The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1904-01-14
LIVES
LOST IN WRI CE
CLALIAM FOUNDFRED EN-.
ROUTE TO VICTORIA
Twelve Passengers From This County and
Only Four of Them Saved--Captain of
CIallam Considered Responsible For
Great Loss of Life.

The worst marine di,a ter in the his.
tory OF Puget Sound occurred Fri
day, Jan. :, when fifty-four persons,
many of them women and children,
lost their lives by the laundering of tie
fine, new steamer Clallam in the Strait
of San Juan de Fuca The story of the
wreck has been graphically told in the
daily papers and an account Of it will
be found in the general news columns
of this issue of the ISLANDER. Toe
number of passengers on board is re-
ported to have been fifty-six and the
crew numbered thirty-three. OF tins
total of eighty-nine persons forty-,hree
passengers and eleven of the crew were
of the passengers and
one-third Of the crew. Twelve of the
passenger. were from this county, viz;
ThOs. Sullins, wife and three chill
dren,
Wn. Laplant, wife and one child,
Peter Laplant,
u. g. Hicks,
Will King,
John Sweeney.
Only four OF them were saved Sui
Inns, VIM. Laplant, King and Sweeney.
Mr.. Sullins and family bad be,ns end
ing the holidays with relatives apd
friends at West Sound and were II
route to their home OH Vancouver is
and, accompanied by number OF their
relatives and by Hicks, King and
sweeney, who were going with them
to the MI. Sicker mining district ex-
pecting to get work there. Il. Mrs. Sui
Inns was a sister of the Laplant broth-
Ars and Mrs. VIM. Laplant was u sister
of Will King.
rhe first news of the wreck was
brought here Saturday afternoon 10y
the tug Richard Holyoke, which was
he irst vessel to reach the Clallam
,oout II o'clock Friday night, after she
,ad been drifting helplessly more than
gwen hours. AT this time she was
bout midway between Discovery ISL
nd and Cattle point, San Juan island.
rhe Holyoke had towed her about two
hours, toward Port Townsend, when
she sank. Capt. Hall, of the Holyoke,
stated here that he might have towed
the sinking vessel to the salmon banks
,r inside Cattle point and that he GER
tainly would have done so had he
Known that she WAS filling. The night
vas dark and he was unable to see her
condition or hear distinctly the orders
If Capt. Roberts, which he understood
to be to tow her to Port Townsend.
John sweeney's story
Johnny" Sweeney, who declined to
be interviewed by reporters in Town
.end or Seattle, says that he under
stood the order to the Holyoke to be to
Tow the ClalIam "to an American
port y The greatest loss of life had oc'
CURED about 4 o'clock in the afternoon
when all attempt was made by the p
.aptain's orders to save the women and
.hildren by sending them away in the
ships boats, in charge of members or
the crew. All of the boats were
wamped and the occupants drowned.
dr. sweeney does not blame the cap
ain for giving this order, which at the
ime seemed 10 offer the best chance
o safety, there being no relief in sight
an the condition OF the vessel rapid"
growing worse. He believes, however.
that upon the captain rests the terrible
responsibility for the failure to have
the surviving passengers taken OIL
quickly after the arrival of the tugs
He is unable also to account for the
vessels having steamed 80 long To-
ward Victoria when it might have
been possible to beach her at some
point offering comparative safety, be-
fore the water rose so high III the en-
gine room as to extinguish the fires.
The vessel had ran into wharf at PORT
Townsend and is believed 10 have been
unseaworthy when she lef. here.
Mr.. Sweeney says that he and one or
two Others climbed the mast and wehr