Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1915-07-29
DECKHAND TELLS
STORY OF HORROR

Chicago, July 25-Survivors # ina,
Eastland disaster tell thrilling stories
OF their experiences one survivor owes
his life to the fact that his coat caught
on nail and he was held above water
one woman managed for time 10 hold
her little daughter and son as well rs
herself above water. but with arm be-
numbed, she finally had to lot the
daughter GO
Harry Miller, u deckhand of tho Eas'
land, gave vivid picture of the dlsas.
ter His story follows:
The Eastland began to list about
80 o'clock, while crowds were SIN
pouring on her. She listed then go much
the eangplank lifted two or three feet
at the ships side They stopped the
crowd coming on and got all on board
over to the shore side Of the ship. That
riehted her. Then they let the rest Il
the crowd come aboard
Y didn't like the way she acted and
said to my mate I'm scared Of her
I'd rather be Of her this minute
Finally they were AL aboard about 7:S1
o'clock, may be II fcw minutes later. W.
got orders to cast off tho stcru lines
and we're working ~ that when sho
began slowly to list again.
MY mate and me heard them hollei-
ing on the deck around us and AT first
we thought they were shouting as usual
t. their friends on tho dock Soon We
! knew they were scared and we notcei
tho ship listing. very slowly, moro and
more. So we hollercd to th"rn t, clint
! the stairways 70 tho upper deck
/ II got afraid and went IN Tn open
gangway on tho north sldo and saw tho
water only three feet below Us. While
u was looking at IT, lust a second or
two wondering. n woman With a child
/ in her arms jumped or fell OFF the rail
into the water.
| II Jumped in after her 70 get her. In
less than a second they began dropping
| in all around me There must have
, been hundreds Of them that Jumped in
The water vas thick with them One hit
me on the shoulders and drove me under
again. I vas excited and lost sight OF
the woman and child I went after. for
got them and swan with the current out
of the crowd Some Of them tried to
grab me. lodged them I knew it was
my only chance, I swan around the boat
and got 70 the pier and climbed out
Then I looked back at the water
They were going under and coming IN
and snatchine at each other and boiler
,ing-men women and children. all over
that part OF the river. The current car
ried some Of them those that could keep
af1oat upstream some distance saw a
few get to the piling and climb out
Most OF them II seemed. could not swim
or were dragged down by those that could
not swim. The river over there opposite
the slip must be full of bodies
After | got the pier steaiied
myself FOR a minute or two Then T
ran back 10 whore could get aboard
They had got some portfolios on he,
upper side open. Through these passeng.
ers who had been caught in the cabins
on the top side Of her were being taken
out They We're told to put their arms
through the narrow ports first and then
to narrow themselves in so they could
be pulled out. It was a tight squeeze for
some. Some had to wait until they got a
hatch open on the top side so they could
come UP the stairway
AS soon as we could get inside har mo
and my mate began fishing for bodies
in the sunken half of her I used a long
handle pike. ia feel AROUND in the water
until my pike hook hit something 1 go,
~ NOu'" teiI II II was bodN.
d get the pike hook in their ciothine
and fetch them UP. Ny" mate would tia
a rope around them and men would pull
them out.
1T was strange how many of then,
drowned hanging tight to some object
below water. Some hooked down at the
bottom others half way up. others only
two or three feet below water I could
tell by the pull it took to tear them
loose that they had their hands grpped
on to rail or table or some othe.
fixed object down below the water +
don't know how many fished out"