Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1901-08-27
SCORES LOST AT SEA.
STEAMER ISLANDER STRIKES AN
ICEBERG AND SINKS.
Boiiers of Ship Explode as She Goes
Down, KiIlin. Many Who Might
Have Escaped-Accideut Off Douglas
Island, Alaska, Kills Sixty five.

The steamer Islander, the flagship or
the Canadian Pacific Navigation fleet
and the largest and fastest passenger
steamer on the Victoria kagway route,
collided with an iceberg off Douglas ISL
| and, Alaska, while on her way south
with the largest number of passengers
that she has carried since she was re-
placed on the run a few months ago, and
sunk within fifteen minutes
Capt. Foote, her master, and about
sixty-ive persons, including passengers
and members of the crew, were drowned.
To add to the horror of the terrible dis
aster her boilers exploded as she went
down, causing the death of many OF
those who were struggling in the water.
The survivors tell frightful stories of
the panic that prevailed upon the ship
after she struck the iceberg. Nearly al
the passengers were asleep at the time.
Many of them rushed frantically to the
decks when they were aroused by the
shock. A struggle for life preservers
followed, in which a number of the yoy-
ayers were injured. Enough buoys were
distributed, however, to save the lives or
many who otherwise would have been
lost.
Among the lost are Mrs. Ross, the wife
of the governor of Yukon Territory, her
child and niece.
There was $275,OOO in gold on the
steamer, 100000 of which was carried
by passengers. II. H. Hart, who has
spent sixteen years in the Klondike, lost
$50 900 in dust.
United States Consul Smith, of Nicto-
-, al fo1I,vx-ipor cfO of the
wreck from the survivors:
1.-The Islander left Skagway for Nicto-
ria with 125 passengers and crew of
sixty-one men on board and ten or twelve
stowaways. All went well, the steamer
making her usual record of fifteen knots
an hour until Juneau was passed and the
south end of Douglas Island was reach
ed. Then suddenly the steamer encoun-
tered an obstruction, said TO have been
an iceberg, and stopped with a jerk
which aroused many of the sleeping pas
sengers. As soon as the vessel struck
water rushed in forward in great vol
umes, and the pilot advised that the YES
sci be run on the beach, not over half a
mile distant, at once To this the cap
tain objected, saying the beach was too
abrupt He thought there was no I'M
mediate danger, but would run Il few
miles farther down where he knew there
was good landing.
Meanwhile the passengers, aroused to
| their peril, appeared on deck and a rush
was made to the purseE who had been
given treasures for safekeeping. Purser
Bishop handed all out except two bags
of $4,000 cash, which were not claimed,
| and went down with the vessel. The
| bow of the steamer steadily sunk and
twenty minutes from the time it struck
the front deck was under water and the
stem, with propeller and rudder, We're
high in the air and useless.
The captain remained on the bridge
until the last and finally jumped on Il
life raft where he stayed a few minutes,
when the steamer dove forward entirely
out of sight AS it did so an explosion
| occurred, and the captain lost his hold
| on the life raft and sank.
considerable difficulty was expert
enced in ascertaining the location of the
shore, though it was only a short dis
lance away. owing to the dense fog pre-
vailing. Finally Mr.. Preston, of Seattle
and Dawson, who with his bride was on
his wedding trip, both of whom were
saved in the last boat which left the
wreck, heard water trickling down the
rocks, and all the boats reached shore.
A number jumped off the steamer into
the water and were rescued therefrOm
only to die of exhaustion from the in
tpuSp cold