Describes Death of Doughty Captain
In a letter to his wife, D. W. McMillan, of Pleasantville, who visited New York last week to meet the Carpathia when it docked, in the hopes of securing some tidings of his sister, Mrs. Edward S. Robert, widow of former Judge Robert, of St. Louis, whom, accompanied by her daughter, Miss Georgette Madill, and her niece, Miss Elizabeth W. Allen, were saved, with other passengers, from the Titanic just before it sank, stated that his sister, who he met at the dock, related the story of the Titanic’s sinking, saying that she was in one of the last lifeboats launched, and that there was no disorder in the transferring of the passengers to the lifeboats.
She said that Captain Smith was on the bridge the whole time up to the sinking of the ship, and that after he sunk [sic] with the ship he raised to the surface of the water, and the boat in which she was failed to reach him before he sank again. She said that Mr. Ismay and Mr. Astor worked together in assisting the ladies and children into the lifeboats, and after all of the women and children around were placed in boats, Mr. Ismay got into the last one cast off.
The sister in the letter which Mr. McMillan stated his sister gave him, follows:
“My sister, Georgette and Miss Allen were taken off in one of the last boats with the fourth officer in charge, following his being commanded by Captain Smith to take charge of the boat. There was room for about two or three more persons in the boat and Captain Smith called for the boat to come back. The officer ordered the boat turned, but as they started back they saw the stern of the Titanic rising in the air, and didn’t dare to go near for fear it was going to sink. Shortly afterward the boat went down before them and they say the shrieks of the steerage passengers were awful and heart rending. Captain Smith went down with the ship and came up again, but sank before they could reach him with the boat. She told me that Mr. Ismay and Mr. Astor were helping the passengers to get into the lifeboats until the last boat, and when no more women and children were around Mr. Ismay got into the [back?] of one. Shortly following that young Thayer jumped into the water. There was no disorder during the whole thing.”
The letter did not state whether the boat Mrs. Robert was in was the one that reached little Jack Thayer, nor did it say whether they knew further about Mr. Astor.
Mrs. McMillan expects Mr. McMillan back tomorrow.
Miss Allen, who was in Mrs. Robert’s company at the time of the wreck is to marry Dr. Mendell, a London physician, in about a month’s time.
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