The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-01-26
Survivors of Republic Wreck Tell of Their Experiences
 In Ocean Tragedy
PASSENGERS TAKEN OFF
 WITH GREAT RAPIDITY
Transfer Is Made All Right But the Quarters on the Florida Did Not Suit the People from
 the Republic.

New York, January 25.-Fascnating word pictures of the varied scenes of the tragic drama enacted on the high seas were drawn by many passengers, from their various points of view. Those who were in the heart of the things im- mediately after the day-break crash, have told their experiences and feelings and depicted the braveries, anxleties, out breaks of weakness and overruling calm ness which obtained until help came through the fog. Those on assisting steamers and relief boats have told their own observations. from the first wireless call to the taking aboard of the last of the twice transferred passengers, and all together the story of the day and nights has been woven into completeness
 Two women who occupied stateroom second from the one where Mrs. Lynch was killed, and a woman who occupied the one between Mrs. Lynch's and the other which was crushed, graphically set forth their experiences.
 The former, Mrs. J. s. Crandell, and Miss Elizabeth Potter of Chicago. were among the first to reach the deck. Mrs. Crandell said in telling her experience:
 "Only one stateroom separated ours from the one iIf which Mrs. Lynch met death. l heard agonizing screams. Every light weut out. From the corridor we saw the three rooms smashed in, so very close to ours. a huge anchor In one. Through the mass of wreckage two stew ards were already lifting a woman who i i. very evident from the start that the pas sengers were in the hands of a little army of men trained to care for them in the best manner possible in face of such an emergency, and 1t was this knowledge that kept the feeling of fear from our hearts. At time was there panic"
 Miss Potter's Experiences.
 Miss Potter, Mrs. Crandell's stateroom mate, made her way four times from the deck to their stateroom and was able to get her jewelry and that of Mrs. Gran dell.
 Before the order for transfer of pas sengers to the Florida came said Miss Potter, nearly all the passengers were crowded well forward on the Republic. Eagerly they watched Captain Sealby on the bridge.
  toward with his hand uplifted as a signal for our attention, which needless to say was quickly given. Then he said: The passengers will be transferred to the steamship Florida He told us wo- men and children would be the first pas- sengers. All in all, the conduct of the women was excellent. There was no jos~- ling and no exhibition of frenzy. It is fortunate that right at the start there uIa hox h f,xrf fsrla nf the men that was otherwise. He was not an old man either, but he surely did seem the most scared person Of aIi. lie clam bered into the first boat lowered. There was a yell of derision from the passen- gers. The sailors who were to row the life boat and the officer in command of them plainly showed their contempt for the fellow. An order was shouted to put him out of the boat. He came back upon the high deck of the Republic in very ignominious fashion, being made to haul his way up ladder, the passen- gers jeering all the while he was mak- ing the journey.
 Trips of Lifeboat.
 ''The lifeboats made the trips in al- most uniform procession. There was so much to admire In the proceedings that our fears were all the more dspelled
 We made our way to the deck of the emigrant vessel up a ladder and found ourselves on very different sort of steamship than that from which we had 1ourneyed We had left what to the min ute of the accident had been truly a float ing palace. When we left 1t only the ugly gash in its side, detracted from It's grandeur. From that abode we journeyed to a hovel for the poor. Women squatted on hatches, sat on potato bags or leaned their tired bodies against the rails The air was filed with the odor of macaroni. Macaroni proved the largest portion of our fare during the long wait on the Italian boat for the second rescue"