The age-herald., 1898-07-07

rushed around faster ana 1dSleI, aiiu lh0 unfortunates disappeared with despairing cries.
 Mrs La Casse had been on the edge of the maelstrom but something striking her, threw her outside the whirlpool, and the next she knew she was on the life raft
 A boat containing forty women was cap sized and all went down in the whirlpool. There was not one man in the boat, and 1t was left fast to the davits. Some women were trying to cut the ropes, when the steamer careened and capsized the boats. Mrs La Casse says moment after the steamer was engulfed men, women and children rose on every side of the whirl- pool and the sight of faces and the arms and the sound of the shrieks were so ter ribe that she will remember them to her dying day. Matto Zurich, Norweg .an' said the steamer slowly settled down by the stern and starboard side and the water advancing gradually drove the people Tor ward The ship gave a great plunge ana hundreds of people were in the water grap- ping at broken oars, bits of canvas, etc,, and struggling madly. Zurich went over the starboard side and caught raft, on which he climbed. He thinks that had tho boats been launched as soon as the steam CT struck several hundred who perlshea would have been saved.
 Party of Assyrians
 Among the survivors are a small party or Assyrians and Armenians. There were seventy-five Assyrians in the party when they left New York. All but eight perished. Only one of thirteen Armenians survived. He tells sorrowful tale of the drowning of an Armenian preist and his family who had got into boat with some other thlrty people. When the end was certain and the boat was abandoned to it's fate by the crew who made no effort to launch it, the priest stood up and with uplfted hanoS pfayeu aloud.
 Several French priests stood on the deck during the sinking of the steamer without making an effort to save themselves anu gave absolution to a large crowd or pas sengers.
 Otto Zeiger, of New York, who was gong to Paris, said:
 ''We struck at a. m and were afioat one hour before the ship sank. We were going ct full speed. The crew acted cowardly and some of the officers seemed to have lost their heads. There was no discipline aboard and the boats could not be released. The sailors did not try to pull them down, but the passengers did. I tried to get a boat down and one of the ships walters pushed me away and told me to Go to hell
 "The captain did not appear to be aware of the danger at the beginning. He blew the whistle just before the accident and ne trid another signal, but the water filled the engine room. Half an hour later he fired distress signals, but it was too late. Then he put up the danger signals. l was told he was in the cabin when the accident happened but he was on the bridge when the ship went down. I loosened one of the life boats, of which three were left on the steamer but they we're soon crowded with women who behaved very quietly and gravely. Then I climbed on the super structure and went all over the ship in company with two engineers. We found the fafts on the other side, threw them overheard and jumped on them Our raft daro gal " a had to abandon it. but were picked up by the boats of the Cfomartyshire. We were the first saved and we saw other boats fet- lowing us far away"
 There are no survivors who saved more than enough clothing to cover their naked selves.
 Consul Franklin has information that one smolxestack of the steamer fell across the. boat and smashed it as it was being launch- ed. There were about forty persons Tn the hoat Three boats were found after the ship sank bottom up and in one It was stated were several bodies Of women.
 woman's Throat Cut
 Patrick McKeown states that he heard of one woman having had her throat cut and being thrown out of the boat to light en it. This statement could not be veri- fled.
 When the steamer was about to take her final plunge the captain blew the steamers whistle in goodbye to the boats, and he was shortly engulfed.
 The second officer in command was the only one who did anything to assist his helpless passengers. He cut loose all the boats he could, and in fact all the boats that were launched were launched by the brave second officer. He was last seen standing on the deck with his hand on tho rigging going resignedly to certain death.
 C,hristonher Brunini, a passenger, was thrown into the water and swan for two hours before he found a boat He chung to this his last hope. After some time another man got hold of the same boat and together they managed to r1ght IL, Finder the seats they found the dead bodies of four men and three women, who had evidently been drowned by the capsiz- ing of the boat. Brunin1 sa,d the ere" were cruel in their conduct toward the passengers He was unable to get In the steamers boats when he came on deGh' t9 ,, os, ing showed away by the sailors He saw many of his friends being prevented from gettine into the boats by the sailors lie iost everything but what he stood In.
 Fight With the Crew
 Mehilini Sevondo, an ltallan steerase messenger, is among the saved. when ne got on deck he found a raft with 1ive men on it. The raft, however was lieu .,,n,', ,liro chained fast to the deck and no sailors were near it to let it loose. No enc Of the five men had knives. The ship sank rapidly and they were all precipitated into the water. He was in the water twenty mln- utes. the other five sinking before his eyes. He came across boat which he tried to get into He eventually succeeded, but not without a fierce fight with her crew. lie was battered with oars and showed away with boat books.
 He managed to seize an oar, however, and pulled himself to the boat and climbed in, .
 August Pourgi was eager to give an ac- count of his experience.
 He was in the water about half an hour and attempted to get into a boat. He was seized when he managed to get half in and thrown back into the water Again he tried to enter the boat, but the savages who manned it were determined to keep him out. He managed at last to get in and to stay in Clinging to the life line of a boat not far away he saw his mother and as if his trials were not ended, he was forced to watch a man above her shove her into the ocean with an oar. She never rose He said the man was saved and was almost sure he could recognize him.
 Fred NifI1es. Swiss, was the most 3ovi- =, oootapta5 of all the unfortunate pas