Titanic Disaster.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 247, 18 April 1912, Page 5

Titanic Disaster.

ALL HOPE ABANDONED. APPALLING LOSS OF LIFE. FOUNDERED IN DEEP WATER. By Cable—Press Association—Copyright London, April 16. The Carpathia, which was steaming to New York, picked up 86G persons in the lifeboats, mostly women. Those saved include Mrs. Jacob Astor, Countess Rothes, Sir Cosmo Duff Gordon, Mr. Bruce Ismay, and Mr. Bchr, the tennis player, DIAMONDS AND PEARLS. The Titanic sank in water two miles deep, between Sable Island and Cape Race. She carried a million pounds' worth of diamonds and half a million pounds' worth of pearls. DODGING THE ICE. In consequence of the ice, the White Star and other steamers have arranged to cross the Atlantic at a lower latitude. (Mr. Norman Craig, M.P., booked a passage by the Titanic, but cancelled it. A prominent banker estimates that twenty persons of those aboard were worth one hundred million pounds, THE SCENE IN NEW YORK. THE WOMEN AND CHILDREN SAVED. New York, April 1(5. There' were pathetic scenes all night outside the White Star Line offices. Mr. Vincent As tor, son of Colonel John Jacob Astor. conferred for an hour with the vice-president, and departed in tears. It is understood that all the women and children in the steerage as well as the saloon were given a chance for life. The men behaved .gallantly, and went down with tha ship. The Virginian arrived too late to render any assistance. NO FURTHER HOPE. THE WEALTH ON BOARD. No hope remains now that there are any survivors, other than the SCO first rescued. The ice-cold water made it impossible for any survivors clinging to the I wreckage to escape. The women and children spent hours in the open boats, exposed to bitter winds, before being picked up. The wealth on board is estimated as representing two millions sterling,, in cargo, jewels and passengers' personal belongings. SYMPATHY ON THE CONTINENT. Paris, April 16. The office of the White Star Company is besieged by weeping inquirers. The shipping at Continental ports has its flags at half-mast. Berlin, April 16. In the Reichstag, llerr Kaempf, President, expressed grief with England in connection with the Titanic disaster. All members rose from their seats as a mark of sympathy. THE HOUSE OF COMMONS. AN IMPRESSIVE SCENE. London, April 10. Members of the House of Commons stood ibare-headed as Mr. Asqnith read the latest cablegrams about the loss of the Titanic. Be said: "All the boats are accounted for; 875 souls are saved. We must brace ourselves to confront an event which appals the imagination." He expressed the deep admiration of the House for the manner in which the best traditions of the sea had been upheld by the saving of those least able to save themselves. PITEOUS SCENES. DISTRACTED RELATIVES. Piteous scenes are being witnessed at the offices of the White Star Company in Cockspur street. Relatives have been waiting for hours, and many people from the provinces, failing to get news from Liverpool, came to London, but the officials are only able to point to the Carpathian's wireless message that she had found the boats and wreckage only. Similar scenes are occurring at Southampton, of which place practically the whole W3 of the crew are natives, and scarcely a family in town has not lost a relative or friend. THE FATAL ICE FIELD. Ottawa, April 16. Liners arriving at Montreal report abnormal ice in the North Atlantic. Several vessels met large icefields off the Nova Scotia coast. PUBLIC ANXIETY. Received 17, 10.10 p.m. New York, April 10. Crowds throughout the day thronged tbe office of the White Star Company and the newspaper offices, making anxious enquiries. There were many pathetic scenes in towns throughout the United States and Canada. THE CARPATHIA DELAYED. C It is represented that the late arrival of those on board the Carpathia is due to thick icefields. NAVAL ASSISTANCE. Mr. Taft has ordered the cruisers Salem and Chester to proceed to the scene of the disaster. A number of revenue cutters have also been despatched. NO OTHERS RESCUED. PERTSIIING FROM EXPOSURE. Received 18, 12.25 a.m. London, April 17. Wireless messages from various ships on the scene of the disaster make it clear that none were rescued beyond those picked up by the Carpathia. The captain of the Parisian states that

if any of those wrecked clung to the wreckage they must have perished from exposure.

A FUTILE WARNING.

