The impact of the sinking of the Titanic on the New York Syrian community of 1912: the Syrians respond.

ASIDE FROM THE LIMITED INFORMATION available concerning the Syrian passengers who boarded the Titanic in April 1912, even less has been published on the response of New York's Syrian community in the wake of the ship's sinking. Aware that these passengers would have families, relatives or friends throughout the U.S. and Canada, the community resolved to assist in any way possible.

As English language newspapers printed the initial lists of passengers' names, Arabic names appeared, in most cases, distorted and unclear. For the Syrian community, this created confusion, apprehension and nervousness. Many were no longer sure whether relatives had boarded the ship. It was essential, therefore, to clarification the passengers' names. Cohesive community efforts enabled relatives and friends to resolve conflicting information about who these passengers were and their village or town of origin. Eventually, the passenger names were published as accurately as possible in the Arabic language press.

Syrian organizations and community members put aside existing differences and made a concerted effort to identify, correct or confirm the names of the Titanic's Syrian passengers and seek material and spiritual support for survivors and victims' families.

Indeed, the response of New York's Syrian community to the plight of their fellow Syrians serves as testimony to the collaborative and cooperative efforts made to accomplish those goals. The toll of the disaster hit hard the Arab immigrants and families back in Syria. The entire Syrian community in New York identified with the difficulties of those who had left their homeland seeking a better future in a new land. They were reminded of their own journey across ocean and sea.

Hence, the Syrian community considered the ship's Syrian passengers as part of it. Those feelings were demonstrated through statements of its organizations, individual members and newspapers. Passengers originated from the same native soil (Greater Syria), spoke the same language (Arabic) and practiced the same traditions and customs. They, like those here, al-Huda reminded its readers, had boarded the ship as part of their lifelong dream to come to the U.S. seeking freedom and opportunity; but instead, became prisoners of fate. What happened to these Syrians was not only a catastrophe but also a disaster for the community as a whole. (1)

THE ARABIC PRESS IN NEW YORK REPORTS THE SINKING OF THE TITANIC

Early Arabic newspapers such as al-Huda, Mir'at al-Gharb, al-Bayan, al-Dalil and al-Sa'ih catered to their own audiences. Readers were informed of events in the homeland, each newspaper conveying coverage with tints of its own sectarian leanings. To many, immigration meant a sojourn in the Mahjar (the host society) from the homeland and so news from the native land remained important. There was a focus on politics from al-watan (the homeland) and editorials reflected specific religious (Maronite, Eastern Orthodox, or Druze) and political identities. Although newspapers did report about prominent individuals from the community, recent openings of business establishments by community members, marriages, births, deaths, and other social events, the Arabic print media focused on political news from home. Each Arabic language newspaper, a business in its own right, competed with other newspapers in the community, each claiming to be the best representative of its own faction in the community.

However, it was the sinking of the Titanic and news that a large number of Syrians were on board that put sectarian reporting aside. All newspapers now dealt with one community. Arabic newspapers reminded their readers of this horrendous human tragedy and that the Syrians who had boarded were their own compatriots. The print media's objective was to publish the facts as quickly and as accurately as possible and make it available to a community that needed the information to assist in any necessary relief.

Calling it a calamity of enormous magnitude and the gravest of all disasters, a horror that no human could ever imagine, al-Bayan, al-Dalil, al-Huda and Mir'at al-Gharb began coverage of the sinking on April 16th, while al-Sa'ih, a weekly paper, began its coverage a week later with the publication of its first issue.

The initial reports in the Arabic daily press on 16 April did not mention that Syrian passengers had been on board. That a large number of passengers had lost their lives and that women and children appeared to be among those saved were emphasized. Coverage included the same news found in the English language newspapers; of the American, English and European passengers, of John Jacob Astor and his wife, of William Stead, Major Archibald Butt and Benjamin Guggenheim. Al-Huda and Mir'at al-Gharb described the flocks of grief-stricken relatives, men and women, lined up at the White Star offices, their faces bearing "shock and terror."

