The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1899-08-07
TRAIN TOO LATE.
SWectSer's Body Did Not
Arrive.
Remained in Bangor
Last Night.
Portland People in the Accident at
Mt. Desert.
Experience of Charles
e. Williams.
Was Thrown Into Water With
Others.
ESPECIAL TO THE rRKss.1


Brunswick. August 7.-on the train
whion will arrive In Portland at 4.2)
o'clock this mDrning were q great many
people who hal been at Bar Harbor,
many of whom live in Portland. 1t was
expected that the body CT y. K. Sweetir
CT the Maine Central railroad, the only
PCrtland man who was lost In the acct
train. But the special train from Bar
Hsrbor did not roach Bangor until inst
before the late Pullman pulled out for
Portland aud the body was not trans
ferred to this train.
K. p. Greenough, who was with Mr..
Sweetser and fell into the water with
him, was rescued and remained last night
in Bangor with friends. Among the
Portland people who were on the fatal
slip when the accident occurred was Mr..
Charles E. Williams of the firm OF Harris
81 Williams job printers. Mr.. Williams
was a member of the Maine Press Exour-
sion party. When seen ON the train this
morning by PRESS reporter, Mr.. vii.
liams was in bedragglsd condition. lie
showed ayidences of having been in the
water a long time; but was not injured.
He had lost his baggage and hat, and had
to borrow one to get home with. Mr..
Williams said;
"Theie were Is OF the Maine Press
Association party who boarded the ex-
were crowded and our party were unable
to get seats. When the train reached the
Ferry our party were naturally tine first
on the WHAT They hurried for the boat
and were standing on the slip when the
accident oocurreaa We were packed In on
Maine Press excursionists were right in
the centre of the crowd. The first thing
crack, and the planks beneath my feot
seemed to go ont from under me. 1t was
a gradual settling at first. Some of the
crowd involuntarily attempted to get off
the slip. There was no crying out or
sho rting, and no panic. Suddenly the
slip broke In two,a nd dropped with the
rest of the crowd about 15 feet into
tie cold water. went down,
down, down, and began to kick to get to
the surface. / was pretty we'll frightened
too. When got to the top of the water
all that could see around me was a sen
of faces. some of them distorted with fea:
but the most OF them only looking sur
prised believe there were in all two
hundred people - more in the water
around me. Ii reading water for a
minute or SO. Ii was the coolest, bravest
crowd I ever saw. The men around ms
were helping tho women keep above
water and all the exoitement seemed to
be on the wharf. Suddenly some one on
the top Of the wharf pushed down long
board to us. made grab at this, was
yaEked out Of the water and onto the
wharf. When got there they hustled
me through the crowd towards the Elaff
hotel. The men on the wharf were using
boards. ladders, pieces Of rope, settees,
and everything movable in the work of
rescue
before was pulled out OF the water /
saw Mrs. Frederick H. Thompson, OF
Woodfords, floating under the wharf.
Finally she reached pile and chung t,
1t. saw Fred NJ. Thompson, her son,
clinging to another pile near her. Out
of the fifteen members Of the Press exeur-
sion party, on that train, thirteen were
thrown into the water, and all ueTe
saved. Chester W. Robbins, of the Old.
town Enterprise, did heroic work, sup-
porting his wife, who weighs fully 200
pounds, above the wa ter. He managed
ID fasten rope about her, and she was
pulled up onto the wharf. Then he went
up onto the wharf, took of his slothes,
returned to the water, and saved six vo-
men from death.
"Charles +. Flynt. OF the Kennebec
Journal, who was thrown into the water,
with the rest OF us. held up his wife,
who is large woman. and also kept
above the water young lady who was
with them. He managed to save them
both and refused to leavs the water, al
though he had chance after chance to do
so. until he had saved three or Tour more
women who were near him. This nearly
cost him his life. and he is now sick at
the Blur hotel
''Arthur IL. Forbes of the Oxford DEM
ocrat, also saved the lives of several
people. OF the aU0 or more people. about
i1b were pulled out In this way. How
many were crowded TO the bottom and so
death cannot say. This acts Of hereisin
witnessed oil about me were Feinark-
able. When reached tho wharf l WAS
hurried to the Bluffs hotel and pushed
into the laundry where my clothes we're
dried.
The scenes about the wharf aud hotel