The Washington herald., 1915-07-27
SEEKS UNBIASED
EASTLAND PROBE
Commerce Secretary
Advises Inquiry by Naval
Officers and Civilians.
TELEGRAPHS REDFIELD
Mr.. Sweet Stirred by Charge tina,
Steamboat Inspectors Were Lax.
Find Old Complaint.

The inquiry by the Federal government
into causes for the accident to the steam
er Eastland. which went down in the
Chicago River with a loss of more than
100 lives, will be the most thorough in
vestigation of the kind ever undertaken.
Government authorities are wrought up
over the charge that lax administration
on the part of the Steamboat Inspection
Service was contributing cause. The
inspection service itself is to be probed
and the result may be a reorganization.
Announcement was made yesterday by
Acting Secretary of Commerce Sweet
that an investigation of the cause of the
tragedy may be made by board of
naval officers and civilians This inquiry
will be Independent of that now in prog
ress by officials of the Steamboat Inspec-
ton Service. Mr.. Sweet telegraphed Sec
rotary Redfield recommending an indie
pendent investigation by naval officers
and civilians.
Wants Impartial Report.
This is a matter Of vital concern to
| the public and in my opinion warrants a
most searching investigation by a board
of naval officers and civilian experts, "
said Mr.. Sweet. "A report by such a
board would be above criticism and
would not be subject to accusations that
the inspection service had investigated
ITSELF
| 1t developed yesterday that one protest
against the steamer Eastland has been
on file in the Department of Commerce
since August. 1906 This was presented by
George ]. Schrnitt. a passenger. Schmitt
| charged that he travelled on the boat on
| one occasion and that it was overcrowd-
ed to such an extent that one had to
| fight his way about the decks to move
anywhere. Schmitt charged that on this
occasion the Eastland had more than
| 5000 passengers aboard. The report of
the government checkers showed that
there We're only 2,530 persons aboard.
Mr.. Sweet yesterday received letter
from Rivers Mcneil. collector of customs
at Chicago. who stated that when the
Eastlsnd turned over she had $500 pas
sengers aboard, the number permitted
under the government certificate. The
count was made by government inspec-
tors. The collector added that the
count was made with great care. and
that when $500 had gone aboard the
gang-plank was pulled in with several
hundred persons still standing ont the
dock.
Gregory Makes Denial.
In a statement made public at the
Department Of Justice. Attorney General
! Gregory said:
The Department OF Justice received q
wire from Chicago stating that the pub
lie press in that city published a state
ment declaring that the government had
refused to countenance a Federal inves.
| tigation of the sinking of the Eastland
and was shielding guilty Federal in
spectors who had been corrupted by
steamboat operators to violate the law
In reply the Attorney General wired
/ that on his return to Washington he
found Information to the effect that a
grand jury had been ordered for Thurs
day next to investigate the Eastland
disaster. The Attorney General imme-
diately wired the United States Attor-
ney and the party in charge of the De-
partment's Bureau Of Investigation In
| Chicago to give all possible assistance in
developing facts relating to the sinking
of the steamer and going to show viola
lions of Federal criminal statutes. Any
statements that the Department of JUS
| tice had refused to countenance a Fed
eral investigation are wholly without
! foundation"