Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1915-07-29
Big STEAMER
GOES UNDER IN
CHICAGO river
Hundreds of Excursionists Meet
Death When Starting on
Lake Trip.
BIG LINER IS OVERTURNED
Exact Number Of Lives Lost Impossl.
BILE to Ascertain-Many Entrapped
Below Decks OF the unfortu-
nate Pleasure Boat.

Chicago, July 26.-With 300 bodies
recovered, scores of others within
sight and police estimates of the total
dead between 1000 and 1900, the city
of Chicago reeled under a nightmare
Of disaster. The excursion steamer
Eastland, laden to her rails with a gay
throng of $500 picnickers, capsiZed
in the Chicago river Is feet from her
dock.
An estimate of total death list Of
1900 in the sinking of the lake liner
Eastland was made by DR.. Joseph
Springer. coroner's physician, who was
in charge of part of the work of re-
covering bodies.
my information is that two thou
sand three hundred were on board
after the Eastland turned over ON her
SIDE" he said. From the best figures
can obtain not more than five hun
bred of these escaped"
The most stunning tragedy in the
city's history baffied even the most ex.
perienced police authorities, so that
estimates of the dead were changed
every hour, the total number growing,
as they found more and more of the
Eastland's passengers unaccounted for.
There was mystery in the cause of
the catastrophe. Charges were made
that the boat was overloaded, and
that government inspectors were lax
in their duties of seeing that the navi-
cation laws were not violated. Coun-
tering these came an official statement
from the United States customs office
this afternoon to the effect that there
were $500 persons aboard the steamer
when she turned on her side and sank
to the bottom of the river with hun
dreds Of screaming men, women and
children in her hold.
The sinking of the Eastland APP
peared an even greater horror than
the Iroquois theater fire In Chicago or
the burning of the excursion steamer
General Slocum in New York.
One moment the huge steamer was
swinging into the river to move into
Lake Michigan. Men,, women and
little children, all in their holiday best.
were laughing. singing and waving
good-by. They were employees of the
Western Electric company on their
way to the annual picnic at Michigan
City. Ind.
The next moment the Eastland went
over on her side. The joyous shouts
of the merrymakers turned to a wall
of death. The river was cluttered
with mass of floating. struggling.
shrieking humanity.
Herman F. Schuettler, first deputy
superintendent of police, who took
charge of the rescue squads of police
men, estimated the total number of
dead in the steamer Eastland disaster
at 600.
There were 5000 tickets for this
boat sold." he said. The boats ca
pacity is $500. There were at least
600 of those who did not escape"
Capt. H. Peterson and the purser of
the Eastland we're arrested by the po-
lice on orders of Acting Mayor Moor
house. AS they were being taken to
the City hall a mob formed and fol.
lowed them.
The mob grew SO menacing that re-
serve squads Of policemen were called
out to rescue them from possible vio-
lence at the hands of the angry crowd.
States Attorney Hoyne. as soon as
he heard Of the Eastland disaster, sent
q force Of detectives from his office
to make an investigation. The states
attorneys Office force was ordered to
cooperate with Coroner Hoffman's