Iron County register., 1898-10-20
| THE NOHEGAN DISASTER.
a Statement Regarding the Fats
of the Passengers and Crew
of the Steamer.
CAUSE OF THE DISASTER A MYSTERY.
Remarkable Stories of Rescues-DiRculty
Experienced In Lowering the Boats,
Owing to High Rails and New Cord
age, and In Opening the Lockers-An
Entire American Family Lost

Entire American Family Lost
London, Oct. 1.-THE Atlantic
Transport Co. issued the following
statement last evening regarding the
fate of the passengers and crew of
the steamer Mohegan, which was
wrecked last Friday evening off The
Lizard, between the Manacles and the
| Lowlands.
The Saved, Recovered and Missing.
| "Of the passengers, II have been
saved, 10 bodies have been recovered
and 33 are missing.
''Of the crew and cattlemen. 80 have
been saved, Il bodies have been recov-
cred and 81 are missing
| Since this statement was issued,
nine other bodies have been picked
up, including two that have been iden-
| titled as those of passengers.
The reports of the various CORE
| spoDdents differ widely as to the res
cues and losses, though none has been
| able to obtain the exact number of
| those saved or of the bodies recov-
| cred.
| Bodies Recovered. Identified and Un-
identified
| The latest advices from Falmouth
| say that 3S bodies have been identi-
| fed, mostly the bodies of sailors.
Four are as yet unidentified, includ-
| ing those of two elderly ladies. One
| appears to be German. She wore a
watch and wedding ring, both en-
graved "1s71." The other wore a sill
yer brooch, with the letter sd" in
pearls. This is probably the body of
Mrs. Charles Duncan.
Nine of the bodies have been
brought to Falmouth, the other to the
village church at St. Keverine.
The Cause of the Disaster a Mystery.
The cause of the disaster remains
the profoundest mystery. Nobody at
tempts 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
was on her port, and was not suffi-
cient to prevent answering the helm.
1t has been suggested that her COM
pass was faulty, but daylight lasted
long after Eddystone light was passed.
The sailors say the fact that the
Lizard 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
seaward. Two engineers, who were
saved, declare, however, that they
never slackened speed.
Remarkable Stories of Rescues.
Robert Barrow, seaman, performed
the feat of swimming unaided through
the toughest water to Cove Rack
Point, a distance of two and half
miles. He climbed up the rugged
cliff, where a searching party found
him early the next morning complete
~ exhausted.
A. C. L. Smith, of Oregon, a passen-
ger, surrendered to a woman in the
water wreckage that was supporting
him and swan ashore unaided. The
woman was saved. Her name is re-
ported as Miss Webb, but no such
name appears in the company's list.
Difficulty Experienced In Launching the
Boats.
Messrs. Smith and w. j. Blooming
dale say there was the greatest diff
fculty in launching the boats. The
ropes were new and stiff and the
blocks would not work. Four or five
times as many sailors as should have
been necessary struggled to lower
each boat. The lockers were hard to
open. The crew in a chivalrous ef-
fort to save the women made the mis-
take of undermining the boats. There |
were only four sailors in one boat,
which capsized as soon as it was
launched. Messrs. Smith and Bloom
ingdale say that Capt. Griffiths ap-
peared i'll all day.
An American Family Wiped Out.
The death of T. W. King, who was
newspaper proprietor at Nantucket, |
Mass, and of his family, including
Mrs. King, her mother, Mrs. Weller, |
and his sons, Rufus, aged II years, |
and Anthony, aged seven years, has |
caused deep sorrow at Penzance,
where the family had summer cot
tage and were very popular.
Joseph O'Rorke, 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 Mr.. King exhorting his fami- |
ly to keep cool. O'Rorke, with seven |
others, clung to the rigging until a.
M, when lifeboat took him off, He |
identified the bodies of the Kings and |
Mrs. Weller, and will have them en- |
balmed and taken to the United |
States, in accordance with cabled in |
structions from the relatives of the |
family at Nantucket.
Detained In Midocean for Seven Hours.
New York, Oct. 17.-The Cunard |