New-York tribune., 1903-05-06
At LEAST TWENTY LOST.
STEAMER SAGINAW SUNK.
Hamilton Almost Bisccts Her
Boat UpSets scith Fifteen Women.
tBY TELEGRAPH TO THE TRIBUNE. ]

Norfolk, o.
and heroism which form SO large a part of the
annals OF the sea is the story Of the sinking
Of the steamer Saginaw. of the Clyde Line.
from Richmond and Norfolk. for Philadelphia.
and the drowning of at least twenty of
her passengers and crew off the Virginia
coast at 4:40 a. m. to-day. The steel PROV
Of the steamer Hamilton, of the Old Do
minfon Line, from New-York for Norfolk,
cut off twenty feet of the Saginaw's stern,
as though # was so much cheese, and then.
ia the darkness of fog thick that
objects a boats length away could hardly be
discerned. with the almost bisected Saginaw
sinking. as the waters rushed in, ensued ship
wreck scene more thrilling than which the pages
Of fact have seldom recorded.
From both steamers boats were lowered into
the pit of the fog amid the clamor of panic
and the silence of despair from passengers who
had been reused from sound sleep and rushed
on deck to see the water pouring into the ship.
AS the first boat from the Saginaw's side struck
the water it capsized, and fourteen negro women
sank With the roar Of battleship's broadside
the decks OF the Saginaw burst, and belched
forth freight crew and passengers into the sea-
I.ashed 10 a mast above it all was Captain Tun
nell with some of his ribs broken. and others
Of the crew and passengers who had taken
refuge there. and amid the wreckage the
struggling and the drowned sped the lifeboats Of
the Hamilton picking UP those who had kept
afoat When the Saginaw sank a few minutes
after the collision. there went to the bottom
with her some who had been killed in their
hunks by parts of the cargo which had fallen
on them
The list of the dead and missing is still some
what mixed and incomplete. So far as known 1t
is as follows:
PASSENGERS.
GILMORE PESDEET99NNt = I T9Nts Fb9RENFE .69 MNRE
CREW
assistant sneneeT: MARY ANDERSON stewaTdess 1iGes
oolored waiter: PETER SWANSON, missing.
Just h.w many of the passengers named
were among the fifteen lost in the swamped
lfeboat cannot be determined. A number OF
the passengers left Richmond on Sunday on
the Saginaw and until the list OF these Is op-
tained it will be impossible TO get an accurate
estimate of the dead
The known saved from the Saginaw are
fcrew1 CAPTAIN J. s Tunnel. badly injured
about the head and internally, two ribs broken;
Chief Engineer BeItzer, Second Assistant Eng1-
neer Nurrey Second Mate W. L. Morris ana
several colored deckhands, fremen ana coal
passers- (Dassengers) E. B. Cole, OF fhll-
adelphia: J. Trevor. of Philadelphia; H. b.
Younghead of Chester. Penn; George b hoou'
Of Philadelphia; Harry F. Wintsrs, of Camden
j A.
Morris Payner jr., OF Northwest va Johh
paaea Of zorfolk: Miller PennelI, of Norfolk;
Judson Sevills, of Berkeley. and DaVlo Row
land, Of Newport News.
The scene of the wreck was about fourteen
miles offshore between Winter Quarter LghI-
shin and Fenwick Island Lghtship. Inc Hio'
officers of both steamers were al Ihs
both were proceeding under reduced speeo 01i
both were sounding their fog sirens each ie"
ing the other Captain R. B. Boaz says
1t was clear when we left NewYoTk YES gesteTq3iag 3ieg
north Of Egg HaTbor the fog lasting g 9nui abot %f
40 O'Clock this morning. and we were pIoceuadS aS
a about nine knots an hour W. hau DeEt ooS,Id
reduced speed since encountering the fog we Goui
not see a ships length ahead when when we ,G heai we
whistle on the starboard bow two points aec oteeT
Whistle Suddenly the Saginaw doomed up three &c
run across the Hamilton's bow we packea az ,ori
speed but struck the Saginaw on the port Sea tb &
Hamilton backed she was settling we I0%eredd Id
her boats and q raft. picked up TWO OF uhese
boats and the raft
. X Berwin an agent at No. Z Warren-st-'
New-York. who lives at Nc 152 West Ninety
fourth-st. one of the passengers on the Ham
lton. said:
Fog settled down like a pail on the ocean about
O'Clock last night. Suddenly when we were - i W.
hours this morning. six Dels rang rang .llo - md a
grinding made the ship shiyer Aothlng IN @ i 1be
hzppened ship below Sui -
terrfbl. sight As stood there gazing out 10 I'd
The SAGINAW appeared with twenty feet of her stern
tf.r, cryoTIetaIv aWay cleanly TINS part cut
of that could look right into the steamer Al T.,
sFe hut she quickly olSsiplIe1i II
the dense fog and sank just fifteen minutes %
tho crash The thought was 10Y o.L Iii
safety and our boats were ioMerea anu III .i ,,nt
examined When il found that she "as S ia
injured then the captain - ,hq % ssSe some human
Iixee when The Hamilton crcfed ana We e,- ae,sal..
the fog and mist 2Aly i.e5
NO rnasfs were showing she hao scuteIeo .,
w. resting quietly the bottom IL was 49,.
s..aI 49, the sea vas quiet. Our boats brougEI
- s5x,eeT ~ people Of whom four were white %
=. - .,zr,,, EorAn-r1.,t