The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1912-04-19

The great hulk broke in two, with q
series Of explosions the after part sank
into the deep. and a moment later the
forward part also disappeared. Men
sprang from the decks into the water
as the end came. Many were drawn
down by the swirling waters after the
ship; Others, doomed to perhaps more
terrible fate, swan about with the
wreckage unJil frozen to death.
And then, with the men singing to
hide from the women and children the
terrible cries of these in the water be-
hind, the life boats rollei away until
morning brought the Carpathia,
THRILLING RESCUE OF 80 ON RAFT.
Of those on the ship when the final
plunge was taken 80 were saved
Standing knee deep in the icy water,
with their fimsy raft already terribly
overweighted, the survivors saw the
unfortunate struggling in the water
around them, heard their cries for aid,
were even compelled to warn them
away from their own raft into the jaws
of an awful death, and they waited,
with the life belted bodies of tie dead
about them, for the coming of relief.
Practically all the women and child
rem were saved; of the men only small
percentage, and among the lost are in
cluded long list of Americas best
known figures.
Col. Archibald Oracle, u. s. A., the
last man saved, went down with the
vessel but was picked up. He was met
by his daughter, who had arrived
from Washington, and his son in-law,
Paul II. Fabricus. Col. Oracle told q
remarkable story of personal hardship
and denied emphatically the reports
that there had been any panic on board
He praised in the highest terms the be-
havior of both passengers and crew
and paid high tribute to the horoisn
of the women passengers.
Col. Oracle told of how he wasdriver
to the topmost deck when the shiI
settled, and was the sole survivor aftel
the waye that swept her just before hel
final plunge had passed.
81 jumped with the wave," said he
''Just as l often had jumped with tn,
breakers at the seashore. By great
good fortune, I managed to grasp tn,
brass railing on the deck above, and
hung on by might and main. Wher
the ship plunged down l was forced t.
let go. and I was swirled around ant
around for what seemed to be an inter
minable time. Eventually came t.
the surface to find the sea a mass o
tangled wreckage.
Luckily, was unhurt, and castin
about, managed to seize q woodel
grating, floating nearby. When ha
recovered my breath / discovered
larger canvas and cork life raft whicl
had ioated up A man, whose nam
l did not learn, was struggling towar,
it from some wreckage to which h
had clung. cast off and helped hin
to get into the raft and then began tn
work of rescuing those who had jumpe'
into the sea and were Aoundering i
the water.
Before retired" said Col Oracle
"T had a long chat with Charles N
Hays, president Of the Grand Trun
railroad. One of the last things Nj
Hays said was this: The White Sta
the Cunard and the Hamburg Amer
can lines are devotipg their attehtio
and ingenuity in vieiDg with the oths
to attain the supremacy in luxurior
ships and in making speed records. tt
time will come when this will
checked by some appalling disaster
} Poor fellow, few hours later he ws
, dead
Col Oracle said that, despite tn
: warnings of icebergs, no slowing dow
of speed was ordered by the comman,
er Of the Titanic. There were otht
warnings, too, he said. I'm the
hours run ending the 14th," he sal
"the ships run was 546 miles, and "
were told that the next "a hours won
see even q better record posted. \
diminution Of speed was indicated
the run and the engines kept up the
steady running. When Sunday eve