It was on the next day that the Arabic newspapers announced the stunning news that Syrians had, in fact, been passengers on the Titanic. Reports in their native tongue, made reality hit even harder. The Syrian community in New York and elsewhere learned of the Titanic disaster and the circumstances surrounding the fate of their compatriots. Initial lists of the names of the Syrian passengers were published in the first week after the sinking, some appearing once, but not on subsequent lists. (2)

Lists of names appearing in English language papers could not confirm the names of Syrian passengers. The phonetics and pronunciation of Arabic names, almost alien to English when transliterated (and translated), were confusing and, at times, inaccurate. Relatives relying solely on the White Star Lines' name lists were not always able to find the names they were looking for. For example, Bannurah Ayyub Dahir appears, in the New York Times's list of third class passengers, as "Banoura and Bancoura Ayont," while female survivor Adal Najib Qiyamah is listed as passenger "Najib Hachine." Najib, in Arabic, is a male's name. (3) Given that the Arabic newspapers were to take the names they presumed as Syrians and print them in Arabic, it is not surprising to learn that in the case of Sultanah Rizq Bulus and her two children, Nur al-Ayn and Akar, Harry Bullis, husband and father, was not able to determine if his family had actually been on the Titanic even after having perused the newspapers for their names. In another case, the report that a Syrian had anxiously rushed into the New York office of the White Star Lines refusing to be comforted as he told officials that of his 18 relatives on board, only seven had been accounted for due to mistakes made in announcing the names, demonstrates the problems that were arising. (4)

Consequently, as a preface to its initial announcement of the names, Arabic newspapers notified readers that the published names had been taken from the list of third class passengers who had boarded at Cherbourg, France and that these names had been published by one of the American English language newspapers. Mir'at al-Gharb and Al-Huda alerted readers that the names should be examined carefully as the White Star Line's list was still vague. Thus, these newspapers concluded, due to the ambiguity of the names, readers should be warned of possible discrepancies and inaccuracies. Arabic newspapers printed what they believed to be those names of Syrian passengers.

One example of misinterpretation was Cherbourg Austrian-Hungarian passenger "Firnaz Karram" who appeared as one of the Syrian passengers in Mir'at al-Gharb's preliminary coverage (5) as well as in al-Huda's as "Fransis Karram" or "Karam" on the same day and following day. (6) In another instance, the name of Mary Latif and Mariyam Latif' caused Yusif Latif from Texarkana Texas in a note to al-Huda on the 29th to appeal for detailed information of this victim, specifically, from which village she came. Yusif Latif's apprehension rested on a letter his father sent telling him that his sister had left Syria for the U.S. and was on her way to see him. The names were similar to the name of his sister. In retrospect, however, the name of survivor Mary, daughter of Latifah Ba qlini, may have came through on the wireless together as Mari with Latifah which may answer the question as to who was Mary Latif.

In, yet, another case, it was first reported in the Arabic newspapers, that a well-known Syrian merchant by the name of Niqula Nasr of Cairo, Egypt, had perished in the sinking. The misidentification occurred when one of the passenger names taken from incoming telegraphs reached New York as "Nicholas Nasser," the name published in the New York Times on April 17th. Mir'at al-Gharb reported that the wirelesses included the names of "Niqula Nasr and his wife" and that if this name was correct then this passenger would be the wholesaler from Cairo. (7) According to the newspaper there was a strong possibility that this was the same person since it had received word from him on the 23rd of January that he was planning a trip to the United States. However, on April 19th the same newspaper made a correction identifying Niqula as the well known Niqula Nasr Allah of Zahla and that his wife had survived. On 19 April, al-Huda_reported the same information.

