The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1904-06-18
Divers Yet at Work About the
Hulk of the General
Slocum.
STEAMER MAY BE RAISED.
Secretary Cortelyou, the District
Attorney and the Coroner All
to Make Thorough In
vestigations.

New York, June 17.-Despite the untiring
work of divers and grapplers. and the
watchfulness of scores of men who have
given themselves over to the task OF
searching for the missing" few bodies of
those who perished in the Slocum disaster
were recovered to-day.
It was said by divers who went down
into the wreck at dawn that there were
many bodies under the ENHANCEMENT of
ttmbers and paddle wheels. and that It
would be necessary to dynamite the hulk,
or raise 1t before they could be reached.
To this end, city officers communicated
with wrecking company. and an an
nouncement was made that the company
would undertake the work of bringing the
wreck to the surface. Later, however, a
conference between the marine insurance
companies and the wrecking company end
ed in disagreement, with the result that,
for the present at least, the matter is in
abeyance.
AT this conference 1t was announced
that the Knickerbocker Steamboat Com
pany, which owns the General Slocum,
had resigned all claim to the boat on
the agreement that it should receive S70,-
900, the amount for which the boat was
insured. The insurance companies and
the wrecking company failed to agree on
terms, and II the boat is raised at all the
cost probably will come out of the City
Treasury.
CoRTELYoU TO ACT PERSONALLY.
Secretary cortelyou of the Department
Of Commerce and Labor will personally
undertake the investigation into the dis
aster on behalf Of the Government Dis
tr1ct Attorney Jerome's assistants are
working energetically on the case and Of
hcers OF the Coroner office have made
considerable progress in the gathering OF
evidence to be presented on Monday, when
the Coroner's Inquiry will begin.
There Is in the Coroner's possession a
standpipe taken at his direction by diver
the pipe is closed tight, limiting. that no
use was made of this pipe in fighting the
flames on the Slocum. u
Statements were made to the Coroner
To-day by several of the steamboat en-
ployes, who will appear as witnesses at
the inquest that the Captain of the Slo-
cum sailed his boat between three and
four miles after the fire broke out before
Bleaching her. Several watches showed
that more than half an hour elapsed from
the breaking out Of the fire until the boat
was run ashore. All the watches taken
tween 1o:Io and 1920 in the morning.
ESTIMATES as to the number of dead
stiI vary greatly. This may be accounted
Tor by reason Of the failure to report TO
the proper authorities on the part of
many, who, although officially registered
as missing, were, In reality, saved.
55s BODIES RECOVERED.
Already 65s bodies have been recovered,
Of which about fifty remain unidentified.
These include z73 children. 243 women and
twenty-three men. Thirteen officers of
the st. Marks Church are among the
dead, one Of them being a woman.
The first funeral from among the victims
was held to-day. 1t was that of young
girl. who Is believed to have died of fright.
NO signs OF death from burning or drown
Ing we're found. Her funeral was fol-
lowed by score OF others which were at
tended by thousands OF persons from the
lived.
Tomorrow there will be 800 or more fun
erals. and thirty-two unacceptable
bodies will be placed, each in a separate
coffin, and in separate hearse, and laid
away in the Lutheran Cemetery at Middle
Village, L. I. The city has arranged, for
their burial. All the unidentified dead win
be placed there side by side.
Many thousands OF dollars have been
subscribed to the relief fund.