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About The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (June 7, 1914)
12 PHASES OF MOST RECENT GREAT TRAGEDY AT SEA TOLD PHOTOS PLAY PART AT FIRE INQUIRY Unwilling Witness Forced to Admit Destruction' of Grain Ignited Old Dock. PROTESTS GO UNHEEDED Slanager of Door Company Bays i Complaints to police and Flro- v . men liererrcd to Mayor, Who - . Gave Allen & Lewis Permit. 1 Witnesses who wished to evada Ques tions asked by Coroner Slocum and Deputy District Attorney Boblson at the second day's hearing; of the Ster-ling-BaJoerh inquest yesterday found themselves confronted by a set of pic tures taken by Roblson and showing the condition of the grain piles which are said to have been the cause of the blaze. F. T. David, of 281 Twenty-second street North, watchman on the Montr Komery dock, where Allen & Lewis were .burning up the remainder of the grain damaged in the fire of March, after answering unsatisfactorily a number of questions . regarding the quantity of grain, its danger to ad Joining, property, and its state of com bustion, was shown the pictures and forced to admit that there was a quan tity of burning grain close to the bulk beads. "On May 7 I went to work to burn the grain," said David. "We burned four days, then quit and started again on May 20, and burned until May 31." Asked If there were pieces of wood, the remnants of the dock, among the wheat, and if that wood was being used to feed the fire, he replied that be did not know. Then Robison pro duced the photographs and showed that there were quantities of wood and remnants of sacks among the wheat. Contradictory Testimony Given. David contradicted himself on an other point when he said that a week before the fire Wednesday there was no blaze nearer to the south end of the dock than SO feet. He said that wheat in the condition of that on the dock would not burn 20 feet in a week, and would be more likely to burn two feet. In the pictures it was shown that wheat at the bulkheads was burned. A dramatic scene came when Robl son asked David if he were the man who told John Walker, a tent-maker, to mind his own business when Walker informed him that a spark from the burning grain had lit on the door com pany's platform. David said that he Was not. 'Did you ever see that man before?" queried Robison, as he pointed to Walker. David looked at Walker, with out saying a word, for fully two min utes. The crowd, which became tense at the question, remained so for a min ute, then the humor of the situation struck them and they laughed. David said he did not remember such a conversation, and Robison then Asked Walker if he knew David was the man. He answered that he was positive, and the crowd laughed again. Walker said the incident occurred Me morial day. Then Robison asked if David was willing to declare under oath that the conversation did not take place. He said he was willing. To further corroborate evidence arlven by Walker as to the conduct of the crew of the ferryboat W, S. Mason. 1 - L -rigs1 -nr15 I r- :..... ..ff. i4-J&!idi ri.r. f w i r -'sv r ; . -4 - -' f&&s' . Photo by Bain News Service. Top Row (left) Landing Bodies of "Victim of Empress of Irelamd Disaster at KlmonU. Center Collier Storstad. Skowlox Smashed Bow Suffered by Collision. Risrht Transferrins; Coffins a HJmomkL The Two Portraits at the Top Are Those of Captain Anderson, of the Storstad, and Miss Tina Townsend, a Keif Zealand Girl, Who Owes Her Life Wholly to Her Bravery, Coolness and Physical Strength. (Photo by TTnderwood & Underwood.) She Swam Alone for Nearly an Hon r After the Vessel Sank, Until Picked V p by One of the Storstad's Boats. Cen ter (Left) The Canadian Steamer Lady Grey. Right Three Women of the Steerage Who Survived the 'Wreck. Bottom Row (Left Coroner Plneanlt. Who Held the Inauest at RlmoushL (Right) Robert W. Crellln and Little Girl, Florence L. Barbour, Whom He Rescued. Robison had David. Identify two pic tures which Robison had taken of the Mason, showing her boats and her life preserver. David was not sure of the life-preserver, but remembered seeing the boats. He Bald Roblson's picture of the burning grain piles looked "like a storm at sea." David further said that he was Bent to the Inquest by L. O. Ross, of the firm of Allen & Lewis, who testified Friday. They talked over the case, he said, but he was not told what evi dence to give. Assistant Chief Laudenklos, of , the Fire Department, was another witness. On May 14, he said, he sent the fire boat to the dock and - wet down . the burning jgraln. He told of several con ferences on the matter, in one of which, he said, he told Mayor