Omaha daily bee., 1916-02-28
ENGLISH LINERS
SUNK BY MINES
OUTSIDE DOVER
Oriental Steamship Maloja Goes
Down and Empress of Fort Will
liam, Coming to Rescue,
Meets Same Fate.
MANY LIVES REPORTED LOST
Several Other Vessels Under Union
Jack Lost During Dis
astrous Day.
TWENTY-FIVE BODIES FOUND

LONDON, Feb. 27.--The Peninsu-
lar and Oriental line steamship Ma
LOLA. l2,4S1 tons gross, carrying ap-
proximately lao passengers, crew
of about 200. mostly Lascars, was
sunk in the straits of Dover at 1920
o'clock this morning, presumably by
striking a mine
A majority OF the passengers, ac-
cording to an official announcement
made this evening, was saved. An
unofficial report says that about
twenty-five bodies were landed at
Dover.
Another Liner sunk.
The steamship Empress of Fort
William. 2,1S1 tons gross, while at
tempting to rescue the survivors of
the Maloia struck another mine and
sunk in less than half an hour. The
crew of the Empress was saved by
other boats in the vicinity.
The scene of the disaster was two
miles off the port of Dover and the
explosion was so violent that houses
along the water front were shaken.
Relief boats quickly put out from the
harbor of Dover and succeeded in pick
ing up a number of the Malojas crew
and passengers when the liner went down.
The Maloja carried in the first class cabin
twenty-six men, twenty three women and
seven children. Among the passengers
courts.
steamer Bright sunk.
The steamship Birgit has been sunk
Seventeen survivors have been landed.
The British steamship Seuiver, from
Now York February IL for Havre, has
been abandoned afire at sea, according to
dispatch 10 E,oyds from Inishtrahuli.
Ireland. All the members of the crew
are reported TO have been taken off by
another steamer
ship Lost orr Flushing.
FLUSHING. Holland CvIa London).
Feb. 2E-The mail steamer MeckIenburg
OF the ICELAND line ran ON a mine while
on voyage from Tilbury to Flushing.
The vessel was lost. Officials of the line
state that the passengers and crew and
the mails were saved.
There are three small steamers OF the
name of Birgit. according 20 shipping
records. two Swedish and one Norwegian.
The largest of the three Is 30 feet long
and Of LII gross tonnage. The vessel
flies the Swedish flag.
The Peninsular and Oriental line steam
ship Maloja was an Australian mail boat
and sister boat OF the Persia, which was
torpedoed and sunk off the Island OF
Crete December 30 last. with the loss of
336 lives.
The Maloja was last reported as having
arrived at Marseilles January 81 bound
Tor London from sydney. New South
Wales.
Built at Belfast.
The steamship was $50 feet long, 60 feet
beam and "a feet deep. 1t was built at
Belfast in 1911.
In February of 1915 IL was reported that
the Maloja on entering the English chan
mel with 200 passengers on board was
oruered to stop by an unknown armed
merohantman. The mail boat Is said m
nave ignored the oHder and made for
riymouth. whereupon the merchantmen
iired rive shells at it, but all fell short
The Empress of Fort William was for
merly the Mount Stephen and Was built
at New Castle i'm 1873. IL was 80 feet long
fS feet beam and % feet deep. The vessel
was owned by the Empress Transporta-
tion Company of Midland, Ltd