The evening times., 1902-07-11
lIR I.IIl. COUGH TELLS OF
PRISCILLA ACCIDBBT
Was on Board S0undSteaner
in the Collision
WILD SCENES OF CONFUSION
Only One Life Lost, But Five Minutes
Later Death List Might Have Been
ApPalIing-More Than Six Hundred
Passengers Floated IN Dark for Hours

+ Mr. H Leroy Cough. of this city.
/ Of the firm Of Hensey & Cough, at
tc-rcys. 1902 7 Street. was one OF the
/ passengers on the Long Island Sound
/ steamer Priscilla when that boat was
run into and nearly sunk on Tuesday
night OF this week. on the return
I journey Of the boat from Fall River to
/ New York city Mr. Cough was just
completing short vacation trip to
Martha Vineyard Mass, when the ac-
cidenJ occurred.
Speaking Of the scenes following the
+ collision. Mr.. Cough. who lives at 1915
Seventeenth Street northwest, said last
night
There was dense fog when the ac-
cident occurred We had left Fall
River. Mass. at 40 o'clock that even
ing, and were rounding Point Judith r
/ when he PCwhatan of the Merchants
and Min6--'S ne struck the Priscilla.
at Ee,. port we had taken on 1.58e
barrels OF fish. forming only part Of our
( large cargo. and ali the staterooms. over
SEQ in number. were occupied. in ad-
dition TO a number Of steerage passen-
gers aboard who did not have rooms. As
we were going out through the fog we
could hear the changing bells of small
launches and coast trade ships lying at
anchor, and knew that navigation in
such fog was a very difficult and
dangerous matter
Awakened by Two Shocks,
I had gone to sleep early. and at II
o'cic~k was awakened by two distinct
shocks. I opened my stateroom door.
but before I had time to don few
clothes and step cut, the electric lights
went opJ. This. we afterwards discover
ed, was because in the collision the
electric light plant in the prov Of -he
boat had been disabled.
In the darkness people were going
around the decks making inquiries as to
the extent OF the damage. but all be-
haved admirably. This was especially
true Of the women. Of whom there must
have been several hundred. at least one
third OF the whole passenger list. The
crew began 10 throw OF the cargo, and
then we knew that the damage must
have been severe The boat had gone
down IN the bow and was so high I'd
il the stern tEat the rUdder showed
out OF the water
The Priscilla sigualed the Powhatan
that she was disabled, but the other
boat was also injured. and both simply
iOated in the darkness. For four hours
the distress call, four sharp blasts in
succession, was blown continually. yus
no assistance was obtained. Finally at
o clock the Puritan came UP. X foked
pretty good / can tell you, to see that
great steamer sister ship Of the one
we were o. come up out Of the dark
ness with every deck brilliantly il
Illuminated with incandescents. carving
relief to US il need OF help. The people
on the Priscilla cbeered and clapDed
their hands. ara then for the first time
breathed easily, for the danger Of
drifting about in the dark with the
Tudder so far out OF water as TO be
useless, vas appreciated by all.
Towed Into Port Stern First.
The Priscilla was then towed into
port stern first, 10 keep the steamer out
OF The water as much as possible. -Four
cables snapped in the work. and then
hve-ply cable was rigged I'd. and with
this the boat was towed s1,ccessF,1,Z-
nc Puritan found it could not make
very great speed this way however
and the steamer City OF Fall River MAS
pressed INTO service ana towed the Iari
tan, thus making Ihree-foId procession
into the harbor.
Only one life was lcst-that of
steYedore. who was caught in his he'd
and crushed If the accident had oc-
CURED i've minutes later. the number of
victims would have been much great
or, fCr then other men would also have
Deeh sleeping al the same place As it
was, we were going round Point Judith.
and all the other members of the crew
we're On deck az their posts Of ,uty
If ii had been a rough night. wirt fba
vessels pitching and tossing, there would
have been worse times too
We got 70 Newport at 8 a. m and
TOOK the boat 10 WEXFORD Junction. and
then the train from there 10 Wexford
4 train from there took US to New York
arriving just a few minutes too late far
the last train Of the afternoon for Wash
lngton- This necessiyated my staying
over Tor one Of the owl trains. bring +
ing me back here Just one day late.
Mr. OTmsby McCammon, Of this city
was one OF the passengers on the Pris- .
ella He had been cruising on he old /
Cup defender Columbia. and took mas
sage on the steamer at Newport lust be- /
fore the accident occurred He was sc- 1
comPanied by Mr.. Cramp.
Queer Scenes During Excitement.
There we're many strange scenes dur
ing those hours Of uncertainty: and row F..
that the danger is over. the thought of .
them returns very plainly There vas 2 .
minister who went racing up azl4 down
the deck like a college sprinter. He car /
ried life preserver in his hand. but
that was all the good il seemed likely
10 do him In q corner were a lot Of
Hebrews, who prayed constantly for
dcllverance, and they were han
Dy lot when the Puritan hove in
sight at last The crew put on life ore
servers at the first. and seeing this. the
passengers did likewise One woman
Th0 had an Old daTky nanny with her
as CaretakeT and companion refused
70 put on life prcserver until her sar-
want had been provided with one.
The Priscilla has been in commission
or eight years. making regular trips.
ret IN al that time previously she had
lot had an accident The hole stove in
his timo was five feet below the water
Inc, and big enough TO drive a team
uto it.
The worst scared lot of passengers
we're some young fellows who had beer
thinking In the cafe directly next to the
lde afteTward damaged. All of a sud
lcn the side came tumbIIng in with q
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