New-York tribune., 1900-07-03

second cabin stewards there were five such
heaps. Third Engineer Stanko. who was one
OF the fifteen men who took refuge in of
the Mains coal bunkers. and saved late
Saturday night. made the discovery. He was
sure the ashes represented the bodies OF missing
stewards. and even went so far as to hazard
a guess to their identity.
Captain V. Peterman of the Main was in
formed and hurried to the steamer He found
a way round the warm spots, and groped
his way through binding smoke into the cabin.
Close inspection showed that the ashes were
those of bed clothing.
P. R. Demming. pilot of the tug A. w. Booth.
says he the body of a man in a tank which
lies between the boiler room bulkheads and some
distance below the water line. He said the
man was fully clothed, and his hands were
gripping the sides of the tank, as If he had
taken refuge there from the heat. Demming
says that it too hot to reach the body at
! the time he discovered it. and that the com
with water. This was done soon after. and the
body, If one there is must remain unrecovered
until the hold is pumped out
THINKS BREMEN CAN BE SAVED.
Captain John w Chittenden, who is in
charge of the two steamers for the Merritt
Chapman Wrecking Company, believes the
Bremen can be saved and that there is a pos
sibility Of making the Main OF future use He
said to Tribune reporter yesterday afternoon:
The Bremen eIa is not nearly so badly damaged as
w at at rst t. supposed G Her upper works amdshps ami
they were hardly touched by the fire. AS far as
damaged We have three divers at work on her
soon as everyhng is maSe u" gh e Re W % pnmp
morning. except for. one of The forward b1nkers,
a s o. 9Uoh When W Was m s nE
w VIII n 6egn pumping out & % moTnngb nt bes5 A
Injured below the Water line. and we anticpat te
ftle dfoIIty ta in foS5ing the vessel ss Main Her
hull is still so hot that we cannot investigate All
e be Be saSe w the a Y You as
about our chances Of saving her as l do.
Seven big wrecking tugs pumped steadily dur
ing the greater part of the day in order to fill
the Main. They finally succeeded, but the
steamers cargo still burned. Captain Tucker.
who has charge of the fire fighting force said
to a Tribune reporter yesterday afternoon:
We have been playing fifteen big streams into
her. and the end is not yet, The steamer was
o h grain II % afd 0q be3re r 70 Is
slightest effect The sacks have ia, all burned away
to have II out by morning, when we can begin
q search for the dead.
Captain Peterman wandered around the ruin
of his ship yesterday afternoon like a In a
dream. Every little while he would exclaim,
with shrug Of his broad shoulders, She is
| burned worse than the othersr' or, stroking
his long, flowing beard, he would murmur:
"Mein Gott! This is HORRIBLE"
RUIN ABOARD THE MAIN.
The full strength of the fire which raked the
Main only be realized by trip through her
deck cabins No water was used in this part
OF the vessel for the fire had practically burned
out before the wreckers were ready. The deck
plates above have been bent downward by the
heat, and those below have raised in wavelike
ridges. One has to bend low to pass through
the cabin, and care must be taken not TO tumble
over the deck rivets, every OF which has
been raised inch more. Not a trace OF
woodwork remains in the long stretch of cabin,
but the piles of cinders lie everywhere.
The part of the cabin given over to staterooms
| is recognizable only by tangled litter of wire
springs. Here and there twisted tub tells
the location OF bathroom. The glass from the
port lights has dropped in molten chunks and is
spread among the Cinders, where the fire
was not so hot it has crystallized in the frame.
In some places the hair mattresses remain on
the wires. twisted by the flames into various
fantastic shapes. some Of which are shudder-
ingly human.
In the big dining saloon long rows Of iron
chair supports still in place, and point out
where the tables were. The pantry is a
mixture of broken china and melted silverware.
An iron plate rack, with It's burden unbrOken.
alone withstood the flames.
In the lower deck cabins the wreck is even
more complete. IL such a thing is possible. The
decks almost touch in places, and the heat was
so great yesterday afternoon that only the party
which searched for bodies ventured to pass
through. Files of glowing Goals cast a weird
light over the dark passages and helped in the
search
Considerable money was found in the crew
quarters. in the forward part of the steamer,
yesterday morning. One is said to have
turned over to the officers Of the steamer 500
francs which he found under a burned bunk.
Several watches. sadly ruined by the fire. were
also recovered in different parts of the vessel.
River pirates visited the ship in large numbers
during the day, but were kept off by the wreck
ers. A close guard kept after nightfall.
officer Busse. OF the Weehawken police, early
in the afternoon arrested man who car
rying large basket Of silverware along Boule-
ward Loop. He said that the silver had been
given into his charge by officers of the steamer
Bremen and that he was taking IL to the proper
authorities in Hoboken. The police confscated
the silver and allowed the man TO go on his own
recognizanCe they know him He has al
ways borne a good reputation, and the police
believe him innocent.
Lugger men came from all parts Of the jersey
shore yesterday and piled large and profitable
trade They were not allowed to land their pas
sengers on the wrecks, but took them up to the
portfolios of the Bremen, where they secured bits
of crystallized glass for souvenirs. Every ferry
from the city brought numoer OF curious
sightseers.
Bremen during the day, who N half burned
uniforms slept about the decks. A party Of
schoolgirls from Weehawken happened along in
the afternoon. They demanded admittance, and
the smiling officers rugged ladder for them.
With typical hospitality they were taken to one
of the messrooms at the stern. and after long
search a bottle of wine and a box Of water
soaked, smoke favored waters were produced
They feasted in fine style. and carried off with
them enough souvenirs to supply every woman
in the Jersey suburb.