Albee it would take six months to burn the refuse. He . said he did not tell the Mayor that the fire was dangerous or not dangerous. On several calls to the Fire Department, he said, he found the bulkhead burning. He said he made 12 calls to the place between the time of the big dock fire and the outbreak of 'the blaze at the Northwest Door Company. He was not at - the fire Wednesday, he said, because it was his day off duty, and he was out of town. BI111 Manager Testifies. . W. F. Greer, city sales manager of Allen & Lewis, said that he was a personal friend of the Mayor, and had known him for seven years, and for this reason was chosen by the com pany to try to obtain from the Mayor a permit to burn the grain on the dock where it lay, after Albers Bros, had removed part of it as salvage. He said that he knew Mayor Albee through Insurance circles. He said that he was not cautioned as to the method of burning the grain. Sam ConnelL manager of the burned mill, and a part owner of it, was posi tive as to the circumstances leading up to the fire. "After I had received a number of complaints from the men at the mill about the smoke and stench of the fire, I called up the Police Depart ment. Captain Moore referred me to Fire Chief Dowell, and when I got him he referred me to Mayor Albee. I tried to get in touch with him, but talked with William Warren, his secretary. I asked to have the fire put out. "The next day Fire Chief Dowell and Battalion Chief Stevens came to the place. I went over the crrounrl with them. Dowell said that he would put out the fire If I would get an order THE SUNDAY Ross came over, and they seemed dis appointed because some of the boys had turned in a fire alarm. I finally said that if they could get it cleaned up in three or four days, as they prom ised, I would try and stand it. They promised. They did not get It out In three or four days. Insurance Aid Asked. "Later when I came -down one day and thought the thing was worse than usual. X called up Harvey O'Bryan. the Insurance man, and asked if something could not be done. He said If the un derwriters had any influence he would see that the fire was put out. That was Saturday, and on Monday he called me up and said he thought he could arrange it. That day the flreboat came down the river, but It was not to put out the fire in the grain. Tuesday they came again, but It was for a fire near by. The next day was Wednesday, the day of the fire. "At 4:30 o'clock that afternoon when I came out of my office to go down town to an appointment the heat from the grain was such that the levers of my machine were hot. I started back to the office to turn in a fire alarm, but looked at my watch, realized I was late for my appointment, and decided to leave. I had hardly reached down town when the fire alarm came In." He corroborated the evidence of Leonard O. Ross, when Ross said Fri day that Connell had assured him he might go ahead with the fire if he would clean It up In three or four days. Employes Send In Alarm. Charles W. Blair, of Bell Station, an employe of the mill, told of the fire alarm referred to by Mr. Connell. "The smoke was so bad, the stench so an noying and the danger of sparks so great that I went to Mr. Connell and told him that something should be done," said Blair. "The next day it was worse, then 10 of us chipped in a dime apiece and gave it to a little fel low to go and ring In a fire alarm. He did and the fire department came and threw water on the grain for three or four hours." Mr. Connell did not know of this alarm, as it came when he was out at lunch, and was puzzled when David and Ross came to protest against It, said Connell. Harry E. Slaughterback, an employe of the mill for seven years, who lives at 1035 Denver avenue, told of his work fighting the fire and crawling out on his hands and knees after the blaze J.ot . beyond controL. He said, he had OREGOXIAN. PORTLAND, frequently seen the bulkhead afire and seen sparks flying toward the mllL After Connell finished his testimony the day session was adjourned, about 6 o'clock. It will be taken up again at 9 o'clock Monday morning. lire Victim Buried. ' Funeral services for William Ster ling, who was drowned during the fire which destroyed the Northwest Door Company's factory at Alblna avenue and River street last Wednesday, were held yesterday at Dunning & Me Entee's chapel. Interment was in Rlvervlew Cemetery Mr. Sterling was 45 years old and Is survived by a widow. The body of Alex Balogh. who was drowned with Sterling, will be taken to Hillsboro, Or. THRESHER MEN WILL MEET State 'Association to Hold . Conven tion Her Monday and Tuesday. The Oregon State