The evening world. Newspaper, May 8, 1915, Page 1

“<e EXTRA nPRICE ONE OBNT. “=e PRICE ONE OEN FOR REPORT OF FACTS. ON SINKING OF LUSITANIA ey Order Is Sent Ambassador Gerard) to Make Full Inquiry as Basis of Action for Loss of American Lives—High Officials Confer. WASHINGTON, May 8.—The United States Government to-day directed Ambassador Gerard to make inquiry of the German Govern- ment fo for its report of the facts concerning the sinking of the Lusitania. 'The Ambassador was instructed to make his preliminary inquiry Ba bass for whatever steps may evetually be taken. ~ Higtr officials pri- “Syately said the situation was very grave. President Wilson arose early and read the newspapers and euch official | ‘@eepatches about the Lueitania as had been received before breakfast. He Went, as {6 his custom on Saturday, to the golf links, On bis return later he devoted himaeif to reading despatches recelved. In many quarters it was thought probable representations to Germany | will be general covering all the cases of attack on American vessels, It was pointed out that the case of the Guiflight, also torpedoed without | warning, with a loss of three American lives, might be made the basis for ection by the United States, but that the Lusitania incident, the death of Leon C. Thresher, an American, on the British steamer Falaba, and tho attack by German airman on the American steamer Cushing might be ; grouped as an indictment by the American Government against Germany for failure to observe the rules of International Law with respect to the \ | lives of non-combatants. In official quarters and among diplomatists, there was apprehension that the American people might not consider representations sufficient, A special session of Cong has been talked of but there has been no intimation of it as yet from any officlal quarter, ‘There was every indication at the White House that, while President Wilson was deeply shocked at the loss of Amertoan lives, he was deter: | mined to await a thorough investigation before deciding upon a course | of action for the United States, Officials reiterated that he would take | no steps until all available tnforn mation had been gained, While an alr of gravity pervaded the White House, officials wont about making arrangements to receive direct all messages being sent to the State Department and keepiug the President tn close touch with all branches of Government. The chief concern of Admintstration officials was the of pubile opinion when details began to come tn. “We are informing ourselves as rapidly as possible ragarding the Lusitanta matter,” sald Secretary Bryan, “and we are doing what we can for those injured, We will get all the information we can." Ambassador Page at London advised the State Department that he has {nstructed tho Consul at Queenstown to care for the survivors and to fur- nish money where it is needed, Two American army officers have been sent | to assist. His message sald: “T have instructed our Consul at Queenstown to care for bodies of dead and to give all help to sick, to ald the survivors Who lost all cash and I have sent two army officers, Capt Miller and Capt. Castle.” BSeoretary Bryan and Secretary of the Navy Daniels also cancelled ements. Se etn Pmbassy today had nothing to say later than tte declara- ton that Germany could not be hold accountable for anything which had happened to Americans through the Lusitania’s sinking, since the Embassy warned them in advance against entering the war zone under the British “Has. Presiden t Wilson, Secretary Bryan and other members of the Cabinet were visibly depressed Notwithstanding that warnings had been given, it had been regarded as ineoncelvable by high hae aie that the threatened vessel would actually be carried Into effect Sst sage rietyt the Lusitania was @ Brittsh ship, flying the British flag ‘and even had contraband of war aboard, did not remove from thelr minds the ever recurrent thought that a hostile submarine deliberately destroyed the ship with the knowledge that hundreds of defenseless neutrals and women and children were aboard Everywhere (hat as) yvershadowed the legal phases of the case, for, while there {4 said te ont in international law for the at- tack without warning ono it mierchantinan, it was realized that} defense wight be made on the ¢ xe that guns Were Mounted on the deck, That, however, the British Government has dented Nowhero in Admiuistration