The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1899-10-31
CHICAGO
SUNK
Pennsylvania Ferry boat
Gut Down By City
Of Augusta.
LIVES AND PROPERTY LOST
Express Wagon with
$4,000 in Silver
Goes Down.
PASSENGERS 'AARROWESCAPE
Men and Women Leap
Overheard and Swim
to Shore.
TALES OF THE SURVIVORS
superintendents of Ferry and
Steamship Companies Make
Statements.
TALES OF THE SURVIVORS

By the worse accident in the his
tory of the Pennsylvania Railroad Com
pany's ferries between this city and New
York. one life was lost and sew
eral people are missing. dozen
horses were drowned and an ex-
press wagon having on it safe con-
tanning 5000 in silver, went down. The
Savannah Steamship City of Augusta ran
into and sank the ferryboat Chicago OF
the Cortlandt street line, within $50 yards
of the New York ferry slip. Within few
minutes of the collision. and before the
Chicago could make her slip, she sank IN
seventy-five feet of water. 1t is not
definitely known how many passengers
were on board the Chicago at the time
of the disaster. but the number variously
estimated at from so to 100. One man,
John Bryson, is known to have been
drowned. His body was recovered. Fire
man vroom, of the Chicago, is missing,
and is thought to have been caught in the
stokehold. 1t is not improbable that
other lives were lost.
When the Chicago left this city at 2:44
A. NJ, Captain William Durham was in
the forward pilot house directing the boat
personally and one of his deckhands was
at the wheel. The night was perfectly
clear The tide was ebbing fast and Cap
tain Dunham on this account was obliged
to keep his boat headed we'll upstream
AS he neared the New York shore he put
his helm over to head into the slip and as
the Chicago swung around the captain
caught sight of the City of Augusta bear
ing down on him. She was coming up
stream and very close.
Captain Dunham gave two bias of his
whistle to signify his intention to pass
to starboard and putting his helm aport he
rang the signal to go ahead at full speed.
The City of Augusta, Capt. Durham
says, did not reply to the signal, but
kept right in her course A moment later
the City of Augusta rammed the Chicago
Just abaft her paddle wheel on the star
board side.
la scene of wild excitement followed.
The passengers, most Of whom had risen
to 90 to the forward end of the ferryboat
to be prepared to leave as she reached
her slip, made wild scramble for life
preservers Fortunately there were few
women aboard-not more than five or six
and at first they were showed to the rear.
George Blumenstock and George Ray,
truckmen. who were coming over to the
city with their loads of milk, jumped into
the middle of the struggling mass and
yelled
sfHands off. The women first. Save the
women A score of men took up the
shout and in a thrice the women were
fitted with life preservers. The small
number Of passengers did not exhaust the
~,,~,,l1,, - 1;ea ,,roeorxyar. F,1t many In
their excitement did not stop to put them
on but Ieaped overheard unprovided. 1t
is feared that some such persons must
have gone down in the chilly waters be-
fore help came
The deckhands displayed commendable
courage. Captain Durham was the last
man to leave his boat. He kept up con-
jstant call for help with mis- whistle and
when he finally left he tied the whistle to
keep up the sound and when the Chicago
finally went down she did it with her
whistle blowing. Engineer Penfeld kept
his hand on the throttle until the water
put out his fires and he had scarce time
to run on deck and jump overheard when
the boat went down.
Don't get excited. She won't sink, -
the deckhands cried as they ran among
the passengers sfPlenty of time"
They managed to reassure the majority
of the passengers. Captain Durham saw
the Chicago was doomed and he gave the
command for all hands to go up on the
upper deck This created q new panic
and men and women BY the dozen leaped
overheard and struggled to get away from
the vortex when it came.
The CITY of Augusta found herself un-
able for few moments to get out of the
hole she had made. fIer anchor chains
were entangfea il the splinters and despite
her reversed engines she was unable at
first 10 90 more than pull the Chicago
down strean with her The City of
Augdsta's nose was clear into the Chi
cago's hull. She finally managed to get
clear and backed away. NO effort was
made by her crew to lower boats to help
the passengers Of the Chicago, who were
then IN the water by the score, their cries
being plainly audible on shore.
The tugboat Chauncey NJ Depew
reached the scene before the Chicago sank