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Show NO SURVIVORS OF LOSTIBEL Theory That Water Caused Explosion of Pacific Boat's Boilers. Four American Soldiers Among 343 Who Lost Their Lives. SEATTLE, Wash., Oct. 28. With no survivors found thus far to describe the last moments of the steamer Princess Sophia, which was hurled to the bottom of Lynn canal, between Juneau and Skagway, Skag-way, Alaska, Friday night or early Saturday Sat-urday morning with the loss of 343 lives, several theories regarding the cause of the' disaster have been formulated by shipping men. The one most generally accepted Is that shortly after the Sophia's stern was swung round by the blizzard raging, pushing her off Vanderbilt reef, where she struck during a blinding snowstorm snow-storm Thursday, the sea rushed into the vessel's engine rooms, exploding her boilers. That this might have taken place as a final effort was being made to launch lifeboats almost seems to be borne out by the fact that most of the bodies so far recovered were fully dressed, with lifebelts life-belts on, and many were covered with oil. Steamshipmen assert that even with a hole in her bottom, the Sophia's tanks should have .been able to keep her afloat. That e,very effort was made to provide for the passengers' safety is believed by veteran northern ship captains. Strewn With Bodies. Latest reports from Juneau were that approximately 150 bodies had been recovered, re-covered, but at the time of filing the dispatch dis-patch only eighteen had reached Juneau. It was reported that the shores for miles around the scene of the wreck were strewn with bodies and a fleet of from fifteen to twenty-five small craft were searching for them. Stormy weather still was interfering with the work, but it was believed that nearly all the bodies would be recovered. This hope was strengthened strength-ened by the report that the watches found on some bodies had stopped at ten minutes min-utes of seven presumably Saturday morning and that, therefore, all the passengers pas-sengers had been out of their cabins and dressed. Governor Thomas Riggs of Alaska has assumed personal charge of the search for bodies. Flags in Alaska yesterday were put at half mast at the governor's orders and churches held memorial services. ser-vices. Some of Victims. J. R. Young, whose body was brought to Juneau, was chief engineer of the Yukon river steamboat Dawson. He resided re-sided in Vancouver, B. C. Captain Frank Qossie, whose body also was found, was Second officer of the Sophia. Mrs. H. M. Bridges, another recovered, was the wife "Of the proprietor of the Yukonia restaurant restau-rant of Dawson, Y. T. Harry Rutherford was a waiter on the river steamer Casca. E. G. WTieeldon was a deckhand on the stoamer Selkirk. Henry B. Parkin was the general manager of the Pacific Coast Cold Storage company. His home was here. Four American Soldiers. Four American soldiers, members of the signal corps which mans the United Slates Washington-Alaska military cable and- telegraph system, were aboard the Sopnla when she went down, according to Sergeant George W. Hanby, who arrived ar-rived here from Skagway on the Canadian Hallway company's steamer Prince Rupert. Ru-pert. The four were Corporal I. Labrle of Bracebridge, Ont.; Wireleas Operator G-eorge Hendrick of Terre Haute, Ind.; Corporal T. E. Sanford, and Wireless Operator Op-erator A. W. McQueen. The addressee of Sanford and McQueen were not known. l The men were on their way from Fort Gibbon. Tanana. Alaska, out to the states, r-v-rgeant Hanby was with the four men when they left Gibbon. All had reservations reserva-tions on the Sophia. At Skagwav Hanby changed to the Prince Rupert, which left a few days ahead of the Sophia. |