New-York tribune., 1908-06-24
TAMMANY FOR JOHNSON THREE DIE LIN HOLD
ALL ,OVERCOME BY GAS.
Had Just Raised the II. M. Whitney,
Sunk IN He'll Gate.

Death followed triumphant achievement with
terrible swiftness for three men yesterday. when
they were slnothered in the hold of the steam
ship H NJ. Whitney of the Metropolitan OUTSIDE
line to Boston. which they had helped to raise
only few hours before after a month of hard
work in the raging currents of He'll Gate
One diver, went down into the hold to see
If a patch he had put on the wrecked bottom
from the outside was holding well. He died, 1t
is supposed, the poisonous gases rose ABOUT
him. ard two more, going after him TO see why
he did not return. met the same fate
It was not until three men lay dead in the
fetid hold. suffocated by the gases that the
cargo of hides beer and perhaps half a hum
dred other things gave off, that glimmering of
reason seemed to come to those in charge OF
the work Then the needless sacrifice of more
lives was prevented. Some one took charge, and
men equipped with divers helmets rescued two
more men who had gone down for their COM
rades and brought up the bodies of the dead.
Augustus Bjorklund was the diver who
brought about the fatal ending of the days
work No one knows just why he went down
into the hold, warned he had been to be-
ware of the poisonous gases that always accu-
mulate when a vessel has lain long in the
water, but the officials of the Merritt-Chapman
Wrecking. Company suppose that he wanted to
see his work from inside.
Reports or WndI ndppeilSu htAl Oli tilc w IlAN
ney were vague later. While the men were
going down and dying seemed to know
anything. There panic, there was no ex-
ctement Michael Nenue, of the wrecking
crew apparently followed BjOrklund to see If
ANYTHING was wrong and died as he reached the
bottom of the hold. falling unconscious from the
ladder he descended Then Herman Faprlcus
went down, and he. too, died almost at once
John Hanson the next man TO go down.
with a ropo and some caution this time Tor II
was beginning to be realized that something was
a-liss Hanson came back alive, but uncon-
scious Captain Kiblin having realized that
disaster had come upon the ship. divers went
down and they saved Hanson's life. bringing up
the bodies of the three dead men besides.
That account of the tragedy is much as
could be cleaned with any certainty yesterday
T. uae hard enough to get aboard the Whitney
at all and no one there seemed to know mucn-
The coroners office made brief investigation
Yesterday afternoon, and the bodies were re-
moved to an undertaking establishment in West
o1+b street The police found out little more
+han the casual spectators who thronged the
pier.
The " NJ Whitney went aground in Hell
cete on Middle Four Reef just a month ago
Yesterday, and in the early morning she was
Aoated after long and hard efforts IL hdo
been hard job and those who had accom-
plished it were more than happy. The snip had
been brought down to East 1o2d street. ana
about oil the work that being done was
to keep the pumps working. The lighters with
the hinge derricks lay alongside, and when the
tragedy occurred many of the men in charge or
the work were at luncheon
None OF the men who died had orders to go
down into the hold This was dwelt on with
much emphasis by the officials of the wrecking
company Captain Kiblin, who was in charge
Of the work, was arrested and taken to the
Harlem court where Magistrate Herman re-
fused to do more than remand him to the coro-
ner Apparently no one In charge of the work
could have foreseen the accident and no one
coud be held responsible.