The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1915-07-29
States Attorney Says
Evidence Fully War
rants Them.
CHARGE in DOUBT
Not Yet Decided Whether i.
Will be Criminal Careless
ness or Manslaughter.

ChicagO.-The latest figures
on the dead and missing in the
Eastland disaster are as follows:
identified dead, S26; unidcnti-
fled dead, 5; Western Electric
| company's revised list of miss
ing, 531; Total, 1852.
Chicago.-At last six indictments
for responsibility for the Eastland
disaster will be returned by the state
grand jury late today, according to
an announcement by States AttOr-
ncy Hoyne. 1t will not be decided
until late today whether to ask for
indictments on charges of criminal
carelessncss or OF manslaughter.
'"Chere is plenty evidence for either
| charge" said HOyne.
The coroner's inquest, IL is expect
ed, will be completed late this after
noon, and Immediately thereafter the
state grand jury will go into session.
The Eastland was taken i'll charge
today by federal officials, replacing
the city policement. The wrecking
boat favorite, said to be one of the
Largest and best equipped of it's kind
in the world, began the task of rails
ling the half-submerged craft. 1t will
take ten days to raise the boat, ac-
cording to those in charge. While
this is going on. forty divers will
search the river bottom for a radius
of two books from the point where
the boat capsized
| The burial of about seven hundred
Victims of the diaster took place to-
day, with Chicago observing a day
! of public mourning under procla-
nation by Mayor Thompson.
Tried to Fill Ballast Tanks.
+, What happened in the engine room
of the Eastand in the seventeen min
utes just before the steamer over
/, turned, was told today at the coro-
ner's inquest. Fred S. Snow. assist
ant engineer, said that he and chief
Engineer j. Nj. Erickson were busy
trying to trim the ship and restore
| il to an even keel by pumping water
into water ballast tanks on the star
board, or dock, side. and at the same
time trying to empty the tanks on
the river side.
There were five water ballast
tanks on each side of the Eastland,"
testified Snow. THAT morning, when
the boat was loaded, we started to
| fill tanks two and three OH the dock
side to empty the tanks two and
three on the river side"
| "Why did you work only on tanks
1.-TWO and three, instead of on alp"
asked Assistant States Attorney Sui
livan
'"There were two reasons" replied
Snow. "The intake pipe would not
fill all at once and tanks two and
three were supposed to respond more
|quickly than the others.
1.-The vessel first listed to the dock
side and we let the water on the
river side Then when the loading
became heavier she listed to the river
side and we began TO fill the dock
side tanks ard empty the port or
river side tanks"
Redfield Defends Inspection.
| Chicago While the coroner's iu-
ry was hearing testimony upon the
sinking of the Eastland last Saturday
Secretary of Commerce Redlield in
spected the boat and watched divers
recover three more bodies.
| He made a statement to the effect
that government supervision had not
been lax and that the Eastland could
have carried more passengers than
it had on when the ship rolled over.
The harbor master, Mr.. Weckler
said that he had arrived at the pier
twenty minutes before the start. He
said that he called to Captain Peder-
son that the ballasting was unsatis-
factory and that he would not open
the Clark street bridge until the boat
was righted. "rhe vessel seemed
unable to take water into the bal
last tanks fast enough" he said.
81 don't think the iIastland should
have been allowed to carry more
than 1920 passengers because it did
not have the stability to carry a
larger load. After the wreck ] heard
Captain Peterson say that he had
tried to ship water for II minutes
previously but had not been able TO
do SO fast enough"
Y 81 never saw the Eastland loaded
so heavily as it was Saturday morn
ing" said Mr.. Weckler," and ] have
seen her depart many times. The
boat first listed about seven degrees,
then came back slightly and again
started over and kept on going. A
boat that is difficult to handle under
all circumstances is known as a
cranky boat and have noticed the
Eastland to be cranky constantly.
II do not think that the Eastland
should have been allowed to carry
more than 1900 passengers, because
it did not have enough draft and
stability to carry larger load. Only
last Tuesday l told Captain Pedersen
that his boat needed trimming, as II
was constantly travelling on its ears
He said that the twin crews. of tlle