As the Arabic newspapers attempted to update the names, readers were reminded that as more information was gathered corrections would be made and that any and all names and details of passengers would continue to be published. (8) One newspaper stated that it would not continue to list the names of the Syrian passengers as they appeared in the American press as the tendency to anglicize the Arabic may render them inaccurate, thereby causing unjustified apprehension and concern. (9) In its April 23rd issue, Al-Bayan printed only a few of the victims' names suspecting that others could have been incorrect. Warily, al-Huda and_Mir'at al-Gharb published the first lists of Syrian passenger names. (10)

Moreover, the Arabic newspapers were more than ready to assist with queries and to clear up discrepancies whenever they could. Letters sent into the newspapers would help in clearing uncertainties. In some instances, a passenger was identified as a result of first hand knowledge by a survivor of the Titanic. Such was the case with survivor Sha ninah Jirjis Wihbah who clarified the name of one of her relatives with whom she had boarded the ship. On her behalf, Sim an Habib of Tuham sent a letter to al-Huda on May 2nd to make the clarification and confirm the death of Hanna Tannus Mu awwad "Bu Shahin." (11) Furthermore, as late as May 10th, survivor Mariyam Assaf was identified as Zad Assaf, wife of Quzma Dahir and from the village of Kafar Mishki, in the district of Rashaya al-Wadi; this was in response to a query to Mir'at al-Gharb from those asking "Who is Mariyam Assaf from Kafar Mishki?" From Ottawa, a letter dated May 3rd from Jirjis Khalil Ibrahim and published on the 10th gave sole survivor from Kafar Mishki Mariyam Assaf's response as to what were the correct names of those passengers from her village, all having perished in the sinking. (12)

Individuals would provide information to or ask questions of the newspapers, that revealed destination points or simply verified passenger names. Such was the case with a resident of Lake Flaj, Arkansas, who sent a letter informing the paper that Hanna Jirjis Anton, proprietor of the Syrian hotel in Marseilles, had written to Sim an Atta Allah that his daughter and son-in-law had indeed left for the U.S. on April 8th from Marseilles to board the Titanic. (13) Another was al-Shaykh Ahmad Hamzi, resident of Detroit, Michigan who, upon requesting information on passenger Mustafa Nasr, informed readers that Nasr was on his way to the city. (14) In addition, on April 27th Mir'ah al-Gharb interviewed survivor Nasal" Qasim Abu-Al-Muna, who verified the names and death of two relatives who had traveled with him: 18-year-old Farid Qasim Husayn Abd al-Khaliq and 11-year-old Husayn Mahmud Husayn. From al-Bayan readers learned from Amin Isma il Balmani of Fredericksburg in a note of condolence to Husayn's family that Husayn's father was Mahmud Husayn. The 11-year-old had been on his way to visit his father.

The Arabic press received and disseminated information to the community. For instance, the Syrians learned of the American Senate Hearings on the case of the Titanic, of the investigation as to the sinking, of reports of other ships that may have heard the call for help and of the progress of the ships sent out to recover the bodies. Worldwide news was made local, especially when the recovery of the bodies of Niqula Nasr Allah (15) and Dahir Abu Shadid was reported in al-Huda's April 24th issue. (16) Earlier, on the 13th, the same newspaper reported that on the previous day, Halifax authorities had received information from Captain Peter Johnson that his ship had recovered four bodies, one of which was that of an unidentified fifteen-year-old Syrian girl.

Another instance occurred on May 4th when al-Bayan reported that one of the recovered bodies could be that of Syrian third-class passenger Yusif Tannus or Sin an Butrus. In addition, the paper reported that in Halifax, Ibrahim Arab and his children had seen the two recovered bodies of Yusif Jirjis and Sim an Butrus but were not permitted to claim them, al-Huda published their letter urgently asking for direct family members to claim the bodies as only immediate family would be permitted do so. (17)

Equally important were the reports about memorial services for the victims that allowed the community to mourn together. The massive funeral arrangements for Titanic victim Niqula Nasr Allah were announced in Mir'at al-Gharb on May 3rd and an invitation to the services and burial was issued to those members of the community who had not officially received one.

