The evening world. Newspaper, January 17, 1903, Page 2

A a PASSENGERS IGNORANT OF CONDITIONS. ay Bt ig IGNANT ST. LOUIS PASSENG THE WORLD: SATURDAY EVENING, JANUARY 17, 1903, ERS THREATE into a guarantee to make a reasonably rapid trip, know- ‘ing that the guarantee could not be carried out. MPARTIAL STORY OF TRIP ACROSS OCEAN. Trrom passengers conversant with the circumstances, and able to pre- gent them intelligently, The Evening World, through its reporters, gath- ered the following story of the voyage of the St. Louls: | ‘The steamship arrived in Southampton on Jan. 2 | “New York that had consumed nine days, The weather was not rough, and ; the delay was caused by the bad condition of the boilers. Instead of lay- Tine the steamship up for repairs, the officials of the American Nne hustled aboard a supply of coal and started her back for New York the next day. There had been rumors current in London and Paris that the St. Louts | was in bad shape. Some of those who had engaged passage, hearing these | rumors, went to the offices of the Ine and made inquiries. They were as-| -gured that the ship could not possibly be more than eight days in making » the westward passage. | So fer as can be learneu, the St. Louis had about 750 tons of coal in her “puniters when she sailed from Cherbourg on Jan. 4, after a number of vex- tious delays, The passengers, knowing nothing of the conditions, were Jubilant when land finally faded from view and they were out on the At- Jantic Ocean. Althougn the weather was extremely rough, they felt that they were at last started on a voyage that would land them in this city by Jan. 12 at the latest. All went well for three days, when the passengers discovered that the ‘Ship was making extremely slow progress. A few of them talked about it, ‘and Major C. Cunliffe Owen, of the Royal Fleld Artillery of the English | “Army, whose wife was a Miss Hverett, of Boston, determined to make an BOILERS IN DEPLORABLE CONDITION. 4 went below and looked over the boilers. To my surprise I found them all in a deplorable condition. They were blowing out continually. It) “was impossible to keep a fire under more than two boilers at a time. “Repairs were being made all the time and, of course, as the boilers) had to be cool to allow the men to work on them, this cut down tho avail-| A “able steammaking capacity. It was a wonder to me that men were not Killed down there in that boiler-room. one man was injured. He was Herman Ahea, a fireman, whose arms were ‘fealded.” Major Owen told of his discoveries to some of the other passengers, | but nothing was done save in tho way of talk for a couple of days. The minor officers on board seemed to think the situation most amusing and ‘gracked heavy English jokes with the worried passengers who ventured to | “make inquiries. INFORMATION REFUSED. At last the irritation of those who had paid for a quick passage and Were getting a tank-steamer service reached e boiling point, and a com-| Milttee was appointed to visit Capt. Passow and secure information as to ‘the condition of the ship and the probable length of time that would ve consumed on the voyage. Capt, Passow replied that, acting under strict after a voyage from) So far as I can learn, however, but | WAITED FOR BY THOUSANDS 1 “erdera from tho company, he would have to refuse information to passen-| gers or anybody else about the St. Louis, | ‘When this answer was brought to the passengers who were gathered in ‘the saloon there was an angry outbreak. Scores of men got up and talked at ‘nee. It was ahif an hour before the cooler heads in the gathering suc- | ceeded in getting the excitable ones calmed down so that a plan of action could be mapped out. The sense of the meeting was that if Capt. Passow yersisted in his policy of secrecy he would be compelled to tell those under | care the real conditions, orders or no orders. ‘Capt. Passow saw the gathering storm and like a wise man he dodged | ft. He went before the passengers and as gently as he could broke the news ‘that the boilers were in bad shape and that reduced speed was necessary, i There was a storm of indignant protest at this. It was demanded of| the captain that he shape a course for Halifax or hall one of the steam- | ships westward bound that were passing the St. Louis and transfer his, “passengers. He replied that under existing conditions he could not take ‘his ship into the harbor of Halifax, and that transferring passengers in ‘mall boats was out of the question in such a heavy sea. He intimated that if he thought it necessary he might put into Boston, but the passengers earried the impression from his remarks that they would have to remain i [HOW THE OVERDUE LINER ST. LOUIS CAME INTO HER DOCK, EAGERLY TERESTED IN DELAYED PASSENGERS. HERE ARE GRIEVANCES SUF FERED BY PASSENGERS ON THE ST. LOUIS AND EMBODIED IN A RESOLUTION. “STEAMSHIP ST. LOUIS, at sea, Jan. 12, 1903. “To the passengers of the steamship St. Louis: “The undersigned committee, unanimously elected by the saloon pas- songers at an indignation mass meeting held Jan. 10, 1903, begs leave to report: “First—That there 1s satisfactory evidence that the steamship St. Louls entered Southampton harbor Jan. 2 last after an easterly voyage of more than nine days in a smooth sea in a crippled condition, and that she was sent to sea on the following day, leaving little or no time for