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Show Titanic Claimants Accept (664,000 Tentative Settlement Reached by Lawyers Representing Both Sides Now York, Jan. 8. For somo tlmo I negotiations have been In progress I between tho Oceanic Steam Navlga- AM tlon Co., tho owner of the White Star K? line, and the lawyers of claimants j on account of the Titanic disaster for A a settlement of their claims. I As filed with tho district court they 1 reached tho total of $10,804,112 which I oven nllowlng for tho considerable I scaling down of somo of them, which I on their faco wcro excessive, wns f out of all proportion to tho amount 1 for which tho steamship company S would bo liable If It was enabled to H establish tho limitation of Its liabil- I lty under tho American law. The H only requires tho owner of a vessel to pay compensation for tho loss of ffl llfo or property to the amount of sal- K cago and freight and passago moneys lu and in tho case of the Titanic this iri W only $97,772.12 which with interest W added now amounts to about $112,000. m Agreement It Reached m Tho negotiations have been so far ML successful that C. C. Burlingham of If counsel for tho steamship company, (P nnnounced thnt counsel for tho var- m ious claimants for loss of llfo, bag- ju gage, etc., havo liquidated tho claims JE as between thoraselves nt about $2,- i COO.OOO nnd nnd tho great majority of the lawyers who represent theso 1 claimants havo ngrced with tho Whlto I Star lino to recommend to their ell- B ents to accept $604,000 In full settle- R mont of all claims filed In this coun- it try." i Tho way to this tcntatlvo settle- ment has been reached through it v commltteo composed of some of tho j lawyers with lnrgo interests In tho M enso, who hnvo gono through tho M claims a3 presented and havo scaled m them down. Bf, Effort to Standardize They havo endeavored to standard- 85 I70 thorn so as to allow tho snmo E amount of compensation to slml'nr wn cases, and to cut down thoso which 3 wero palpably extravagant. Thoso lawyers who havo been members of $ this commltteo will now ndvlso their pi clients to accept tho offer of tho V steamship company, which works out &. at between 20 and 27 per cent of tho W1 revised claims. j It is not ccrtnln yet, however, thnt fc all tho counsel Interested In the enso will nsscnt to this settlement nnd A. R Leonard Brougham, who was prom!- ft nont In tho early stages of tho lltiga- tlon and wns lined by Judge Hough- , $200 for contempt of court In order to bring ono of tho nolnts of the eon. ! troversy to nn Issue 3ald that ho J would not adviso his own clients to ncccpt this compromise. I Expects Better Terms S Mr. Brougham is confident that n Jj hotter sottlcmont may bo obtained i by nwaltlng tho decision of Judgo K Mnycr In tho federal district court 01 In tho suit tried boforo him last Juno H to decldo tho right of tho Oceanic H Steamship Co., to tako advantngo of 9 tho limitation of liability granted by H tho American statutes. In tho first H placo, tho claimants endeavored to H show thnt tho Whlto Star lino on H technical grounds could not claim H the protection of this law, but was 9 under tho British statues, but this IfH was decided ngnlnst them In May, VM 1914, by tho supremo court of tho H United States. M Tho result was that last summer 9 tho claimants again attacked tho H right of tho steamship company alleg- 9 ing that hero wcro such defects In B tho navigation of tho Titanic as well as In its construction as to render Its wM owners liable for tho settlement of M tho claims In full. Tho decision of fM Judge Mayer on this suit lias not JjJP been rendered. ijM |