Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1906-11-23
STEAMER SINKS
WITH fl PEOPLE
DISASTER FOLLOWS SLIGHT COL
LISBON IN SMOOTH AND CLEAR
WEATHER NEAR SEATTLE.
ERROR OF WHEELMAN.
Said to Have Sent the Passenger Boat
Into a Freighter, Which Dodges
in Vain.

steamer DIX, capt. +. Lennon, uouuu
from Seattle to Port Blakeley with pas
sengers, sank two miles north of Alkl
Point shortly after Z o'clock last night,
after having collided with the steamship
Jeanne, Capt. P. II. Mason, of the Alas
ka Coast company.
Forty-one passengers and members OF
the crew of the Dix are missing and
thirty-nine were saved. The Dix is
total wreck. The Jeanne was not injured
in the least and no member OF her crew
was lost The master of the Dix was
saved
No Trouble on the Sound.
The collision occurred while the sound
was almost as smooth as a mill pond
and after the boats had been steaming
within sight of each other for quarter
of an hour. The Jeanne was backing
when she collided with the Dix and the
impact was very slight. The Dix was
struck abaft of amidships the star
board side. She listed heavily to port
for a brief period, righted herself then
sank stern first. There was hardly time
to launch life RATS or boats before she
was almost entirely submerged.
Passengers jumped from the decks into
the water; women screamed and officers
and men called orders that could hardly
be heard above the din. The passen-
gers from the Dix who could swim made
their way to the sides of the Jeanne and
were dragged aboard.
The Jeanne was not moved until after
all who had reached her had been hauled
aboard Then she cruised about, pick
ing I'D several who had managed to stay
above water. 1t was after 10 o'clock be-
fore the Jeanne left the scene of the
catastrophe and steamed to the Virginia
street dock, Seattle, With her thirty nine
survivors.
No Passengers on Jeanne.
The jeanne, of the Alaska Coast com
pany, had finished unloading at the
Great Northern docks at Smiths cove
and had started for Tacoma shortly be-
fore Z o'clock, just about the same time
the Dix left the flyer dock for Port
Blakeley. There were no passengers on
the Jeanne. The Dix was making the
last trip of the night and was well filled
with passengers.
When within about two miles north of
Alki point the two steamers were with
in a short distance of each other, steam
ing along converging lines. The captain
Of the Jeanne says he signaled for the
Dix to pass him and his whistle was
speaking distance Of the Jeanne and to
the port of her. Suddenly Mate Denni-
son, who was at the wheel of the Dix,
put her hard over to starboard as II to
cross in front of the other vessel.
Tried to Avoid Disaster.
Can't. Mason of the Jeanne, who was
on the bridge, saw that an accident was
imminent and called out a warning to
the man at the wheel of the Dix. Capt.
Mason gave the signal to reverse his
engines and his vessel was slowly back
ing away when the two came together.
There was but slight crash, the force
of the collision from the Dix coming
against the side of the larger vessel.
and not that of the heavier craft against
the smaller For a minute all was still,
then a panic followed.
When the Dix started to sink, stern
first, passengers and members of the
crew ieaped into the sound. Some of
the passengers huddled together in
groups on the deck while others knelt in
prayer.
their lives, stayed with the sinking
steamer and were drowned as in trap.
Capt. Mason Tells Story.
81 got away from Smiths cove lit
tie before Z o'clock and laid course for
| Tacoma" said Capt. Mason. Il had no
passengers aboard. saw the DIX head
ed for Port Blakeley and signalled to
her. The mate was at the wheel. Sud-
denly the Dix came up astern of me to
port. AS soon as l saw the Dix was so
close. I called to the man in her pilot
house to know what he was doing. He
put his wheel over to starboard directly
across my bows.
81 signaled to the engine room of my
vessel to back at full speed, but we
could not get out of the way in time.
The Jeanne was backing little when
we struck. l guess it was pretty we'll
abaft of amidships and the shock was
not enough to have injured an ordinary
10 Sta
board, righed herself and then sank
stern first
Capt. Lennon in Terror.
Cant. p. Lennon, master of the Dix,
told the story of the collision after ar
irving at Seattle. He was shaking with
the cold, his eyes still dilated with the
horror Of his experience.
II don't know how it happened" he
said. Charles Dennison, mate of the
boat, was at the wheel. We were just
about two miles due north of Alki point
and running at the usual speed There
was nothing to hinder US. It was fine
clear night, and the water was like a
mill pond. | had seen the lights of a
steamer on our starboard quarter some
time before but had not paid any at
tention to them. l went below to collect
the fares. The boat was crowded. There
was seventy passengers on board and it
was quite a task to get all f fares. |
have been on the run for the past thir-
teen years and know almost everybody
abroad.
"When l was in the ladies' cabin l
heard the bell signal to stop. In mo-
ment l thought something must be
wrong and rushed forward to see what
was up. Just as l got on deck on the
starboard side l saw the bow of a yes
sci loom up. Almost instantly she struck
us. The jib-boom crashed through us just
Of Of
over like top.
'She careened like a flash on her port
bow and lay there minute or two. with
water rushing in and all over. | was
threwn against the deckhouse. For an
instant the wind was knocked out Of me
and / was almost paralyzed. The steam
er lay for almost two minutes on her
port beam. This was exactly at 7:24
o'clock, as my watch stopped then.
In a moment / recovered my breath
and sprang upon the house. Just then
the steamer heeled back to starboard.
Hx-o ~ ofaIs o1.in