      Tomorrow, the body of the late Niqula Khalil Nasr
   Allah of Zahla, one of the victims of the sinking of the Titanic,
   will arrive in New York. It will be met by Sab Nasr Allah,
   cousin of the deceased, along with the family and friends. At
   2:00 p.m. next Sunday, the body will be taken to the Syrian
   Orthodox Cathedral for the prayer service. It will then be
   taken to its final resting place and laid to rest in peace and
   comfort beside the late Salam Nasr Allah, brother of Sab.
   Condolences go out to his widow, cousin and to the family.
   Death announcements have been distributed to the
   community. If not, this is an oversight and for those who did
   not receive one, please attend.

In vivid detail, al-Sa'ih_described for its readers the memorial service held for Niqula Khalil Nasr Allah and that members of the Syrian community had attended the services having come to pay their respects to the Nasr Allah family on the death of "al-shahid." (18) Bishop Rafa'el Hawaweeny of Brooklyn conducted the religious services. The casket, when taken for burial, was wrapped in white silk and strewn with flowers. At the site where he was buried, Tawfiq Fakhr read an emotional poem as an elegy dedicated to the young man. Condolences were then paid to his wife, cousin and family.

Utica's Ittihad al-Suri al-Khayriyyah held a mass and requiem for the souls of those who disappeared with the Titanic, performed by Father Lewis Latif. Following the services, a group of the Club's young men delivered an eulogy for the dead. The mourners then walked to the Syrian Club hall wearing black ribbons. (19) A memorial service was also held in Ottawa, Canada for the victims and a moving eulogy was delivered to the newlywed couple from Kafar Mishki. (20)

The above example demonstrates the significant role of the Arabic press in assisting a community, which sought information about fellow compatriots. The queries sent to the newspapers were printed and responses published. Those queries clarified information that was later released. Yet, it was the established clubs and associations in the community that would work together to perform their patriotic duty (American and Syrian) as a committee to receive and assist the Syrian survivors and to inform the community about the fate of the Syrians who had boarded the Titanic.

THE WORK OF THE SYRIAN CLUBS AND ASSOCIATIONS

By working jointly, the Syrian newspapers and the Syrian clubs and associations disseminated information to the community, assisted in general relief efforts and solicited donations. The following announcement was printed in the Arabic newspapers:

   The Syrian Emergency Committee
   Established [sic] for the Victims of the Titanic
   Last Thursday al-Muntada al-Suri al-Imriki and al-Nahdah
   al-Lubnaniyyah agreed to work as one [sic] on behalf of
   the victims of the grievous Titanic disaster. Representative
   committees of the two Clubs met at the premises of al-Muntada
   in Brooklyn and formed one committee.... (21)

One of the first commitments of the Emergency Committee was to attend to the needs of the Syrian survivors and to arrange for accommodations within the community upon their discharge by the American relief committees.

Appointed as the Committee's President was Najib Jirji Badran, Treasurer and Secretary, Jirjis Fa ur and Mansur al-Hilu. Members included Najib Fi ani, al-Amir Amal Shihab, Dumat Fa ur, Niqula Dibs, Ghattas Faris, Tamir Ma luf Yusif al-Haddari, Yusif Zal am, Jurj Mubarik, Tubiya al-Khuri, Yussif Humsi and Butrus Karam. (22) al-Huda's commentary on the unity of the two clubs and their endeavors in assisting survivors and victims of the Titanic emphasized the significance of their actions and that credit is due them for they represented the virtues and integrity of "our countrymen." (23) al-Dalil applauded the unity of the two clubs in their patriotic and humane endeavors while al-Bayan labeled the unity as "two hands working like one." (24) Relief efforts, whether humanitarian or monetary, were resolute reflections of the true nobility, character and generosity of the Syrian. (25) Not to help would have been a disgrace. The Emergency Committee's work began fervently. Immediately, a special meeting was arranged to help raise money and collect donations for the General Relief Fund, established by the Mayor of New York. The Syrian community would be involved in collecting monetary contributions for an American-based relief fund that was set up for all survivors of the Titanic. Mir'at al-Gharb (26), al-Bayan (27) and al-Sa'ih (28) reported that al-Muntada al-Suri al-Imriki (29) of New York, although a politically based group, donated $50.00 from its special fund account. It was the first club to donate money to those affected by the disaster. (30) al-Muntada, along with al-Nahda al-Lubnaniyyah (31), which also donated $50.00 the following day (32), quickly appointed a special emergency committee to solicit donations from the society's membership and from among the Syrian community in general. The committee realized the moral and financial obligations due those affected by the disaster. (33)

