The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1909-01-25

co HIS JoU, SeuuIHS CNe messages CHa' brought aid. The water poured in the great rent in the Republics side but the fremen stuck to their posts and prevented an explosion. They did not leave the hold until the water was uI to their waists. In half an hour the other craft, summoned by the distress signals of the Republic came picking her way through the fog. Captain Sealby of the disabled steamer had his boats lowered and on the arrival of the Florida all passengers were transferred One of the badly injured is Eugene
 Lynch whose wife was killed. One of his legs was broken in three places and he was otherwise injured. It is feared he cannot survive. He is still on the Florida.
 '"The transfer of the passengers from both boats to the Baltic began at s o'clock Saturday night while the searchlight of the ship illuminated the scene. Several passengers fell into the sea but were promptly rescued"
 H. J. Hoaver, of Spokane, Wash, was the first passenger to tell the story of the wreck. He said: They tell you there was no panic but there was a pretty good scare just the same. Near ly everybody was asleep when the crash came. The shock was so ter rife that we were all flung from our berths. Nearly all ran on the decks cS. how cool the officers were we got back our nerves.
 Captain Sealby made a speech which had a reassuring effect. But at the same time when you are adrift in the open sea with a hole in the hull, lights out and in a thick fog, you don't feel exactly happy. We finally seemed to know that anybody had been killed or injured It was given out later. In a short time the Florida came back and we were transferred. The sea was smooth then and if was an easy job compared to that Sunday night when we were re-transferred to the Baltic.
 "A big portion of us seemed to still be in a daze.@ Pm told that on the Florida there was more fright than our ship. The Italian immigrants, fresh from the earthquake horrors knelt on the decks barefooted and half clad; praying aloud.
 They were pretty well quieted, how ever, when the Florida pulled back alongside of us and they did all in their power to help us as we climbed aboard their ship. My wife and were starting on a 105,000 mile auto- mobile tour of Europe, Asia and Af- rica and we are not going to let this accident change our plans to any ex- IC11Ls WS VIII SO OIL IIlC lGAC SI1ip as soon as we can replace our baggage. Like everybody else, we lost every thing except few personal belong ings''
 James B. Connolly, the author of many sea tales and a passenger on the Republic, gives the following descrip- tion of the collision:
 ''The bow of the Florida struck the Republic aft of the midship section and kept on grinding toward the stern. When she cleared, five staterooms on the saloon deck of the Republic and two on the deck below had been ripped open. The rooms on the lower deck, which were against the ships side, were torn out by the flukes of the Florida's anchor which finally was whenched off and found later in one of the staterooms.
 '"The rooms of the saloon deck were well inboard, protected by the deck, yet the bow of the Florida cut clean through and splintered everything. It was at this point that the fatalities to the passengers occurred. The plates of the Republic were started below the water line. so the engine room filled almost immediately. In few minutes the electric lights went out, threaten ing to bring on a panic.
 "The Florida, with her bow smashed flat to the forward bulkhead. looked worse than the Republic. When the first shipment to the Baltic occurred everyone was nearly exhausted and fifty collapsed in faint on the deck. Several fell into the sea between the ships, but were rescued"
 Woods Hole. Mass. Jan. 25-The
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