The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1914-06-04
Wreck PROBE To
Be WARM FIGHT
Captains Accuse Each Other For
81. Lawrence Disaster
INQUIRY STARTS next WEEK

son Are Lining Up and Admiralty
Court Will Witness Bitter Struggle.
Anderson Says kendalPs Story Is
Untrue and Mrs. Anderson, Who
Was on storstad, Defends Husband.
Montreal, June 2.-The bitterest
fight in the history Of admiralty courts
IS likely to spring from the investiga-
lion Of the st. Lawrence disaster.
Already marine interests, navi-
gators and officials are at issue, one
side chargiug that Captain II. G. Ken
dali OF the Empress of ireland was to
blame, the other accusing Captain
Thomas Anderson OF the Storstad.
1t was officially announced that the
government investigation would be
held here beginning Tuesday, June 8.
The investigation viii be conducted
by board composed of two judges of
the Canadian admiralty, to be appoint,
ed by the dominion government, and
one representative of the British
admiralty, appointed by the imperial
government.
Each commander almost unqualified,
ly places the responsibility upon the
shoulders of the other, Captain Ken.
dali maintaining that his ship was
practically mOtionleso and that the
Storstad Numbered into the Empress
despite repeated warnings.
Coptaip Randall i !,
story by his officers and to a large ex.
tent by the survivors.
Captain Anderson declares that the
Empress was moving at "a good
speed and that her rapid headway
prevented the Storstad from plugging
the hole.
Captain Anderson seemed to be in.
dignant over an official statement pur.
porting TO eXonerate Captain Kendall.
Captain Kendall is a sailor and |
don't want to say anything about him."
said the StOrstad's commander. "The
facts are these:
When Captain Kendall shouted
through the megaphone as the ships
were drawing near each other |
shouted back, but | did not have a
megaphone. l shouted as loud as
could. Our man on the lookout heard
me call. And did not go full ahead
l kept my hand on the telegraph to
the engine room and the very moment
we touched the other ship rang for
full speed ahead. But the Empress
was going at good speed ahead and it
was impossible for me to keep our
boat in the hole. She was going fast.
She disappeared from this ship and
for long time | kept blowing my
whistle, but heard nothing till the
cries"
In reply to statements made by sur
vivors of the Empress that most Of
them were saved by the Empress life
boats Captain Anderson said:
81 haven't got any words to talk
about that. l don't know what to saw.
1t is so wrong that there's no use to
reply. 1t is beyond anything, beyond
all reason. Some people have said
strange things. They said l was
smiling when | came in here. If /
was smiling then why should | be cry
ing now"
Captain Lindsay, wreck commits
sioner of the Dominion of Canada, be-
gan preliminary inquiry which will
probe into causes of the horror pre-.
liminary to a full investigation by
royal commission. .
Captain Kendall of the lost liner. his
crew and Captain Thomas Anderson
of the 0torstad, with his crew and Of
fcers, also may tell their sworn
stories. II is barely possible that the
two captains, however, will not give
their testimony until later.
Mrs. Anderson, wife of the Stor.
stad's captain, gave all of her clothing
to survivors, keeping only a blue cot.
ton dress which she wore when the
disaster occurred
She asserted that three officers Of
the Empress of ireland refused to
leave the Storstad after being rescued
TO help save those ahoat in the water.
After the crash" she said. 81 ran
upon the bridge where Captain Andsr.
son was. Everything was dark and
quiet. There was no excitement
among the crew and | was cool. I
said to my husband. Are we going to
sink? and he said, L think So
81 couldn't cry, although | felt like
1t. | said to myself. My place is here,
| will die by my husband
Captain Anderson told me he was
trying to keep the Storstad in the
hole and that II the liner had not been
speeding they would have stopped to.
gether for time at least.
Again | asked him if we were going
down and he answered, 4 can't tell
yet He said he thought the Empress
was all right.
81 think it was five minutes later
that l heard screams and cries and
shouted to my husband: oh, they are
calling At first it seemed as if the
cries We're coming from shore. The
captain gave orders to go In that di-
rection and proceed very slowly.
Everywhere around me now | could
hear screams. My husband gave
orders to send out all the lifeboats
and that could not have been ten
minutes after the vessels had collided.
81 gave all | had to the Dassengers