THE BUILDERS' THEORY. The liner Tourain on Wednesday entered the icefield, and quitted it on Thursday. She warned the Titanic en Friday, receiving the captain's thanks. ' It is officially stated by Messrs. Harland and Wolff, who built the Titanic, that after ; colliding the Titanic must have swerved and careered along the edge of the ice floe, by which her side was ripped open. Otherwise the bulkheads would have saved her. GENERAL GRIEF. ROYAL CONDOLENCES. RELIEF FUNDS OPENED. Eight representatives of the firm were aboard. Many entertainments in Southampton have been abandoned. The Mayor has opened a relief fund for the families of the crew. The King, Queen Mary, Queen Alexandra and the Kaiser condoled with the victims and their relatives. The newspapers are opening relief funds. COMPENSATION FOR THE DEAD. ONLY SEVENTY-NINE MEN SAVED. ! SIXTY-EIGHT OF THE CREW. The owners' compensation to the drowned seamen's relatives is computed at £IOO,OOO. Th:° Titanic's wireless apparatus ceased to work two hours after the collision. Seventy-nine wen were saved, of whom sixty-eight belong to the crew, who were necessary to' man the boats. THE BOAT ACCOMMODATION. A LOSS OF FIVE MILLIONS. The Daily Mail says that the Titanic provided 100 per cent, more boat accommodation than the Board of Trade requirements, but the provision proved altogether inadequate. The Financial Times estimates the total loss at five millions, including the vessel, cargo and mails, life and other insurances. New York, April 17. The community is stunned by the disaster. Scarcely a large city in the States is not contributing a victim. Major Butt. ,Mi\ Taft's chief military aide de camp, is among the missing. SEARCHING THE ICE FIELD. ■SOME OF THE SAVED. The Carpathia is slowly traversing the icefield. The Virginian arrived too late, the Carpathia being first on the scene. The newspapers declare that the Titanic had insufficient boats. The second, third, fourth and fifth officers, and the junior Marconi operator were saved.

THE GOVERNOR'S CONDOLENCES. By Telegraph—Press Association. Auckland, Last Night. The wreck of the Titanic was feelingly referred to to-day 'by-the Oovernor°in his speech at the opening of a branch of the Overseas .Cltill. H« was, lie said, voicing the sentiment that was in the hearts of everyone in the Dominion in expressing the deepest grief at the appilling calamity. At the moment they could only hope that the news had been exaggerated, and that later particulars would show that the disaster was less serious than it now appeared to be. Evidently it was a tragedy ,so appalling as to be almost unprecedented in its force as a maritime catastrophe. On behalf of the people of the Dominion be voiced their deepest sympathy with their fellow British subjects who were going i through hours of anxiety and sorrow, ' and coupled with it their sympathy and compassion for those over the water who were, in many respects, their kith and kindred, the people of the United States, where so many families were now in a state of bereavement and anxiety. The Governor has despatched the following message to the Secretary of State for the Colonies: "My Government and the people of New Zeaiand are deeply grieved at the terrible catastrophe that has overtaken their friends, both British and American, in the loss of the Titanic. Kindly convey New Zealand's grief at the appalling' loss of valuable lives.—lslington." EXPRESSIONS OF SYMPATHY] — Dunedin, T -ist Night. Sir Joseph Ward this aft. moon cabled to Mr. Asqnith. expressing his great sorrow at the terrible loss of life occasioned by the foundering of the Titanic. Wanganui, Last Night. A large meeting of ratepayers who had assembled to hear a speech by a candidate for the Mayoralty to-night passed a resolution of sympathy in connection with the Titanic wreck. * A copy of the resolution is to be forwarded to the Prime Minister. Gisborne, Last Night. Very feeling reference was made to the Titanic disaster by Mr. J. R. Kirk, of the Chamber of Commerce, at a meeting held to-night to decide on what form a presentation to Sir Jas. Carroll should take, and on Mr. Kirk's motion a resolution expressive of the sympathy of the citizens of Gisborne with those bereaved was recorded. The Mayor was requested to wire the Prime Minister to transmit the motion to the proper quarter. The motion was carried in silence, those present standing, and the meeting adjourned as a further expression of sympathy. Christchurch, Last Night. At a meeting called by Mr H. Holland, a candidate for the "mayoralty, tonight a resolution was proposed by Mr. L. M. Isitt, M.P., and passed expressing profound sorrow and sympathy with the bereaved relatives of the crew and the passengers of the Titanic, and placing on record the meeting's admiration of the gallant conduct of the officers and men in placing so many of the women and children in the boats.