Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1915-07-24

Chicago. July 24.-Hundreds. per-
hans $500 persons were drowned to-
day when the steamer Eastland. crowd
ed with $500 employees Of the West
ern Electric Company capsized In the
Chicago river. Four hours after the
accident rescuers were still taking
bodies from the boat thru holes
chopped in its hull. and estimates
of the death list ran from 700 to 1.6oo.
A ii o'clock nearly 500 dead had been
found.
The crowding Of passengers to QUO
side Of the boat - supposed to have
cansed The tragedy but authorities are
lot satisfied with this explanation and
ordered the arrest Of the officers Of the
,oat ana Capt. Harry Pedersen and
Dell Fisher. nrst mate. were placed
s,nder arrest ~ FIRST Deputy Superin-
tendent OF police schuettler. and taken
20 police headquarters.
Panie Ensuss.
panic OF the worst kind struck the
passengers when the boat began to
turn over. then turned further and
then hundreds OF screaming and
struggling men, women and children
slid across the sloping decks, fought
for room on the companion ways. and
clutched 1t companions, deck chairs OF
any other object that came to hand.
Women and children by the hun,
dreds wsre caught below decks and
the scratched faces. torn clothing and
bruised bodies Of the dead bore mute
evidence Of the desperation with which
they had fought for a chance for life.
All over in Five Minutes.
The whole tragedy occupied less than
ave minutes. Members Of the crew
shouted q warning as the steamer first
tilted and Captain Petersen ordered
lower deck ports opened and all pas
senRers ashore. There was. however.
no chance for such . measure to sue
ceed.
some 1000 tickets had been dlstrib-
nted for the excursions and hve steam-
ers chartered by tho company. The
Eastland was first to receive its quota
and when its chartered capacity was
reached federal inspectors ordered that
no more be taken aboard. The boat
was docled on the south side Of the
river and when hundreds hurrying to
the boat were turned back they
streamed across the Clark street bridge
to the 9tssmsr Theodore Roosevelt
which was to take the second load.
screams of tho Eastland victims
halted this rush and the bridge was
tammed with people until police, fear-l
full that the structure would collapse.
ordered it cleared.
City Turns 20 Rescue.
nverxE Eeesource Of the city was turned
10 tie rescue work Remembering the
Iroauoiss Theater disaster. mercantile
concerns In the vicinity hurried motor
trucks = the ecene laden with blankets
to warm the living or cover the dead
Pulmotors BY the, score were sent %
the dock. physicians, police. hremen.
government life savers and nurses were
summoned and all hospitals ana
lnprgues NOTIFIED to prepare for pa
tisnts or corpses.
The steamer hoated on. its side into
midstrsam and tugs. motor boats and
other river craft swarmed about It.
Ftraznsn climbed on the hull. forced
opsnings in the steel hull and thru
these ssarchsd the cabin for possible
victimk
A !, Divers Ars Summoned.
FOR the Arst two hours attempts
wsse made TO revive every person
taken lrom the wreck. Then when the
hopeisssnaes OF resuscitating later VIC
tics became apparent divers were sum
monsd 70 explore the depths Of the
boat. Equipped with ROPES they gropsd
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