The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1904-06-21

on Wednesday within two or three
hours after the accident and removed
to friends or relatives. These brought
the list up to five hundred and fifty
nine recovered dead.
New York, June 17.-Despite the un-
firing work of the divers and grapplers,
the watchfulness OF scores CT men who
have given themselves over TO the task
of searching for the missing" but few
bodies OF those who persisted in the Sio-I
cum disaster were recovered today. II
was stated by divers who went down.
into the wreck at dawn that there are
many bodies still under the entangle-I
ment OF timbers and paddle wheels,
4 that it would be necessary to dy-
Mantle the hulk or raise it before they
could be cached. To this end, city
officials communicated with a wrecking
company. and an announcement was
made that the compan would under
take the work Of bringing the wreck to
the surface. Later. however, a confer
, ence between the marine insurance
companies and the wTecking company
ended in Il disagreement, with the re-
suit that for the present, al least the
matter is in allegiance.
At this conference, il was ANNOUNCED
that the Knickerbocker Steamboat
Company, which owns the General Slo-
cum. a resigned all claim to the boat,
on the agreement that it should receive
$4,000. the mount for which the boat
was insured The insurance companies
and the wrecking failed to
n p-~nn mn Tn1-0n< and - tho hnQT iC raised
at all. the cost probably will come out
of the city treasury.
Secretary Cortelyou, OF the depart
ment of commerce and Labor will per-
sonally undertake the investigation into
the disaster on behalf of the govern
Inent: District Attorney Jerome.S as
sistants are working energetically on
the case and officials of the coroner's
office nave made considerable progress
IN the way OF gathering evidence which
will be presented on Monday, when the
c~oroner's inquiry will begin.
There is in the coroner'S possession
a stand pipe taken at his direction by
q diver from the submerged wreck. The
valve OF the pipe is closed tight, show
ing that no use was made of this pipe
IN fighting the flames on the Slocum.
Statements were made to the coroner
today by several of the steamboat en-
ployees who will appear a. witnesses at
the inquest, that the captain of the
Slocum sailed his boat a distance of
between three and o miles after the
fire broke out before Bleaching her.
Several watches showed that more than
half an hour had elapsed from the
breaking out of the fire, until the
boat was run ashore. all the watches
which were taken from bodies of the
drowne stopping between 10:10 and
1920 in the morning.
Estimates as to the number of dead
y still var greatly, and this may be &C.
counted for by reason of the failure tic
port to the proper authorities on the
part Of many who although officially
registered as missing, were in reality
saved.
Already 500 bodies have been recov-
cred, Of which about fifty remain uni
IDENTIFIED. These include 273 children,
24S women and % men. Thirteen Off
GERS of the st. Marks church are among
the dead, one of them being a woman.
The first funeral from among the
victims was held today. 1t was that
of a young girl who is believed to have
died of heart disease from fright. No
signs of death from burning or drown
ing were found. Her funeral was fol-
lowed by a score of others which were
attended by thousands of persons from
the eastSide community, where most OF
the dead had lived.
Tomorrow there will be 800 or more
funerals, and thirty-two unacceptable
bodies, which are now lying at the
morgue will be placed each in a sepa-
rate coffin and in a separate hearse and
laid away in the Iuthern cemetery at
Middlevillage, l. L. The city has ar
ranged for their burial, a plot large
enough for the interment Of $50 bodies
having been set aside in this cemetery.
All the unknown dead will be placed
here, side by side.
Many thousands of dollars have been
subscribed to the relief fund. Within an
hour or two after the subscription list
in the mayors Office, was opened S12.-
coo had been collected.
General Uhler, of Washington, super
kvising inspector general of steamboats,,
sCollector Stranahan, General Clark
the surveyor of the port, n local
: Supervising Inspectors Rode n Du-