Donations came in. By April 19th, Mir'at al-Gharb announced that al-Muntada had collected a total of $100.00 and donations were still coming in. A list of donors showing the amount of their contributions was published in the Arabic newspapers and was updated daily. Arabic newspapers were replete with gratitude for the immediate outpouring of assistance, al-Dalil insisted that the money raised was a reflection of who the Syrians were and how they were perceived by the American public. "What is more wonderful than to join ranks with everyone and to show everyone our humanitarian side." (34) Newspapers also praised the societies and clubs that continued to pledge their assistance and their efforts to raise money for the victims.

Amounts from community members varied from $10.00 to $.50, the community gave what it could and a list of names showing corresponding donation was published on April 23rd in al-Bayan and a complete list on the 26th in al-Huda. The $307.45 that was collected was sent in full to the General Relief Committee's Fund with a letter to Mayor Gaynor expressing the appreciation of the Syrian community to the American public and to the American relief agencies for assisting the survivors including the Syrians. (35) Arabic newspapers also praised and expressed the deep-felt appreciation of the entire community towards all the American relief agencies and charities for their assistance to all survivors and their attention to the families of those who had perished. (36)

Gaynor thanked the Syrian American Club of New York and the Lebanon League of Progress for the donations in a letter (37) he sent and which was published, translated into Arabic, in al-Sa'ih on 9 May 1912.

But assistance did not stop with the collection of donations. As with the thousands who surged on the White Star Line's headquarters in New York to learn the fate of their loved ones, the Syrian club, al-Ittihad al-Suri did the same but with a seven man delegation to administer to the needs of the arriving Syrians. On April 18th, most of the survivors, many of whom were Syrian, who had reached New York aboard the Carpathia, were taken to local hospitals to recover mainly from exposure and shock.

The receiving committee met and assisted the Syrians once the committee was permitted to communicate with them or when the survivors reached the hospitals. (38) An announcement was made to the community by al-Ittihad's secretary, Abbas Abu Shaqra in Mir'at al-Gharb on 19 April 1912:

   To All Syrians in New York
   From the Syrian Unity Club

   Due to the recent events concerning the Titanic disaster and
   there being a number of our Syrian countrymen among the
   passengers and among those who survived, the Syrian Unity
   Club has taken upon itself to care for those who survived the
   sinking. Last night they were brought in aboard the ship that
   reached port and will be reaching us. A Committee has been
   appointed to receive them and to ease their comfort...

The delegation hoped that it would be able to have the survivors released immediately under their auspices and to have them cared for in the community. Upon the arrival of the Carpathia, the receiving committee was "the sole delegation representing the community at the port of arrival". (39) The committee included: Dawud Haddari, President: Nadra Haddad, Vice President; Anton Sim an, Qaysar Sabbagh, Wadei Bahut, Tawfiq Biskinti and Abbas Abu Shaqra, Secretary. (40)

However, the delegation's request to have the Syrian survivors released to it was denied. Mir'ah al-Gharb explained on April 19th that the larger American relief agencies had moved them to local hospitals and found lodging for them in local hotels under the care and supervision of the ladies' charitable and humanitarian associations. Nevertheless, the committee began to collect information on the passengers and Abu Shaqra asked the community to send queries to the committee. (41)

The Syrian survivors were taken to St. Vincent, Bellevue and the Hebrew Shelter House. It was at the hospitals that members of the newly formed emergency committee of al-Muntada and al-Nahda collected the names of Syrian passengers.

