The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1904-06-18
This Sun to See Three
Hundred Buried.
THE CAPTAIN BLAM ED
Statements to the Coroner to the Ef
feet that the SIocum Sailed from
Three to Four Miles After
the Fire Broke
Out.
(By the Associated Press.) }

New York, June 17.-Despite the
piers, the watchfulness of scores of
men who have given themselves over
to the task of searching for the
missing but few bodies of those
who perished in the Slocum disaster
were recovered today. 1t was stated
by divers who went down into the
wreck at dawn, that there are many
bodies still under the enlargement of
timbers and paddle-wheels and that it
would be necessary TO dynamite the
hulk or raise it before they could be
reached. To this end city officials
communicated with d Wrecking COM
pany and an announcement was made
that the company would undertake the
work of bringing the wreck to the
surface. Later, however, confer
ence between the marine insurance
companies and the wrecking company
ended in a disagreement. with the re-
suit that for the present at least the
matter is in abeyance.
AT this conference, it was announced
tahat the Knickerbocker Steamboat
Company, which owns the General
Slocum, had resigned all claim to the
boat ON the agreement that it should
receive $4,000, the amount for which
the boat was insured. The inSur-
ance companies and the wrecking com
pany failed to agree oil terms, and II
The boat Is raised at all the cost prob
ably will come out of the city treasury
An Inquiry to be Made.
Secretary Cortelyou, of the Depart
ment of Commerce and Labor, will
personally undertake the investigation
into the disaster on behalf of the gov
crnment. District Attorney Jerome's
assistants are working energetically
on the case and officials of the coro-
ner's office have made considerable
progress in the way of gathering evil
dence which VIII be presented on
Monday when the coroner'S inquiry
will begin.
There is in the coroner's possession
a stand pipe taken at his direction by
81 diver fro mthe submerged wreck
The valve of the pipe is closed tight.
showing that no use was made of this
pipe i'm fighting the bames on the
Slocum.
Statements were made to the coro-
ner today by several of the steamboat
EMPLOYEES who will appear as wit
nesses at the inquest that the captain
OF the Slocum sailed his boat dis
tance of between 3 and miles after
The fire broke out before beachinS
her. Several watches showed that
more than half an hour had elapsed
from the breaking out of the fire un-
til the boat was run ashore, all tn,
watches which were taken from bod
les of the drowned stopping between
1910 and 1920 in the morning.
The Number of Dead.
Estimates as to the number OF dead
still vary greatly and this may be ac-
counted for by reason of the failure
to report to the proper authorities
on the part of many who although
officially registered as missing We're
in reality saved.
Already So bodies have been recov-
ered of which about fifty remain uni
Identified These include 273 children,
243 women and 2S men. Thirteen
officers of the ST. Marks church are
among the dead, one of them being
woman.
The first funeral from among the
victims was held today, it was that
of a young girl who is believed to have
died of heart disease from fright. No
signs of death from burning Or
drowning were found. Her funeral
was followed by a score of Others
persons from the East Side communi-
ty where most Of the dead had lived
Three Hundred Funerals.
Tomorrow there will be three hum
dred or more funerals, and thirty-two
unrecogniZable bodies which are now
living at the morgue, will be placed
in separate coffin and in a separate
hearse and laid away in the Lutheran
cemetery at Middle Village, l.. 1.
The city has arranged for their
burial plot large enough for the
interment of $50 bodies having been
set aside in this cemetery. All the
unknown dead will be placed her.
side by side.
Many thousands of dollars have
been subscribed to the relief fund.
Within an hour or two after the sub
scription list to the relief fund was
opened, $4,000 had been collected.
THJRTy-FTVE MILLIONS.