The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1904-06-18
FEW BODIES
RECOVERED
Searching is Largely
FruitleSS.
TlMBERS IMPEDE DIVERS
Insurance Wrangle Prevents
Use of Dynamite.
CorteIyou and Attorney Jerome become
Busy Preparatory to Coroner's
Inquest Monday of Excursion
steamer sIocum Disaster.

new 1OFh, June despite the I'M
firing work of the divers and Crap
piers and the watchfulness or scores
of men who have given themselves over
to the task Of searching for the miss
ting, but few bodies of those who per-
ished in the Slocum disaster were re-
covered today q.
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 to raise it before
they could be reached. To this end
city officials communicated with a
Wrecking company and an announce
ment 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 ended in u dis
agreement with the result that for the
present at least the matter is in abey-
ance.
At this conference it was announced
that the knickerbocker Steamboat
Company which owns the General Slo-
cum. had resigned all claim to the boat
on the agreement that il should re-
ceive $4,000, the amount for which the
boat was insured The insurance com
panies and the wrecking company fail
ed to agree on terms and if the boat is
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 in
TO the disaster on behalf of the govern
ment; District Attorney Jerome's as
sistants are working energetically on
the case and officials of the coroners
Office have made considerable progress
in the way of gathering evidence which
will be presented on Monday when the
Coroner's inquiry will begin.
There is In the coroner's possession
stand pipe taken at his direction by a
diver from the submerged wreck. The
valve of the pipe is closed tight, show
ing that no use was made OF this pipe
in lighting the flames on the Slocum.
Statements were made to the Coroner
today by several. of the steamboat en-
ployes who will appear as witnesses at
the inquest that the captain of the
Slocum sailed his boat a distance of
between three and four 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 the bodies of the
drowned stopping between 1910 and
1U.2O IN the morning.
Estimates to the number of dead
still vary greatly and this may be ac-
counted for by reason of the failure to
represent to the proper authorities on
the part of many who, although official
ly registered as missing. were really
saved.
Already $50 bodies have been recov-
cred. of which about fifty remain uni
Identified. Thirteen officers of the St.
No lr &C. re- aVVonV ha -
of them being a woman.
The first funeral from among the vic
Tins was held tonight; 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 drown
ing was discovered. Her funeral was
followed by score of Others who were
attended by thousands of persons from
the East Side where most of the dead
had lived
Tomorrow there will be 800 or more
funerals and 80 unacceptable dead
now lying at the morgue will be laid
away in the Lutheran Cemetery at
Middle Village, 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.
At various hospitals where the in
jured are it was said to-day their con-
dition was satisfactory. There are
now only fifty-three victims of the dis
aster in the hospitals.
OmciaI's Irrf arabic Blunder.
1t developed to-day that a new hor-
ror had been added to the terrible con-
ditions resulting from the Slocum dis
mster through the over-ofhciousness of
some person at the morgue. AS a re-
suit some of the bodies of the dead
probably will never be identified and
will go to a last resting place In the
humble plot furnished by the city's
charity. When the bodies were taken
nv hundreds from the water and laid
in rows on the grass at North Brother
Island each was tagged with a num-
Der That number was carefully re-
corded and the papers and trinkets
which would have served to positively
identify the bodies were removed and
placed in separate packages. each pack
age bearing a number corresponding
to the number on the body from which
the articles were taken. These papers
were then placed in the possession of
the coroner, Scores Of bodies at the
morgue were burned or bruised be
yond recognition, but 1t was hoped tina
all might be claimed by friends by
means of the papers and tewelry.
When the bodies were taken to the
morgue they were placed in numbered
boxes, but In many cases these num-
hers did not correspond with the fig
ures the bodies had borne. As a result
the plans were completely upset and
the numbered packages of the valua-
bles became practically worthless as
means of Identification.
Bodies Disappeared.
One case, which came to the atten
tion of the officials to-day, was that
of A. T. Hill. of Williamsburg. Mr..
Hill called at the morgue yesterday
and identified the bodies of his broth |
er-in-law, William Richter. and the
wife of the latter. ana they were re-
moved to the Office of the undertaken.
In the afternoon the bodies of Gather
Inc and Lillian Richter. and years
old, respectively. also were identified
by him. When he called at the morgue