The Jones County news., 1915-09-09
BRITISH LINER
IS TORPEDOED
REMAINS AFLoAT FOR SEVERAL
HouRs-slNkS WHILE BEING
ToWED TO PORT
TWENTY-SIx KNOWN DEAD
Passengers Say Liner Was sunk by
Torpedo and That No Warn
Ing Was Given

ING was GiSen
Queenstown.-Six second cabin pas
Sengers, six third cabin passengers and
u Of the crew of the steamer Hesper-
ian, torpedoed $50 miles off Queens
town, We're unaccounted for, according
10 revised official figures issued by the
Allan line. This brings the probable
death list, including Miss Carberry of
St. Johns, New Foundland, whose
body is here, up to %.
The captain OF the stricken liner
remained by his ship until ii sank
He declined to comment on the dis
aster for publication; hence the Of
fetal statement as to whether he
believes heis ship was victim of
torpedo or a mine must come from
the admiraloty. although the captain
is quoted as having told an Allan
line official today that the Hes
perian was torpedoed.
Captain Main and the officers who
remained aboard the steamer while
efforts were being made to tow the lin
e. to port were able to save some of
their effects before the ship plung-
cd to the bottom, rs miles south of Fast
net, not far from the scene of the at
tack, taking with her 3545 bags of mail,
much of it originating in neutral coun-
tries.
The flooding of the forward com
partment. which caused the Hesperian
TO sink so much by the head as to
throw the propellers out of the water,
made the task Of towing the liner to
Queenstown impossible in the rough
sea
The missing second cabin passen-
gers are: Miss Bannister, Mrs Fish
er, Joseph Fowler. Mrs Hannah Fow-
Ter, Maria jenkins and Miss Murray.
London. The Allen line steamer
Hesperian, with $50 passengers and a
crew of 300 aboard, bound from Lever
pool for Montreal, was attacked. Ii is
believed, without warning by Ger
man submarine off the Irish coast AL
though the explosive found its mark
the vessel remained afcat
No submarine was seen and prob
ably it was too dark to observe the
wake Of the torpedo, but passengers
and members of the crew who arrived
at Queenstown in rescue steamers to-
day, agree that the attack was made
by German undersea boat, basing
their opinion on the force of the shock
and the great volume of water thrown
into the air
The force of the explosion was tire
mendous. OF the passengers landed at
Queenstown about 20 were injured.
There were no American passengers
oboard, so far as the American consul
could learn but two members
of the crew are Americans and both
were saved About 80 Canadian sold
iers, wounded in Flanders. were going
home to recuperate. Most of the other
passengers were Canadians returning
from visit to England, or English
people on their way to Canada to
settle
The torpedo struck the Hesperian
in the forward engine room and the
ship Immediately began to settle by
the head. Captain Main ordered the
passengers and crew into the boats,
but with his officers remained on the
bridge although at that time he must
have felt sure that his ship would go
down. The discipline was perfect but
one boat capsized and those in her
were thrown into the waters All were
picked up and with other passengers
and the crew were transferred
to rescue steamers. which arrived in
answer to wireless calls.
Passengers landed at Queenstown as
sert that the attack was without warn
ing. The United States embassy here
received no confirmation on this point
The American consul at Queenstown
telegraphed the embassy, however, that
there were one or two Americans
aboard, adding that none were lost