St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1904-06-22


dead. The wailing and moaning of the
rescued people was indescribably sad.
The horrors of the battle field could not
equal it. Pastor Haas of the St. Marks
church, that gave the excursion, lost his
wife and children, some families cut in
two, some all wiped out but one, and so
on. Some men. after saving three and
four women, lost their own lives by some
person jumping on top of them from the
sinking steamer. After the coroner had
searched, tagged and mum bered the dead /,
they were taken down the river in Chari-
ty Department boats to the Morgue, a
distance OF five miles. The supply of
collins gave out and other departments
had to send some for temporary use.
The police reserves were relieved by a
fresh lot of men at and were excused
from duty that night. I was on duty 20
hours at the Windsor hotel fire and have
jumped overheard at midnight and res
cued the drowning. have saved the lives
of persons from highwaymen, fire and
water, but in all my twelve years expe-
rience on the police force, or in my life,
or in the history of New York Harbor,
there never was a harder, sadder or
more painful sight than the disaster of
the General Slocum. Over 74O dead
bodies have been found and 200 persons
are still missing. The reserves did not
have morsel of food all day. Only one
or two patrolmen got sick. The writer
is pleased to say that he stood the ordeal
and never hinched one second from the
duty to be performed. Many thanks for
being raised on a farm, with a robust
constitution, in good old Vermont.
North Brother Island consists of few
acres of land situated just north of He'll
a fn
Sound about one quarter of a mile from
Port Morris, Borough of the Bronx.
1t is set aside and used by the city for
patients who have contagious diseases.
There is nothing on the island but city
institutions used for the care of such pa
tients and their attendants. The steamer
was about so feet away and person
could wade half way from the island to
the ship.
have been at the scene of disaster at
the morgue and in the grief stricken Sec
ton of the city since that first day, and
although there were glorious deeds per-
formed by everybody, the most heroic
acts of bravery to my mind were when
those lady nurses and other girls en-
ploved on that island swan out and
saved little children. A blessing will
surely come to such noble women.
There were many things that I did not
like to see, outside OF caring for the in
jured and the dead-such as the rivalry
OF undertakers, the clashing of city de-.
partmenus., After the coroner in the
Bronx had numbered the bodies and
tagged them properly, they were re-
moved to the morgue, where they were
REMEMBERED and tagged by the coroner of
Manhattan to suit his ideas. Much con-
fusion was caused thereby and the heart
less thieves that took advantage of this
calamity and sought to ply their trade
among the vast crowds at the morgue
and at St. Marks church. Several have
| been arrested and to my mind prison is
no punishment for the wretches.
| Who is to blame for this terrible loss OF
! life: This is question often asked. /
am glad the captain of the steamer was
arrested. He should have steered his
ship ashore before he reached He'll Gate,
three miles south of where he beached the
| burning steamer a the last moment.
| Four great departments are now inves:
| tigating the terrible disaster-the United
States authorities under the direction OF
Secretary Cortelyou from Washington,
the corouer's Office of the city OF New
York, the district attorneys Office Of
| New York County under immediate dir.
ection of William Travers Jerome, and
the fire department. When they get
| through L hope they wont forget the
other 200 boats that are blowing Their
whistle in this harbor, daily and thai
are equally in as bad condition as tn,
| General Slocum.
Shortly after the disaster President
Roosevelt wired his sympathy to Pasto
Haas. The next day the Kaiser cablee
his, and since messages have been receiv
ed from all over the world of coincidence
and sympa by.
The funeral district was short of pas
rors. The head of one church offered tn
services OF 1873 pastors for Saturday, ant
Bishop Potter and other creeds volun
teered over hundred for Sunday
There were 100 funerals Saturday, ant
more than that number Sunday. Owe
six hundred policemen were on duty il
the grief stricken district Saturday AM
Sunday.
ALBERT MASON.
, New York Tune 20. 1904