Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1901-06-20
THE NORTHFIELD SINKS.
A Disaster on the East River,
New York City.
SEVERAL LIVES WERE LOST
Estimates Vary Greatly as TO the Nun-
ber Of People that Were Drowned
Hundreds Of People Were Rescued
from the sinking Steamer.

New York, June 15.-The wooden
been in the service of the Staten
sidewheeler Northfield, which has
Island Ferry Co. for the past 80 years,
was rammed last night by the steel
hulled propeller Mauch Chunk, used
as a ferry boat by the Central Rail-
road of New Jersey. The collision
occurred just off the Staten Island
ferry slip. at the foot of Whitehall
street, and in less than ten minutes
afterwards the Mortified, which
was crowded with passengers, sank
at the outer end of the Spanish line
pier in the East river.
The Mauch Chunk, which was badly
damaged, landed the two dozen pas
sengers who were aboard of her. Over
hundred Of the passengers of the
sunllen Northfield were dragged out
of the water by people along shore
and the crews of the feet of river
tugs which promptly responded to
| the ferry boats call for help. y few
| of the NorthfieId passengers were
hurt in the accident and the police
| believe that some lives We're lost.
Capt. Daniel Gully, of the tug boat
/ v
crash together, says that Immediately
after the collision between 25 and so
of the passengers leaped into the
water and that many of those per-
| ished. Capt. Gully also declares that
| he is sure 100 of the Northtield's pas
sengers were drowned. The captains
of other tug boats who were early on
| the scene, however, are incnned to
| think that the disaster was not so
| serious as regards the loss of life.
| The reason for such difference of
opinion as to the extent of the disas-
| ter is that the widest excitement
prevailed on the NCrthtield. The tug
| Mutual saved in all about IS persons
from the Northfield and the tugs
Unity and Arrow saved between
them $50 persons. Two policemen of
the Old Slip station claim to have res
cued nearly 30 people.
As soon as the crowd which had fol-
lowed the sinking ferry boat along
| the river front were able to render
aid they worked with a will, and in
many instances men sprang into the
water to save life. The greatest serv-
ice was rendered by the tug boats,
which as soon as it was possible
circled around the Mortified and
made a bridge to the Spanish line
| pier and men and women clambered
over the tugs to the shore.
| While the Northtield was well sup
piled with life preservers, which were
stored in out-of-the-way places, not
more than two dozen of the passen-
gers were able to get the life belts
on. This state of a1fairs was because
the life preservers were not handily
obtainable and the widest panic fol-
lowed when the hundreds of passen-
gers realized their danger. This was
only a few minutes before the North
| field sank to the bottom of the river,
and then all who had not jumped to
the tugs found themselves in the
water.
The swift running flood tide and
the question of which boat had the
| right of way was the cause of the
| disaster. Capt. Abraham Johnson
was in charge of the Mortified and
| Capt S. c. Griffin was in command of
the Mauch Chunk. Each lays the
blame of the collision on the other.
As the humping OF ferry boats is
not unusual in this harbor, the pas
sengers on the Northfield did not for
a minute or so realize the seriousness
| of the collision. When, however,
two firemen ran up on deck to save
themselves from the inflow of water
and the Northfeld was being driven
full speed up th" t river instead
of down To-, Island and
all the time scream elp, they
knew that something serious had
| happened. Then commenced the
panic, which continued until the
| Northfield went down. At no time
was the Northfield more than 500 feet
out in the river beyond the buikhead
line, but the tide was running with
the velocity of u mill race, and had
the vessel sunk out in the stream
only the tugs would have been able
| to give assistance.
There were II teams on the North
field and they all perished. The off
| cials of the Staten Island ferry boat
said that there were probably not
over 600 passengers on the Northfield
at the time of the collision. The
passengers say that the crowd num-
bered fully 1,2oo men, women and
| children.