Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-01-26


When we left it only the ugly cash in
From that abode we journeyed to howell
for the poor. Women squatted on hatch
es. sat on potato bags or leaned their
tired bodies against: the rails. The air
was filled with the odor of maccaroni,
lust of the sort that is doed out to the
Italian steerage travellers. but I'm not
the one to say that it did not taste good
We were hungry and we enjoyed it.
We expected that the Baltic or La
Lorraine would reach us by , P. NJ. We
waited patiently. That hour came. but no
Baltic. We became anxious. Three
O clock and no Baltic, and we were more
anxious. Four o'clock and no rescuer in
sight, and we were a worried lot of peo-
pie Five O'Clock found us bordering
close to despair. though l am proud to
say we were not the people to say it,
But o'clock was to tell a different
story. At a quarter to the hour, far off
la light shot up into the heavens. Hun
|dreds of us saw it at the same time. We
had been on the watch for it, for we had
learned much of the life of the sea the
half day preceding and we knew nearly
al. of us what the light meant. 1t was a
rocket from the Baltic. We jumped to our
II ct with one common impulse and a hur-
all went up
Among those aboard the Baltic was
Henry Savage Lander. famous for his
travels in countries the world over.
In my travels through two hemlS-
pheres,' he said, never have l seen dis
played spirit of womanhood that could
he better in such an extreme than was
that of the women of the Republic. When
we of the Baltic met them they were be-
ling brought to our vessel in a tossing sea
in small boats, after nearly a score OF
hours spent on the crowded Italian emf
grant vessel to which they had been
taken from another wreck. They had
seen many of them the mangled bodies
Of women who had been their fellow pas
sengers. Yet nowhere was there a whim-
per and lney actually came aboard with
smiling faces"
Dr. NJ T. Waldstein of South Orange,
n j., who was travelling with Mrs. VALID
stein, presented one of the figures which
ticked the risibilities of his fellow un-
fortunates despite their troubles and
amused the doctor himself. When it
came time to leave the Republic, he found
i4lilSell tlii III pdJdIildS dIu lul oNCi
coat with tan shoe on one foot and a
black one on the other. He was thus at
tired on arrival in port today
Dr.. Waldstein makes Pursur Barker
and Second Steward Spencer both of the
Republic. the heroes of the first stage of
the transfer Of the persons on the Re
public and those on the Florida from the
Florida to the Republic
Barker stood on one side at the head of
the ladder that led down to the small
boats, and Spencer stood at the other
They proved towers of strength. They
had little trouble with the men pasSen-
gers. but they found it necessary on sew
eral occasions to use roughly the Port
uguese and Italians. One Italian drew a
knife on Spencer. Spencer was not the
man, however, to let that interfere with
his sense of duty, and, grasping the hand
that held the knife with his left hand he
gave the fellow a singing blow with his
right, maneuver that brought eXcla-
nations of admiration from several OF US.
though to tell you the truth we were so
crushed that it wasn't an easy job to get
expressions of any kind out of ones body.
Our backs felt broken
Mrs. Katherine Van Loo of Duluth,
who was aboard the Republic, SAID Of
scenes Immediately after the colnson:
AT $40 on Saturday morning l was
awakened by what seemed to be a dull
thund. l thought the engine shaft had
broken and l lay in my berth for Is
minutes. until | heard persons begin
ming to move.
Il stepped out into the corridor, and
the stewardess was standing there.
She smiled and said that the captain
had ordered everyone to come up on
dack. | slipped on "a long overcoat and
went at once to the deck The cap
tain was on the bridge and was ad-
dressing US from time to time giving
directions and also cheering words He
finally told US that the Baltic had an
swered his wireless signals and was
making for us; she would be UP in a
short time, he said. In the meantime
he wanted us to leave the ship The
| passengers did what they were told
| and the officers moved about, deftly
doing and saying exactly the right
things. While we We're waiting to get
into the boats the stewardess passed
hot coffee among us and in all the sit
the sort that l could possibly have
conceived Of
Reginald Boardman, young Lon
| doner, who was a passenger on the
Baltic, said:
"A little boat, being tossed pretty
hard, came towards us way aft of
| amidships. The men rowing seemed
incapable of preventing the little craft
with it's burden of lives from being
dashed under the foot of the ladder
which had been lowered An officer on
the Baltic on the promenade deck, high
above the water, leaped over the rail
and let himself down a rope like greas-
ed lightning, with a sailor sliding right
after him.
THE officer let himself into the boat
and quickly commanded the Italians