The Rice belt journal. (Welsh, Calcasieu Parish, La.) 1900-19??, 1915-05-21
When Ship Received Death Blow
From Torpedo Passengers Find
Escape Cut Off By Listing
of Monster Ship
DISASTER HOLDS attention OF THE WORLD
The Great Task Now Is To Identify the Bodies Of the
Dead, Which Have Been Recovered. Many
Notabes Among the LOst---Americans
Among Long List Of Dead.

The latest estimate Of lives lost as
a result of the torpedoing Of the Gu
Inard liner Lusitania by a German sub
marine off the Irish coast is close to
1900. It is believed that almost all if
not ALL the survivors have been
brought ashore, and there is little
hope Of recovering any other Das5en-
gers alive.
Among the well known Americans
who are believed to have persisted are
Alfred Gwynn Vanderbilt Charles
Klein, the playwright; Justin M. For
man and Ebert Hubbard and his wife.
The body Of Charles Frohman OF
New York, the theatrical producer,
has already been recovered and
brought ashore at Queenstown. The
hospitals of Queenstown are filled
with the injured among the survivors,
Judging from the recitals OF sur,
vivors, there was comparatively little
panic on board the Lusitania when she
went down. Nor is there anything to
show that the rule Of the sea faVOring
women and children in the work OF
rescue was violated. Many OF the
liners lifeboats were rendered useless
by the fact that the ship listed SO
sh?rply that they could not be used
Many Of the passengers did not be,
Iieve the Lusitania would sink as
quickly as she did. Consequently they
did not join in the rush for the life
boats, but evidently preferred to trust
in their belief that the Watertight
compartments Of the vessel would
keep her afloat until such time as
help came out from the Irish shore,
less than ten miles away, 1t is re,
lated that some Of the passengers even
disdained to put on lifebelts when
these were handed to them
It is estimated that there we're about
100 Americans on board the Cunard
liner. So far as could be ascertained
at this time fewer than seventy Amer.
leans are saved.
Identifying the Dead.
n London-"The only problem now is
to identity the nameIess dead"
Thus Superintendent Dodd of the
Cunard Company dashed any linger-
ing hope that there might be further
survivors Of the Lusitania.
So far as can be ascertained about
700 persons escaped when the Lusi-
tania took her fatal plunge after be,
ing struck by German toTpedoes, but
of these forty-five since have died
from exposure or from injuries. The
death roll as estimated in London
totals well up to 1900.
Lord Mersey Is to conduct an in,
quiry into the sinking Of the vessel
and until it begins official opinion as
to how the Lusitania came to be
caught and why SO many lives were
lost will remain a secret,
The general unofficial opinion is
that several German submarines were
assigned to the task OF attacking the
Cunard liner and that they maneu
vered her into a position where she
could not escape.
Course Altered,
Passengers say that for some time
before the first torpedo was fired the
Lusitania had altered her course, and
they ascribe this to the fact that one
of the German submarines had shown
herself, sending the big liner in the
direction where other underwater
craft were waiting 70 strike with their
deadly torpedoes.
These submarines, naval experts
believe, are of the latest type, of prob,
ably 1,4OO tons, and much more pow.
erful than any possessed by other
navjes.
Beyond anger at the Germans, the
catastrophe has had no effect on the
British people. Steamers are arriving
and departing as usual.
The heavy loss of life on the Lusi
tania was due, in the belief of res
cued passengers, to the fact that some
officers, at least, treasured them after
the6irst torpedo struck home that the
Lusitania would remain afloat.
Work Is Hindered.
Preparations, it is true, were made
to bunch the boats, but before this