long after Eddystone light was passed.
 The sailors say the fact that the Lix- ard light was not visible should have served to give the alarm.
 The masts of the Mohegan. which are above water. show that her stern is landward, causing a theory that the navigating officer on discovering that he was in the bay suddenly turned sea- ward. Two engineers who are saved declare. however. that they never slack ened speed.
 Remarkable stories of rescues con- tinue. Robert Barrow. seaman. per- formed the feat of swimming unaided through the toughest water to Coverack point, a distance of 2h miles. He climb ed up the ragged cliff. where a search ing party found him early the next morning completely exhausted. MT. A. C. L. Smith of Oregon. a passenger. surrendered to a woman in the water wreckage that was supporting him and swam ashore unaided. The woman was saved. Her name is reported as Miss Webb, but no such name appears in the company's list.
 Messrs- Smith and w. J. Blooming dale say there was the greatest diffi- culty in launching the boats. The ropes were new and stir and the blocks would not work. Four or five times as many sailors as should have been necessary struggled to lower each boat. The lock- CTS were hard to open.
 The crew, in a chivalrous effort to save the women, made the mistake of undermenning the boats. There were only four sailors in one boat which cap sized as soon as it was launched. Messrs. Smith and Bloomingdale say that Captain Griffiths had appeared i'll all day.
 The death of MT. T. W. King of Man. tucket. Mass. and of his family. in- cluding Mrs. King. her mother. Mrs. Weller. and his sons. Rufus. aged II. and Anthony. aged [. has caused deep sorrow at Penzance. where the family had a summer cottage and were very popular.
 Joseph O'Rorke. MT. Kings valet, who was saved. says he was on deck when the crash came. The lights went out immediately. Rushing to the saloon, he heard MT. King exhorting his family to keep cool.
 Mir. O'Rorke. with seven others. chung to the rigging until 6 o'clock Saturday morning. when a lifeboat took him on. He identified the bodies of the Kings and Mrs. Weller and will have them embalmed and taken to the United States in accordance with cabled in structions from the relatives of the family at Nantucket.