MAILS AND PASSENGERS.

Bendigo Advertiser, Saturday 1 April, 1911.

The Yongala had on board 120 bags of

mails, including 21 bags from Melbourne

and Sydney. She also had 79 registered

articles and 43 receptacles, containing 533

parcels.

Some sad facts are related in connection 

with the disaster. Miss P. Carroll, one of 

the vessel's passengers, was travelling 

from Brisbane to Townsville to see her 

sister who was dangerously ill. Their mother 

died only a few months ago and Miss Carroll 

was the main support of her home. She had 

charge, during the trip, of Mona Shannon, 

aged 33 years, who was returning to Townsville,

where her mother is now frantic with

grief.

Mr. Matthew Rooney, his wife. and

young daughter were residents of Townsville. 

Mr. Rooney was a very prominent

citizen of 35 years' standing, and was the

head of a big firm of limber merchants

and shipowners. He leaves a grown-up

family. He was nearly too late for the

steamer when leaving Brisbane, and Mrs.

Rooney expressed the hope that they would

be late.

One of the passengers by the ill-fated

vessel, named Smith, rushed down to the

steamer just as she was casting off. His

destination was Charters Towers.

Mrs. Murray was returning to Cairns

from New South Wales with four children,

the youngest of which its father had not

seen.

A lady resident in Brisbane is distracted 

because she induced her brother,

who was on the Yongala, to delay his 

departure from Brisbane for a week.

Many bereaved persons are completely

prostrated, and in some cases not a word

has escaped their lips since hope of the

vessel's safety has vanished. A wife of

a fireman on the steamer waited until mid

night at one of the newspaper offices on

Monday night for news. She declared she

had no fears for the safety of her husband, 

because he was such a good swimmer.

How these people must have anguished at the mercy of lip service delivered by the Court of Inquiry.