necessary overhauling and needy repairs. “Second—That your committee has been credibly informed that this condition was known to the management of the company before embark- ing passengers. SPARED A CALAMITY. ‘m board until the St. Louis reached New York. RATIONS CUT A WEEK AGO. On Jan. 10 rations were cut. The crew was put on a diet of oatmeal nd potatoes, Eggs were cut from ¢he breakfast bill of fare, and milk was served only in quantities sufficient for coffee. The amount of food that had _ Usually appeared on the tables was diminished by at least half, Water was *eut-off in the pipes. To secure water for bathing purposes It was necessary ' to call the stewards, who carried it to the staterooms in buckets, Right here the passengers participated in what was practically a| mutiny, Tn a mass-meeting in the smoking-room, at which the women, | ‘a8 well as the men, were present, a committee was appointed to frame de- ‘Munclatory resolutions against the American line. Two days later the) Committee submitted the’ resolutions, which were adopted ananimously, | “Phey will be found in full in another column of The Evening World. "At the same time the second cabin passengers held a mass-meeting @nd adopted similar resolutions, couched in warmer language, ‘MASS-MEETINGS EVERY DAY. rl This ended the negotiations looking for relief, although the passengers 40 both first and second cabins held mass-meetings every day, *) “Suspender Jack” Magee, formerly a member of the police force of this ity and a Rough Rider, who has been with the Buffalo Bill Show in Lon- don, was one of the most entertaining protestors. His speeches were greet- ed with the wildest applause. Some of the speakers became go indignant at times that the meetings took on the aspect of genteol riots. Victor 8. Allien, a broker of this city, whose home is in Stamford, Conn,, “Was the leader of a movement looking to the organization of the passengers | “for the purpose of suing the International Nayigation Company for dam- Ages, He was appointed to head a committee to receive and handle the elaims of passengers. Lawyers Bernel and Lioyd were appointed a commit. ‘tee to look after the legal end, “Third—That no accidents, so far as your committee are aware, have occurred since leaving Southampton to impair the speed of this ship. The delay has been only such as might have been reasonably expected from the crippled condition of her boilers. Providence, in- deed, has been exceedingly kind to us, and we are truly grateful that, through its tender mercies, we have been thus far spared a calamity too horrible to contemplate. “Fourth—We cannot too severely condemn the recklessness of a man- agement that would send such a crippled vessel, loaded with human freight, to contend with the storms and pedils of an Atlantic winter. We believe that our lives have been put In Jeopardy, and certainly our loved ones at home are being made to suffer great mental anguish, not to mention the severe financial losses many of us have incurred apd are now incurring. + e “Fifth—That on the evening of Jan. 10, 1908, the following petition was presented to Capt. F. M. Passow, commanding the steamship St. Louls: t “The undersigned, passengers of the steamship St. Louls bount for New York, hereby request that, in view of the crippled condition of this steamship and the consequent uncertainty of the date of her reaching that point, you hail some fast west-bound steamer for the puypose of transferring us thereto or that the boat be put into Halifax it Se (Signed by the saloon passengers.) REFUSED TO CHANGE COURSE. “That in reply Capt. Passow erplained the difficulties and dangers attending a transfer of passengers at sea, and further stated that it would be an exceedingly dangerous undertakirz to attempt to take the ship in her present condition into the harbor of Huiffax. He volunteered the information that he might later on enter Boston Harbor and had the question then under advisement. “Sixth—That it is a matter of keen regret that a first class steam- ship, such as the St. Louts is reported to be, should not be supplied with the Marconi system, the absence of which has been seriously felt during this ever-to-be-remembered voyage. THANKS TO SHIP OFFICERS. “Seventh—That the thanks of the passengers are due to the officers of the ship for thelr uniform courtesy under these very trying clrcum- stances in endeavoring to allay our uneasiness and excitement.” The committee consisted of A. P, Lioyd, Louls B. Bernel, Rev. Arthur Crane, C W Bonynge and Ralph Nicol, The report of this committee was unanimously approved and resolu- tions were adopted condemning the action of the management of the line as outlined in the committee's report. RESERVES CALLED TO QUIET WAITING CROWD. Long before the St. Louls hed reached the Battery more than one thousand men, women and children of all ages and conditions had crowded on the American Line plor, straining thelr eyes down mid-stream for a firet glimpse of the big liner. Outside the pier there was a crowd of several thousand curious ones, who fought and struggled in a fruitless attempt to break through the line of customs officers at the entrance to the wharf. This crowd finally be- came so belligerent that the reserves were called out from the Leonard and Church street stations, FRIENDS AND RELATIVES EXCITED. “"Wiien the St. Louis arrived opposite