Salt Lake Herald-Republican | 1915-07-25 | Page 13 | Similar Fate Menaced Ship

SIMILAR F FATE A IE MENACED SHIP Crowding Passengers Cause of Eastland Listing in South SouthHaven SouthHaven SouthHaven Haven Harbor Years Ago i Tho The passenger boat Eastland which sunk Bunk yesterday In Chicago harbor cuu causing an enormous death toll almost met a similar fate ate ten years rears ago this month according to H H. p P. P Huc Huey city milk and dairy inspector who In that thal summer conducted conduct d a ma magazine and book bookstand bookstand bookstand stand concession on the thc boat Mr 11 Huc Hucy recalled the boat boal when whan news of tho the disaster disaster dis dis- aster asler reached horo hOlO yesterday I obtained the tho mn magazine concession In 1905 1903 said Mr fr Hue Huey and went aboard the tho Eastland early carly In June of that year ear Our trip then was WatS from Chicago to South Haven Mich about eighty eight miles by water The boat was only 1 year ear old having ln been built tho thc year previous In Port Huron Mich It I was of or steel all-steel construction fireproof I and with sith twin screw propelling mach ma ma- ch chinery chinen I n cryOn cry On the morning of July 5 after the tho boat had carried ono one of or the biggest July 4 crowds crowd to South Haven tho the night before it started with an all even larger crowd on the return to Chicago o. o Und Under Un Vu- d der l' l tho the government charter charler held b by bythe bytho tho the Michigan Steamship company which owned the tho boat and operated tho the steamship line the tho boat could carr carry not moro mora than passengers It freely admitted oven ovon by ship officials that morning that when tho the ship left tho the wharf there wore at lell least t 1000 pas pas- aboard Tho The trip was mado made under difficulty but with no mishap When hen It neared the Chicago landing it came camo within an ace of turning t turtle as it did yesterday when all of or tho the thop p passengers crowded to tho the near Hl side alda a t to hurry down tho the gangplank to the pier Traveled I d Like Lame Duck On the entire Journey tho the ship plied piled iia it course courso in la the position of ot a Q lam lana 4 I I duck overbalanced as a lC result of ot its top heavy condition When hen hen the the crew crow saw there ero passenger passengers pas pas- in iii excess of ot tho number al allowed allowed al- al lowed h by law the they relieved tho the ship of ot all water ballast causing her to ride man many feet above her usual water mark marie and causing a a. top neav neavy condition with tho the enormous crowd aboard Federal later learned of ot this violation and thereafter kept strict watch of ot the number o of passengers taken aboard for each trip Toward tho end of this trip many passengers learned there were too many aboard and for a time a a. panic threatened ten ed The boat hud bad state rooms six private pr suites and crew quarters In iii addition addition ad ad- to lo the deck space saloons and other quarters It had four toUl decks decka and was sal said to bo one of at the finest lake lako boats In the countr country There was wa no other boat on Lake Lako Michigan hike It and It could make mako moro more speed than any other passenger er boat bont In operation on Lako Lake at that time Um