The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1912-04-25
GALLANT MAJ. BUTT
He Was One of the rlany Heroes
Who Went Down With the
Inflated Titanic.
Mrs. II. B. Harris Tells a Washington
Star Reporter of His Cool
ness and HeroiSm.

One OK the DraVeSt OF the brave
men who went down to death in the
Inflated Titanic was Major Archibald
Butt, President Taft's military aide.
He labored increasingly to help
women and children to get away from
the doomed ship and kept cowardly
men from filing the boats, and then
met his fate like true American
soldier. Mrs. 81. B. Harris of WASH
ington, one of the survivors, in an
interview with a Washington Star re-
porter, tells of Major Butts GOODNESS
and heroism:
''Archie Butt was a major to the
last. God never made a finer noble
man than he. The sight of that man,
calm, gentle and yet firm as a rock,
will never leave me. The American
army is honored by him and the way
he showed some of the other men how
to behave when women and children
we're suffering that awful, mental fear
that came when we had to be huddled
in those boats. Major Butt was near
me and I know very nearly every
thing he did.
''When the order came to take to
the boats he became as one in su-
preme command. You would have
thought he was at a White House re-
ception, SO cool and calm was he.
When the time came he was man to
be feared. In one of the earlier
boats fifty women, it seemed, we're
about to be lowered when man, sud-
denly panic-stricken, ran to the stern
of it.
"Maior Butt shot one arm out,
caught him by the neck and jerked
him backward like pillow. His head
cracked against rail and he was
stunned.
g Sorry said Major Butt; 'Wo-
men will be attended to first or I'll
break every damned bone in your
body
"The boats we're lowered away one
by one and as I stood by my husband
he said to me, Thank God for Archie
Butt Perhaps Major Butt heard it
for he turned his face toward US for a
second. just at that time a young
man was arguing to get into life
boat and Major Butt had hold of the
lad by the arm, like a big brother
and appeared to be telling him to
keep his head.
''How inspiring he was. I stayed
until the last and know what a man
Archie Butt was. They put me in a
collapsible boat. I was one of three
women from the first cabin in the
thing. The rest were Storage people.
'Major Butt helped those poor,
frightened Storage people so wonder
fully. tenderly and yet with such cool
and manly firmness. he was a
soldier to the last. he was one OF
Gods greatest noblemen, and I think
I can say he was an example OF
bravery even to the officers of the
ship. He gave up his life to save
Others"
Here is Major Butts military
record as disclosed by the general
staff and his superior officers:
"a military student at the Uni
7ersity of the South. Sewanee, Tenn.
an author of novels, magazine articles
and abstract army problems; a
quartermaster who earned the highest
Communications from VIM. 81. Taft,
who as governor of the Philippines,
commended him for appointment in
the regular army: an exceptionally
tactful and diplomatic aide-de-camp
and generally efficient officer, accord
ing to the testimony of Theodore
Roosevelt; commendable and loyal
worker in the Philippines, according
to Lieutenant General Bates, and one
of the best volunteer, captains and
quartermasters ever seen, according
to Major General Arthur Macarthur. u
The Great Ocean Disaster.
The exact number of lives lost by
the fOunderino Of tho oraat Titanic off