From St. Vincent, Haddari telephoned the names of the Syrian survivors to the Arabic newspapers. Biskinti did the same from the Hebrew Shelter. The verification of names had begun. Survivor Fahim Ruhanna al-Za inni, described as a well-mannered young man, provided many of the details. On April 19, Mir'at al-Gharb_reported that, according to Biskinti, 125 Syrians had originally boarded the Titanic. However, al-Za inni had earlier reported the number to be between 95 and 105. (42)

Al-Za inni was the first to give the committee credible information. For example, he reported that Al-Amir Faris Shihab, a member of one of the more notable families of al-Hadath, Beirut, was among the victims.

On April 27th, al-Huda published a letter that had been sent by As ad Yusif Sim an, resident of Cheboygan, Michigan, inquiring about passengers who may have come from the village of Turza. In the same issue, Mu awwad Yusif al-Maqdasi from Tuham and resident of Owen Sound, Canada, inquired as to whether Sim an Jirjis Awn of Tuham had survived the sinking. In another instance, al-Huda published a request on May 6 from Tawfiq al-Hadathi inquiring as to whether any of the ship's Syrian passengers had been from Ottawa. Other requests included information regarding As ad Khalil, as to his hometown and as to whether he had been a passenger. Habib As ad of Gowganda, Ontario made a second request asking if Nasif Makhkhul Sa d and Karam Yusif Karam who were from Kafar Mishki were also passengers on the Titanic. Everyone understood that an anxious community wanted correct information.

The Committee and al-Ittihad's delegation's first-hand reports proved vital. Arabic lists clarified some passenger names and places of origin.

At Bellevue Hospital, Jirjis Fa ur, Treasurer of the emergency committee, met with the General Relief Committee and negotiated on behalf of Amanah and her children and her sister, Silanah. Due to his efforts, the Relief Committee decided to give Amanah and her children $100.00 and Silanah, whose husband had perished, $200.00. (43) Fa ur also spoke with the committee on behalf of Sha ninah Yusif. (44)

Father Ilyas Hanna al-Misri, Deputy of "His Eminence" the Patriarch of the Syriac Catholic Church of Hama who was temporarily staying at St. Vincent, helped with the revision of passenger names. By April 23rd, in an al-Huda article entitled "al-Suriyyun al-Najun" (The Surviving Syrians), he was able to add names of those not previously identified.

Once survivors were released to al-Ittihad's delegation, they were either taken to hotels on Washington Street or to Syrian residences to wait to settle official claims for losses. (45) Survivors were advised to give their information to the General Relief Committee as monetary relief was being provided for claims. Those who had not were advised to return to the hospital and do so. (46)

A group of lawyers from the community met with al-Huda to discuss the possibility of claims against the company or individuals once the American Inquiry in Washington, DC was completed. (47) al-Huda remained behind the process, consulting with six lawyers as to whether the Syrian passengers had the right to file a claim against the White Star Line.

Haddari signed for the release of the survivors from hospitals with a promise that al- Ittihad would care for and transport them safely to their destinations. On April 27th, Mir'at al-Gharb reported the release of some of the survivors and their eventual destinations.

Al-Ittihad gave each adult survivor $5.00 and each child $2.50 to tide them over until claims were settled. The committee wrote letters for the survivors to their families in the U.S., Canada and Syria. (48) The address of each survivor's destination was documented so that they could be contacted once monetary settlement by the survivors' fund was reached. Similarly, al-Muntada wired messages to family and relatives of the Syrian survivors, informing them of their location in the city. Many responded by arriving in New York to meet their surviving relatives in the hospitals to which they had been taken.

Such was the delegation from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania that arrived to corroborate names of those who perished and those who survived from their village of Hardin, one of the villages with the largest loss. (49) The delegation included: Jirjis Bashur, Mikha'il Anton Faris, Salam Tannus Makhkhul, Iskandar Tannus, Ishaq Hanna Dib, Isbir Jirjis Mubarik, Antonyus Jirjis Mubarik, Kan an Jirjis Mubarik, Hanna Dahdah Hanna, Hanna Musa Yazbak, Yusif Musa Yazbak, Antonyus Jirjis, Ilyas Abu Ramah and Yusif Faris who was from Ibrin.