Threshermen's As sociation will hold its annual conven tion in Portland Monday and Tuesday, June 8 and 9, In Woodmen Hall, East Sixth and Alder streets. Dan Kauff man, president of the association, will preside at all the sessions. State Labor Commissioner Hoff will deliver an address on the attitude of his office toward the labor situation. Paul C Bates, of Portland, will speak on "Liability Insurance." H. L. Bowl by, State Highway Engineer, will speak on "Highways and Bridges." Two hun dred or more delegates are expected. PARTIES DEAD; NOTE. VOID Court Holds Paper Not Collectible Because of Indorsement. . A $1000 note, executed by a man now dead, in favor of a woman now dead and which she ordered destroyed in case of her death, was the subject of a short trial before Judge Cleeton yes terday. Matthew J. Whittall, adminis trator of the estate of Mrs. Harriet E. Bradley, brought suit to collect from Winthrop Hammond, executor of the estate of Byron H. Arnold. Judge Cleeton ruled that it was not collectible. JUNE 7. 1914. IN PICTURES G. W.BOHN IN CUSTODY ALLEGED EMBEZZLER TO BE AR- HAIGED HERE 'jUIVK 20. Government Charges Former Lumber man Drew Funds of Bankrupt by Making; Fraudulent Cheeks. - George W. Bohn, charged with em bezzlement by trustee of the funds of a bankrupt, will be arraigned in Port-" land June 20, according to telegraphlo arrangements made vesterdav bv As sistant United States District Attorney Rankin, following the receipt of a tele gram from the United States District Attorney at Covington. Ky., saying that Bohn had surrendered to the United States Marshal there. The offense wltn which Bohn Is charged and for which he was indicted by the last Federal grand Jury, accord ing to Mr. Rankin, Involved alleged alterations of checks. Bohn was named as trustee of the bankrupt business of W. E. Jones, who had a book Btore on Oak street, in Oc tober. 1912. The. affairs of the busi ness were closed up and the money re sulting from the transaction deposited in the First National Bank. Bohn went from Portland to Lexington, Ky., and checks were received, signed by him, on the account In the local bank. The law requires that checks drawn by a trustee on a bankrupt account be countersigned by the referee In bank ruptcy. To obtain these counter signatures, Mr. Rankin says, those por tions of old checks bearing the stamp of Chester G. Murphy, referee in bank ruptcy, were cut off and spliced to the new checks. About 1400 .was paid on the checks that the Government contends were fraudulent. Payment was stopped on a later check coming from a bank in Cincinnati. Bohn formerly was in the lumber business in Portland. Five years' im prisonment is the maximum sentence for the offense with which he Is charged. FAILING SCHOOL WINS BEE Returns Show Spelling ' Champions "With Average of 98.3 Per Cent. The results - of the spelling ' bee recently conducted in the Portland schools are known sufficiently to show that the pupils of the Falling school are tne spelling champions of Port land. Of the pupils in the 19 rooms of the large Failing school, 54 per cent spelled 8.11 of the 100 words correctly while tne building average was 98.3. The apitoi Hill school, a two-room build ing, tied with Failing for the honors. In addition to the honors of the highest building average and the largest percentage of perfect grades, awards are to be made to the respec tive classes which . excel in the particular grades. The tabulation of figures by grades has not been com pleted. CANCERS and TUMORS Removed by LATEST APPROVED METHODS and Without Cutting Them Out Wa believe our bucciii proves we have the Best. Mlldtxt andQaickesiMetAod Registered Pkrsicias stteeim EDITH MARIAN KEITH. Masaia OFFICE TREATMENTS wmreence Dnrtir and mtt 1U VII TESTIMONIALS Address OCEAN PARK SANATORIUM CO. 702 South Spring Street Los Angeles, CaL . -Opposite Fint National Bank -:. tou FOR -111 Cornell Road Ps-'i f The chance of a lifetime to secure this magnificent Portland home at a. bargain price! Located on the beautiful Cornell road. Wonderful view of mountains and river. Home built half brick and half timber. Every feature a fine home should have three-room family- suite, closed off from balance of home. Two bathrooms, one of them a tiled shower. In private suite. 