The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1901-08-21
SAYS OFFICERS OF
SHIP WERE SOBER
Charges of Drunkenness Denied
by Islanders Passengers.
GOOD WORK OF WOMEN
EVERY EFFORT TO SAVE LIVES
MADE BY THE CREW.

Victoria. B. c., Aug 20.-Interviews
with the survivors Of the stean'er ISL
ander, who reached here last mig. It and
his morning. failed 10 throw any fur
Their light on the disaster and none
were able to give any additional names.
The quartermssters who were at the
wheel at the Sime ccrroborate the state
ment of Pilot Leblanc as to ice having
been seen. and also as TO the cOndi-
ton of the weather, and they reiterace
the statements so often made Of the
GOODNESS Of the officers and crew and If
the efforts to save the passengers at
the risk of their own lives.
Second Mate Powell has modified his
statement that a man on a raft drew
q revolver and threatened him and
Captain FOOte in his efforts to get them
TO leave the raft, and he now says that
the man simply threatened them and
did not draw revolver.
But the man accused, A. G. Beach, a
member OF the first Canadian contin-
gent, has come forward and says he
was the man who threatened to shOOt
any who attempted to board the raft,
saying in justification that the raft was
already overloaded and that he did not
have a life preserver on, while the 9TH
ers did. He admits having tried to
throw Chinaman of the raft because
he was rolling from side to side and
causing the raft 30 capsize.
He says Captain Foote was sitting on
the raft smoking a pipe which he had
handed him when the raft capsized and
he (the captain) swan away to a spar.
Captain Ferry, one of the quarter
masters, says that when the doors of
the bUnlIeTS were closed to prevent the
inflow of water, there were eleven
stowaways in there passing coal, and
they were taken down in the ship. The
obi F
closed did not know that these men
were still in the bunkers.
The women, the captain says, acted
splendidly. and after they reached
shore worked to restore those who were
brought in after them.
Officers Were Not Drunk.
Captain Harris formerly a sealing
captain and latterly on one of the Yu-
kon river steamers, was coming down
as a passenger. He was with Captain
FOOJe in the dining hall when the shin
struck, and says that the report that
Captain FOOte was drunk or that any
body was the worse for liquor, is absO-
lutely false. He was on the bridge up
to 1890 with Captain Leblanc and
Vertf1es the pilots statements as to the
condition of the weather.
When the ship struck he went on the
bridge with the captain and heard him
give his orders in the coolest possible
manner. When the boats were low
cred. Captain Harris went to the port
size as the second mate had not yet
been called, and he says that every
person who was in sight was taking to
the boats, he being the last one 10
leave. AS to what happened on thu
starbOard side he is unable to say.
Every life that it was possible TO
save he says. was saved The stew
ards did their utmost to awaken pas
sengers, Second Steward Fowler giving
10 his life in the effort. but the cap
tain thinks many did not realize
the danger and went down as they
slept. Had others presented themselves
I there was room for them in the por-
boats
s. Applebaun1 of Dawson says that Re
does not think all the passengers weCe
aroused, and he adds that there was a
lack of discipline
Andrew Heating and hi; two sons
of Los Angeles and this city were nos
seen after the ship struck, and it is
I thought that they slept through il all
The Isla nder was insured for 100000
but the company estimate that they
lost $4,000 by the disaster. and besides
] lose their best steamer just as business
/ is getting good.
The census * the north will have to
! be taken over as the list was lost il
the wreck.