Furthermore, al-Muntada contacted Mayor Gaynor of New York with information regarding the Syrian passengers so that their correct names could be included with those of the other passengers. Al-Muntada also purchased personal items for the survivors. (50) Although community members offered their homes fox temporary lodging, Mr. Habib Asi, a member of al-Muntada, took 15 survivors to his Syrian hotel on Washington Street. Mr. Jirji al-Shawa, owner of Shawi's Restaurant on Washington Street. received the others.

Jam iyat al-Sayyidat al-Suriyyat al-Khayriyyah (51) was also involved and recognized for its assistance. Six of its members took it upon themselves to visit and meet with the survivors and tend to their needs. Miss Anastasiyah Khuri, for example, was commended for accompanying the American Ladies Agencies and helping the Syrian survivors. (52)

As contemporary sources, the Arabic newspapers published in New York, became archival treasures for information on the impact of the sinking and the response of the Syrian community. The print media became the voice of the community that sought to assist in relief efforts. Together, the Arabic print media, organizations and members of the Syrian community coordinated their efforts to assist both survivors and families of the victims.

The Syrian survivors found comfort knowing that there were people in this new country ready to help. It was a time of communal solidarity, a demonstration of cohesiveness within and assimilation with those outside the community. Suffering was universal, all peoples had been affected and the Syrian community was part of the humanitarian call for assistance and relief for all passengers.

ENDNOTES

(1.) April 17, 1912.

(2.) On April 17th and 18th al-Huda included certain names that, after research, could not be matched to the names of later passengers that this author was able to confirm--Nakid Nahra,, Mariyam (Mary) Latif Abd allah Hasan, Hanna Wakim, Sabat al-Tannuri.

(3.) Names of the third class Syrian survivors, "blurred in transmission" and which appeared in the New York Tribune_on the 19th included misspellings of, for example, Bannurah Ayyub, which appeared as 'Aloun, Bednoura and then as 'Ajul, Bemora' on the 20th; Fatimah Muslamani as 'Musulman, Mina; Maryam Yusif as 'Yusef, Madera'; and on the 20th the name 'Yaslick, Salamy' for Silanah Yazbak. In fact, Adal Nasr Allah's name in the Tribune appeared as second-class survivor 'Delia Nassar' on the 19th. In the New York Herald, the name Naserael, Mrs. Adelia was given as a survivor "now on board the Carpathia" and then corrected in parenthesis as Israel Nesson. Nesson was, in fact a second class passenger from Russia who did not survive (April 19 and 21, 1912).

(4.) The New York Times, April 25, 1912.

(5.) April 17, 1912.

(6.) This was actually third class passenger Franz Karun who boarded at Cherbourg.

(7.) April 17, 1912.

(8.) Al-Huda, April 24, 1912.

(9.) Al-Dalil, April 20, 1912.

(10.) List of names in both newspapers appeared on April 17, 1912.

(11.) On April 27th, Al-Huda published a letter from Hanna Yusif Dib, resident of New Castle, Pennsylvania informing readers that Shacninah, wife of Jirjis Yusif of Fighal and survivor of the Titanic arrived in New Castle and related that the four men with whom she had traveled had drowned and that the newspapers had not published their names. The passengers' names were given as Hanna Tannus Mucawwad and his son Tannus, Tannus Dahir and Jirjis Yusif Abu Sach, all of Tuham.

(12.) On May 1, 1912, queries were published in Mir'at_al-Gharb requesting information from Mariyam 'Assaf regarding Titanic passenger Ascad Khalil and his village of origin and the other from Habib Ascad in Gowganda, Ontario asking if Nasif Makhkhul Sacd and Karam Yusif Karam of Kafar Mishki were passengers.

'Assaf confirmed the names of those from Kafar Mishki with whom she had traveled: Ilyas Yusif Shahin, Mansur Hanna al-Haj, cAssaf Jirjis Tucmah, Karam Yusif Karam and his newlywed wife who was also the daughter of Ilyas Yusif [Mariya Ilyas], Ascad Hanna Rizq, Katarin Barbarah wife of Isbir Dawud, Sacadah daughter of Khalil al-Basha, Ilyas Tannus Ibrahim, and Sulayman Tannus Ibrahim.