the plier and began to warp into | My case is but one of many,” said Mr. Allien to-day, “I was assured taking passage in Paris that the St. Louis would arrive here on the Z had options on half a million shares of stock, Jan. 15 and 1 suppose I have lost a lot of money, ® heavy amount.” other passenger who will bring a heavy dainage suit ia R. T, @ San Francisco millionaire, who was a passenger with his wife ehildren. Believing that he would be here by Jan, 16, he made business deals which haye fallen through. ‘of the male passengers unite in praise of the women, They kept admirably, Not one of them whowed a sign of hysteria, even The options ex- I may haye to outlook was blackest, Throughout the ship there was a feeling | the #hip was seaworthy if she could be kept moving, and as long as went round there was a sense of half security, GUSTED LOT OF PATRIOTS, cans on board who took the St. Louis for patriotic reasons disgusted lot of citizens that ever landed in New York. Their the “American Line” ran the gamut of invective. Mrs, Cun- ‘Particularly chagrined, Wanted to come across on an Hnglish ship,” sho said to- i r come in the St. Louis because of my patriotic the outcome. to port when she came up the bay, tons of coal in the hold, but the nipphenw small p ie ta ‘tad | her dock, the mob of waiting friends and relatives became so excited that | they danced about wildly and strained their throats, endeavoring to shout a greeting to those who crowded on the forward deck. When at last they | could make out the smiling faces of their friends they lost all control, and |every woman present grabbed her neighbor, stranger or friend, man or! | woman, in a frantic hug, One young woman who was standing on a | box beside a tall youth, who, judging from his Ured expression, was an unwilling spectator, leaped upon his neck and almost strangled him. Though he had never seen his affectionate neighbor before he returned the embrace, and soon they were yhatting merrily together, seemingly on the verge of ardent frindghip, JOYOUS WAVING OF FLAGS. Most of the women had flags and long silken streamerg, and as the’big liner was finally turned abreast of her wharf there was @ joyous waving of silk and bunting. When the spectators on the pier caught sight of Capt, Passow on the bridge, an aged woman, white haired and bundled in furs, shouted out; “Three cheers for Capt. Passow,” but her cheer was not taken up. SECOND-CABIN PASSENGERS COMPLAIN OF INATTENTION. ‘The paasengers in the second cabin made the most bitter M ot delays. dnt Of tho tenetment. given pogo pe oe | hey held a meeting to protest, and drew up resolutions against the ompany. It was plainly apparent from the start, they said, that there was something wrong, and when a delegation was sent to make inquiry the vaptain told them that the bollera were defective. They meke the state- nent in tho resolution that they have ample proof that the officials of he line knew of the condition of the boilers before the steamer started, and knew that they could not keep thelr promise toJand the passengers in New York on time, INDIFFERENT TO THEIR COMFORT. Bitter complaint is made that there was utter indifference to the comfort of the second-cabin ;assengers from the start; that they were herded Jn a shed on the pier at Southampton, with the steerage passengers, under conditions not fit for cattle, After they were allowed to go on board they were retained on deck, it was sald, and later in cold corridors, only to find when they did get their berths that they had not been made up since the last voyage. The boat was scheduled to leave at noon and the second-cabin passen- gers were warned to be at the pier at 10 o'clock upon threat of losing their passage money. Instead of leaving at the appointd time the boat did not go out until 11 o'clock at night, the second-cabin passengers being com- pelled to walt there for thirteen hours, The anxiety of the passengers in this cabin was intense, and mep there, a8 well as in the first cabin, say they were subjected to financial loss by the delay, The recommendation was made that an examination of the machinery and boilers of steamships be compulsory efter each voyage. The protest was signed by all but a fey passengers in this cabin, “NO ADMITTANCE” FOR PASSENGERS’ ENGINEER, Ralph Nichols, a civil and mining engineer, who is interested in one of the largest gold mines in Western Australia, was the engineer asked to investigate the trouble by the passengers of the first cabin, He sent the steward to ask the captain if he would be allowed to go below, and was informed that he could not do so. / : At the Southampton offices of the line he was assured that he would be Janded in - York on Saturday. He formerly lived in New ¥ His 200 is now ol of d @ very. b und § yeas sents a Chicago bond brokerage house, made special inquiry at the Paris office, telling them it was Imperative that he should reach New York 6n time, He wes assured that there would be no delay, He was to discuss a business proposition with 1 man who sailed from Boston to Genoa to-day, and he will be obliged to get the next boat for Italy, ENGINEER DENIES KNOWING OF IMPERFECT BOILERS. Chiof Engineer John Philip, of the St. Louls, like a faithful officer, in- sisted that the officinis were not to blame and that he had no reason to suppose when he left Southampton that the St. Louis