etreles ts there any dispoattion to minimize the situation, but Prosident Wileon, while seeking the facts, hopes that the country Will assume an examining attitude and reserve fall judgment until all complete tuformation te at band ‘Aw more details began comiig in activities at the White House and the| executive depurtinents of the Government disclosed bow much Administra. top efficialy realize the tensity of the situation, 1 H Jhatchet and cut the boat clear, } Alten It, Body of Charles Frohman, Lusitania Victim, Is Found ~ Che Ciroulation Booka Open to All." ioe Ti el we 137 AMERICANS LOST LIVES: _ $. DEMANDS EXPLANATION DEMAND BY U.S. TOGERMANY (MOTHERS CLASPING BABES FOUND DEAD IN WATER, SAYS SURVIVOR AT QUEENSTOWN Canadian Tells o of Seeing Torpedo Approaching and Terrible Scenes in Water After the Explosions. QUEENSTOWN, May 8.—One of the most cone ‘nected and thrilling stories of the Lusitania tragedy was related here this afternoon by young Meyer Stratford of Ontario who was enroute tg jgin the! *! British navy as a cadet. “I had just gone to the upper deck with two friends for a game of quoits,” he said, “when one! of them looked over the side. He cried as he saw a streak:—‘There’s a torpedo coming right at us’. We watched until it struck then we rushed to the boat deck as a huge quantity of splinters and debris and masses of water fell around us. The second torpedo struck the liner just four minutes later and simply shattered the entire hull. The first torpedo was enough to have sunk the Lusitania but the second completed the task. “Many of the women were panic stricken, 1 met one almost fren- T helped her into a boat. 1 then 1 got on boarnt, Others A crowd of men clam. zied with tear and tried to calm her, saw another boat that was nearly swamped. We baled for all we were worth, bered in nearly swamping it again, Nobody had a knite, but I found a We were about 200 yards away when followed me, the Lusitania sank, “The shrieks of the people as they were drawn down by the suc- tion was appalling. We had to pull away as hard as we could to get away and not be drawn under, “We saved as many as we coukd, our boat being crowded to ca- pacity. The ship simply sank like a stone at the finish, her entire bot- tom being literally torn out by the various explosions, “The scene at the end was terrifying. Although many of the pas- sengers had adjusted their life belts they were drawn down like stones by the terrible suction of so large a steamer, “Mothers with their babies still clasped in their | arms in death were found by the fishing fleet which finally rescued us. They had been unable to get on board the boats in time and they drowned when drawn under the surface by the underdrag of the vessel.”” SAYS FOUR TORPEDOES HIT LINER. CMnton Bernard, of New York City, one of the first cabin survivors, | sald “Although It was a tremendous shock to everybody, there was not #0 much exe! ent as one would expeot in such a catastrophe. It oocurred so suddenly had not much thine to reallzo what was happening, When 1 saw the ship was sinking | jumped overboard, just aa I was, I had no but 1 pleked up @ bit ef flotsam, Finally I got to an upturned slung to that, Later, with #ome others who had swam to this boat, we manaed to right tt. Then we climbed In and started to rescue as many people as we could reach “The German submarine made no attempt to save anybody. {t for @ moment Just before tt dove. "Tho first torpedo struck us betwoen the firat and seoond funnols, Luattanta shook, and settled down a bit lowed. and soon fintshed our ship dou We saw Tho Two othor torpedow autekly tol- Four or five of our Hfeboats went down | jwith her, aud the tremendous suction as the ‘iner wan engulfed dragger many people down also “The nolwe of the explosion was not very great. Duret with a thud, and wo knew that wo were doomed. The frat torpedo Wo bad Goated . : (Continued on » Becond Page) Lehtinen NEW YORK, SATURDAY, MAY 8, WEATHER—Portty cloudy to-night ond Gundam Piper le =J [“Cireatation Rooks Open to All.” | 1915. 12 PAGES PRICE ONE CENT. ——__<-4¢- Lusitania Sank With 1,216 Persons---First Cabin Pas- sengers Were at Lunch and Few Were Saved-r- Explosions Killed and Injured Many and Lifeboats Were Rendered Useless. Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt and Many Notable New Yorkers Unaccounted For---Queenstown Hospital Filled With Wounded---Charles Frohman’s Body Is Found. The latest available information indicates that about two-thirds of the persons on board the} Lusitania lost their lives. The number of passengers is given by the Cunard steamship representatives: in New York as 1,254, and of the crew as 605, a total of 1,919. The number of survivors now accounted for is 703. This indicates a death list of 1,216. Hopes that the list of persons saved may be materially increased were dashed by an announces ment from the British Admiralty that all but one of the rescue fleet which put out from Queenstown had reported, and that there was little prospect of news of further survivors. Of the 290 first class passengers it is now believed only 76 were saved. No word has been received of Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt and other prominent New Yorkers who were aboard. The Cunard Line officially announced this afternoon that it had received advices showing that Capt. Turner, First Officer Jones, Second Officer Lewis, the second and third engineers and 51 members of the crew have been rescued. They are included in the total of 703 previously announced as saved. Qf the 188 Americans on the Lusitania only 51 are knowa to have been rese cued alive. There were 106 Americans in the first cabin, 65 in the second and 17 in the third. LONDON, May 8.—Capt. Turner of the Lusitania stood at his post on the bridge until his ship went down and was rescued three hours afterward wearing a lifebelt, according to D. A. Thomas, the Cardiff, Wales, coal magnate. “Our course was shaped for shore immediately after the torpedo struck,” he said. “There is a difference of opinion as to whether the steamer was struck by more than one torpedo, but I heard only one.” The body of Charles Frohman, the theatrical manager of New York, has been recovered and brought to Queenstown, where it is being embalmed. Mr. Vanderbilt's London representative stated that through the New York Central and Ameriean Express interests in England six tugs had been sent out to look for Mr. Vanderbilt's body. The scenes in Queenstown are nerve racking. Among the victims in the Town Hall and in the temporary morgue established in the freight sheds of the Cunard Company women predominate. Some of them still have their babies in their arms, mother and child together in life as well asin death. The work of identification is slow, as many of the victims appear to have no relatives among the rescued. The Cunard line officials announced at 12.30 P, M, that they had made a careful compilation of figures from all sources and concluded that 79 first cabin passengers were saved out of 290; 100 second cabin out of 603, while as to the fate of the 361 steerage passengers they had no information. A further telegram has just been received by the British officials from Cork stating that 45 more survivors from the Lusitania have been landed at Queenstown from a drifter. A telegram has been received from admiral at Queenstown: “Torpedo boats, tugs and armored trawlers trom Queenstown all in, except the Heron. from these 595 survivors and 40 dead. vivors and five dead. “Total survivors, 658; dead, 45, Landed Landed from steamers 52 survivors; landed at Kinsale 11 sure Numbers will be verified later. Possibly Kinsale fishing boats may have a few more. Only a few first class passengers saved. It is understood they thought the ship would float. She sank in from fifteen to twenty-five minutes, and it was reported she was struck by two torpedoes, In addition to the foregoing it is signalled that one armored trawler, probably the Heron, and two fishing trawlers are bringing in 100 bodies."! (Signed) “CUNARD.” The work of compiling a list of those saved Is progressing slowly because of the indescribable confusion at Queenstown, but apparently few first cabin passengers are among- the survivors, The United States Consul at that port can account for only 51 Americans saved out of 188 who were aboard. His roll does not include the names of Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt, Elbert Hubbard, Justus Miles Forman, the author, or Charles Klein, the playwright. Of the Americans aboard 106 were in the first {cabin, 65 in the second and 17 In the steerage. The heavy loss of life among the first cabin passengers is believed to have been due to the calmness and self-possession they displayed in face of danger, Most of them were at luncheon when tho steamer received her death blow and 4