(13.) Al-Huda May 15, 1912. Malakah 'Atta Allah and her brother-in-law Yusif Ibrahim (al-Shaccer).

(14.) Al-Huda May 7, 1912.

(15.) The same issue also reported the confusion of Niqula Nasr Allah's name with that of John Jacob Astor's as upon recovery of the body, the name wired in was that of 'Niqula Rashir' (Nicholas E. Rasher) confusing it with that of Astor's. The New York Times reported that recovery of this body caused much speculation over Col. Astor's name as the dispatch of the name Nicholas Rasher was examined by the wireless and telegraph men who concluded that it might stand for Colonel John Jacob Astor (April 23, 1912). After details developed, however, the name corresponded, instead, to that of Nasr Allah's. Readers were also informed that his deeply grieving wile was staying with her relatives in Brooklyn.

(16.) Dahir Abu Shadid was identified as "Nakhlah Shadid or Dahir Shadid' and in the New York Times as Nihil Schedid (April 23 and 24, 1912).

(17.) May 2, 1912.

(18.) "The martyr." al-Sa'I,h May 9, 1912, p. 3.

(19.) Mir'at al-Gharb May 22, 1912.

(20.) Karam Yusif Karam and his wife, Mariyah Ilya.s

(21.) Al-Huda, April 20, 1912.

(22.) Al-Huda, April 26, 1912. al-Sa'ih, April 23, 1912, also includes the name of al-Shaykh Nucum Hatim.

(23.) April 27, 1912.

(24.) April 23, 1912.

(25.) Al-Dalil, April 27, 1912.

(26.) April 19, 1912.

(27.) April 23, 1912.

(28.) April 23, 1912.

(29.) The Syrian-American Club

(30.) Al-Dalil, April 20, 1912.

(31.) The Lebanon League of Progress

(32.) Al-Dalil, April 20, 1912.

(33.) Al-Huda, April 26, 1912.

(34.) April 20, 1912.

(35.) Al-Huda, April 26, 1912.

(36.) Especially to the American Red Cross Society and to the quickly organized Relief Committee established by the women of New York to aid the steerage passengers. The New York Women's Relief Committee to Aid Titanic Sufferers, headed by Mrs. Nelson Herrick Henry had begun to raise money, collect clothing and organize lodging arrangements in its appointment as guardian of the immigrants New York Herald, April 19, 1912.

(37.) Gaynor's letter was dated April 23, 1912:

      Dear Mr. Badran:

      I would like to thank you for your letter, which
   arrived on the 22nd of this month and the generous donation
   included from the Syrian-American Club of New York and the
   Lebanon League of Progress in the amount of $307.45 for the
   relief of survivors for both crew and passengers of the Titanic
   and to allay the hardships of the families of those who lost
   their lives in this disaster.

      Yours respectfully,
      W.J. Gaynor
      Mayor of the City

(38.) Al-Sa'ih, April 20, 1912.

(39.) Mir'at al Gharb, April 19, 1912.

(40.) Mir'th al Gharb, April 19, 1912 and al-Sa'ih, April 23, 1912.

(41.) Al-Sa'ih, April 23, 1912.

(42.) Al-Zacinni informed al-Dalil, April 20, 1912 that there had been at least 100 Syrian passengers.

(43.) Al-Huda, April 26, 1912.

(44.) Al-Dalil, April 27, 1912.

(45.) Al-Dalil, April 20, 1912.

(46.) Al-Bayan, April 23, 1912.

(47.) April 17, 1912.

(48.) Al-Huda, April 20, 1912.

(49.) Al-Huda, April 24, 1912.

(50.) Mir'at al-Gharb, April 27, 1912.

(51.) Syrian Ladies Aid Society of New York

(52.) Mir'at al-Gharb, April 27, 1912.

Leila Salloum Elias holds a Master's Degree in Middle East and Islamic Studies from the University of Toronto, Canada and is a freelance writer. She resides in Allentown, Pennsylvania.