would not reach her pier in New York on time or very nearly so. N TO BRING SUIT, \ f “There is no truth in the saying that the boilers were in bad shape at | the end of the last trip and that we khew it. The boilers were badly scaled, but I did not know they were bad enough to cause any delay, I fully expected when I left Southampton that we would be here on time, barring accident or bad weather. FOUND FLUES BECOMING CHOKED. “We were two days late in getting to Southampton because we had bad weather all the way over. It was not until the fifth that I found the boiler flues were becoming choked. After the trouble was located it grew worse very rapidly. “There are six double-enders and four single-enders, and all but three had to be cleaned out. That meant that the fire had to be pulled out from under two and three and four at a time, cutting down the running time and causing the delay. “The weather was bad, too, and when we struck a gale we had difficulty in getting through {t because of the slackened speed, The boilers leaked some, too, and once started, that trouble was hard to stop. It spread rapidly because when the moisture escaped from one set of flues it spread to an- other and they, too, were soon out of order. NEVER FELT MINUTE’S ANXIETY. “But it {8 foolish to talk of danger. I know the engines pretty well, and there was not a minute when I felt any anxiety. It was just a matter of repairing the damage for the St. Louis was well able to weather any gale. There was not the slightest chance for an explosion. We simply haa to run slow. “There were 248 tons of coal on board when we got into port, more than we needed. If any one said we were sparing with the coal they are talking ignorantly. We didn’t burn the coal because we were fixing the bolle! and common sense tells you that you can’t repair boilers over a hot fire.” 4 REFUSED ASSISTANCE FROM PENNSYLVANIA. ‘The St. Louis arrived not very long after the Hamburg-American steam- ship Pennsylvania. The latter vessel had just reported having on Jan. 16, in lat. 45,86, long. 49.20, sighted the St. Louis, which was proceeding very slowly. “What is the difficulty?” signalled the Pennsylvania, steaming v close to the American liner. “Our boilers are leaking,” was the reply. “Send a boat alongside,” Both steamers immediately stopped, and the sea being quite calm, jolly-boat was soon warped alongside and the Pennsylvania's first office; went up on deck. The complement of passengers, first, second class and steerag®, crowd: to the main deck, every one with messages to send on ahead, but t! Pennsylvagia could not be delayed for that, and the passengers wero sad disappointed, “We've eight days’ water and provisions on board.” said Capt. sow, “and we're all in good health. “We've had a nasty time with our boilers, which are leaking so bad! now that we can only make five knots an hour in the finest weather.” Capt. Passow declined any assistance, saying that there was no dangr The Pennsylvania then steamed on, amid cheers from both ships, The Pennsylvania, bound from Hamburg, Boulogne and Plymouth, ported the incident as soon as she got in, but General Manager Clement Griscom, of the American line, surpised the Pennsylyania’s captain | telling him thet the St, Louis had already been sighted off Sandy Ho and would be at her dock before noon. “SHOULD BE INDICTED,” IS ONE MAN’S VIEW After Capt. Passow had come ashore and made his report Mr, Cleme: A. Griscom issued the following statement: “The delayed arrival of the St. Louis was caused by leaving Cher! late and by extremely bad weather. There was nothing in the known dition of her beilers that would have prevented ‘her from reaching h after a normal passage. The marked loss of steaming power could m| have been foreseen. Even in the light of our present knowledge the, is nothing in amy way that affects the perfect safety of the ship, 3%) management much regret the inconvenience oaused the passengers and th; anxiety caused their friends,” STATEMENT DOESN'T SATISF x. When this statement was shown to some of the passengers as they were busy clearing thelr baggage, many gasps of incredulity were heard. “That's an easy way ¢o get out of it,” said Mr. Leo Wttinger, of No, 68 Nassau street, “but the fact remains that the whole thing was mest outrageous, The officials ought to be indicted, “The idea that the company did not know the boilers were unsound i¢ absunl, They were going to put the St. Louis in Cramps’s yard on this side, and they just took @ chance, “Never for a minute did we get any satisfaction on board trom the officers, And I can tell you, for one, the matter will not drop here.” SOCIETY IRL (>. a HURT MAY DE In Response to Many Requests FREE OUR Miss Caroline Kelly, of New York City, Seriously Crushed in an DOCTORS SERVICES FREE) Elevator Accident at Santa UNTIL Barbara, Cal, JAN. 20, 1 SANTA BARBARA, Cal, Jan, I~ Pi Miss Caroline Kelly, a young society woman of New York, was seriously in- jured in an elavator accident, As Miss Kelly entered the car she tripped fell. ‘The elevator for some unexplained reason shot upward, crushing Miss Kelly against the floor above, Amputation of one of her legs will be necessary and the shock may prove | ADLER.—Guddenty, fatal, ihe ts @ sister-in-law of Louis Giver- naud, a wealthy silk manufact of York and New Jersey, who - ea meaen Berhava tor'the wine write to the \ b. 4