The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1904-07-08
PANIC ON SINKING SHIP
Only LIS Out Of ia People Reached
the Land.
STRUGGLE FOR THE LIFE BOATS.
Appalling Scene Aboard the Steamer Norge as
She Went Down After Crashing Into Rock
290 Miles From the Scottish Coast-The
Captain Unable to Preserve Discipline Among
the Crew.

l
known to have been saved. One of
the children died in lifeboat which
brought others to safety. For the
missing 64o persons small hopes are
entertained.
The enormous death roll which was
feared with the first news of the
wreck has been decreased by Io2, that
number of survivors, after many pri-
vations, having landed at Stornoway
yesterday.
The horror of the wreck itself
| grow with each survivors, account.
Captain Gundel's statement, which
reads like an affidavit from the dead,
| for he went down with his ship, main
tains that the Norge struck on a
sunken rock IS miles south of Rockall
| The Io2 survivors spent the night
at Stornoway, many of them in the
hospital.
The majority of the 26 who were
landed at Grimsby have arrived at
| Liverpool, from where they will sail
on the Cunard Line steamer Saxonia,
for Boston.
| Vessels are searching in the vicinity
| of Rockall for any more survivors.
The chief hope lies in Captain Grun-
del's statement that seven boatloads
got safely away.
| No TRAGEDY of the sea has mad more
appalling consequences and none has
occurred in shorter time. The pas
sengers were suddenly aroused from
their sleep, terrified by the contact of
the bow of the ship with the solid
granite, followed by grinding, resp
ing souud. as if the hull was being
| sheered over huge rocks. Then silence
as the changing bells brought the
engines to stop.
Those of the passengers who were
standing at the time the steamer
| struck the rock were thrown against
the bu1kheads or on the decks and
had not recovered their feet when a
stentorian voice gave the terrifying
| order:
"All hands on deck! Hurry or
| you may sink!'
Life Preservers Useless.
Immediately there was rush for
| the narrow companionways, and men,
| women and children pushed and
struggled and made every other eff
| fort to reach the deck, where the
! boats swung from the davits. Many
persons, retaining their presence of
mind, seized life preservers, only to
| find in some instances that the strings
were rotten and they could not be
| quickly put around their bodies.
| Those who reached the deck saw the
nose of the Norge pinned directly
| against the rock
1t remained there only few
minutes, for Captain Grundell, COM
manding, who had Immediately gone
| to the bridge, gave the order to the
engine-room to reverse the engines.
Some of the engineer force had rela-
tives among the passengers, and after
seeing them safely to the boats they
heroically returned to their stations
| below.
| Slowly the ship backed off, and as
| she gained way it was found that
water was pouring into her hold. This
announcement, called out in Scandina-
Wan and presarging death, added to
| the supreme fright and agony. The
passengers who were piled in tine
boats were the fortunate ones to es-
cape, while the unfortunates, who saw
| death near, clustered in the vicinity,
seething. struggling masses, some on
their knees. praying, surrounded by
| children, others supplicating aid from
anyone and shrieking for permission
to enter the boats, elbowing, fighting
their way to the places from which
the boats were being lowered.
Boats Smashed.
The sound of grinding ceased, and
the bow of the Norge waved as the
steamer turned to deep water. The
sea rushed hungrily into the huge
rents made by the rock in the iron
hull. Swiftly the vessel began to
sink by the bows. Without waiting
for others, without paying attention
to their proper manning, the occu-
| pants began to lower the boats. The
starboard lifeboat began slowly to
| fall, when, to the horror of those on
board, the stern tackle failed, while
| the bow tackle ran free. Som
the boat was almost perpendicular.
Those who were in it chung des-
perately to the sides and seats until
| a great wave came towering along
and struck the boat, smashing it
against the sides of the ship. The
occupants of the boat who were not
killed by the impact were thrown into
| the water. The crew and passengers
on deck had no time to spare to assist
the few who had chance to escape
but lost it.. Undeterred by the ex-
perience of the first boat, a second,
loaded principally with women and
children, was lowered. This time the
tackle ran smoothly. but the hopes
of escape of the passengers on board
were blasted. The moment it
touched the water waves picked up
the small craft as if it had been a
feather and dashed it against the sides
of the ship, in spite of frantic efforts
of the passengers to fend it off. The
crash was heard on deck. Then the
| sea swallowed more victims, and
pieces of the wreckage slowly drifted
| towards the rock.
Trade In Japan Depressed.
SEATTLE Wash (Soecial1 A de-