7000 square feet of ground, beautifully landscaped. Large porch. Frontage of 170 feet on Cornell road, enclosed by brick wall THIS HtKUAIV WILL BE SNAPPED 11' QUICK.! Good terms. See Air. Watson. Monday, at F. N. Clark & Co. IS'ltZriii LODGE TO HONOR DEAD ODDFELLOWS OF CITY TO HOLD , MEMORIAL SERVICES TODAY. Impressive Proarramme of Musle With Address by L. K. Grimes Arrsnsred, Exercises to Be in Orient Hall. Oddfellows memorial exercises will be held at 2:30 P. M. today at the hall of Orient Lodge. No. 17. East Sixth and East Alder streets. The programme will be: Song, "Will There Be Any Stars?" quartet; prayer. Chaplain Rev. S. A. Starr; In troductory remarks, W. P. Lewis, chairman; roll of deceased members called, Rebekah Assembly; song, "Beautiful Isle of Somewhere," quartet; roll of deceased members. Oddfellows' secretary; song. "Jesus, Lover of My Soul," quartet; address, L. K. Orlmes; song, "Nearer, My Ood. to Thee," quar tet; benediction, chaplain. The lodges taking part are: Samari tan Lodge, No. 2; Hassalo, No. 15; Ori ent, No. 17; Minerva. No. 19; Harmony, No. 106; Peninsula, No. 128; Woodlawn, No. 171; City View, No. 201; Arleta, No. 216; Star, No. 219; North Portland, No. 230; Ellison Encampment, No. 1: Gold en Rule Encampment, IV o. 28; Colum bia Rebekah Lodge, No. 3; Acme Re bekah Lodge, No. 32; Utopia Rebekah Lodge, No. 62; Marietta Rebekah Lodge. No. 72; Rose City Rebekah Lodge, No. 170; City View Rebekah Lodge. No. 179; Mountain View Rebekah Lodge. No. 196; Silver Leaf Rebekah Lodge, No. 206; Winona Rebekah Lodge, No. 209; Canton Portland, No. 1. The officers to preside are: W. P. Lewis, past grand, past chief patriarch, chairman ; J. V. Swan, past grand, past As to Guarantees The Department of Agriculture has ordered that after May 1, 1915, the "guar-anteed-under - the - food - and - drugs - act-June-30-1906" clause shall no longer ap pear on labels. The statement made nearly everybody think the food product so labeled was guaranteed by the Government, -whereas 'the manufacturer merely protected the dealer from liability. Yet we had to use the clause because consumers had been used to expect it. The Government will continue to in spect food products sold in the open mar ket and to hold manufacturers . respon sible. Olympia Beer will continue what it has always been, a natural food product, made by cooking and fermentation from barley, hops, rice and the incomparable Tumwater artesian spring water and nothing else. BREWING Olympia, Olympia Beer on draught or fc . i rorri weu-conauciea retail estao- t hi lishments everywhere In the rl.O Pacific Northwest, Alaska and T 1 Hawaii. A case for your home r yClleTz can also be obtained from our ffonourf branch in Portland (Phone A 2467. Main 671). Seattle, Tacoma. Spo- "ftif ka.no, Aberdeen, Pasco or Wallace. Announcement to t&jhii ggW l Ml M W W1 , 5 2Q MC S3 apel St J 19 BMC a opP" " T " "is" &S5 loLoBraa' " . ji r ! t r ' r r . . I '. S. S J3 fKKJM . . . 4 !jS '. tH. 2e "j? 2 1 ZZ- tTh Wry; iv V 4$ WM i k Home Bargain! chief patriarch, secretary: Hattie Rice, past noble grand, treasurer; Rev. S. A. Starr, past grand, chaplain: Nellie Tag girt, past noble grand. Rebekah sec retary; J. V. Swan, past grand, past chief patriarch, subordinate secretary. ODDFELLOW IS HONORED Recfptlon for Henry S. West brook Attended by 60O. A reception was tendered Henry S. Westbrook, grand warden of the Grand Lodge of Oddfellows. Friday at the Swiss hall. The Rebekahs of Portland had the hall decorated with roses, and 600 members of the order from all of the lodges in the city were present. Kate Lando, president of the Re bekah Assembly; Charlotte Woodman, past president; Judge Galloway, grand master; E. E. Sharon, grand secretary; S. W. Stryker, past grand representa tive; Robert Andrews, grand high priest: H. M. Beckwith. past grand patriarch; Henry S. Westbrook, grand warden and the grand warden of Mon tana, were seated on the stage. H. P. Bordman. past grand, presided. Ad dresses were made by S. W. Stryker. grand master; W. T. Williamson and Mrs. Lando. At the conclusion of the reception Henry S. Westbrook. as grand warden, presented H. M. Beckwith with a 25 year veteran Jewel from the members of Hassalo Lodge No. 15. After the programme was completed there was a dance. Merchant Goes East for Stock. W. W. Robinson leaves for New York tonight, where he is to arrange for a stock of goods for a new furnishing and clothing store on Washington street, between Sixth and Broadway. He proposes to open about August 1. COMPANY Wash. in bottles can be bought Rose Festival Visitors We invite all Festival visitors who are Interested in wire fencing, gates or other wire products, to call at our salesroom ana let us show you our stock. We have twenty-five different kinds. The largest variety in the city to select from. Come and get a catalogue and let us tell you why we have the best fences on the market, at the best prices. WB SELL DIRECT TO CONSUMERS, National Fence Compaq ibi coinmDis street. I turegon Kietrlc J-rfcr.os-t. ,Yt-po.) I -