Southern sentinel. [volume] (Plaquemine, Parish of Iberville [La.]) 1848-1858, 1853-04-30

men, women and children. Such q scene has
never before been witnessed on the Pacific
coast. To add to the excitement, the flames
had now communicated to the powder maya
zine, which exploded, tearing the run and stern
to pieces, and splintering all that portion Of the
ship; the two guns, surrounded by the flames,
also sent their solemn booming over the scene.
Those who were fortunate enough to get with.
: in reach of their friends on shore, were drag
ged. half dead, out of the reach Of the surf,
while others were swept around the stern of the
steamer or out to sea, there being a strong cur
rent making seward from the ship. At one
moment not less than thirty corpses and bodies
of the dying were in the edge Of the surf, some
of them Invested Of clothing. Out of 4 party
of eighteen Jew who were on board, sixteen
persisted from the weight Of coin, it was sup,
posed, which they attempted to bring with them
through the waves. The outward current
above mentioned carried off numbers of per-
sons who were good swimmers or foated, who
would otherwise have been saved; several WOE
men thus floating were swept away; the bag
cage, such as would float, also went out with
the ebb; none of it was saved by drifting to the
Shore"
We have spoken above Of the manly con-
duct of the sailors, firemen and coal passers.
Some of these noble fellows, disregarding their
own danger, seized little children in their arms
or dashed them to themselves and attempted to
gain the shore; several are known thus to have
sacrificed themselves. One of the fremen,
whose name we did not learn, brought on shore
two children whose parents were both drown
ed. Another fireman brought a beautiful boy
ashore to his mother who had just been wash
ed to the beach,; her husband and two children
were drowned and she supposed this child had
| shared the same fate; the meeting may be ina
gined.
There is one fireman, known as Tom Sawyer,
a wild, reckless scamp, but whose faults, be
they what they may, should henceforth be for
gotten; this brave fellow, entirely stripped,
went TO and from the wreck four times |
he is only nineteen years of age. After the
third time, and when nearly exhausted with
his exertions, he learned that the chief engi~
neer, Mr.. Collins, was unable to swim and like
ly TO drown; he Immediately started off again
through the surf with a life preserver, fastened
it around the helpless man and accompanied
him to the beach,; he was also instrumental in
preserving the lives of several others. Most
of those ashore were too exhausted to render
assistance TO those beating about in the surf.
People ran about the beach perfectly frantic.
One party attempted to launch a boat to reach
the steamer, but it was overwhelmed by the
surf, and this accident intimidated others SO
that it was impossible to muster the requisite
force to launch a second, Meantime the ship
had become a living mass of fire; the heat was
intense, even on the shore, and every moment
the beach received new accessions to the list
of dead and dying. The scene was truly har>
rowing, and when at last the steamer was a
charred and smoking hulk, her stern lifted, and
she swung heavily round and went up broad
side. on the beach.
Sdfa6sfew provisions were saved from the
wreck such as salt beef, pork, molasscs, vine-
gar, a few tin cans of preserved meats and
some cheese, but no water, nor was there a
drop of water on the island, which we have be-
fore observed was utterly barren and uninha-
bited. The usual amount of suffering, partic-
ular1y among the women and children, was ex-
perienced. There were now some 27O souls s
congregated on the beach, and they all went {
without tasting water for ~tifty>six hours, the
salt provisions only aggravated their sufferings.
Shortly, a party started for the neighboring
mountains, and on reaching their summit they ,
were enabled to descry Magdalena Bay on the
main land opposite, from which the island of
Margarita is distant some fifteen miles; here l
they observed four ships at anchor; they PROV
ed to be whaIers busily engaged in trying out
oil, while beyond in the vast panorama they
discovered several small boats in full chase af.
ter . whale, for Magdalena Bay is resorted to
by whales in thse winter season. Observing 9
this, the party descended to the wreck, and the y
mate, the engineers and Q few others, .
slung one of the cannons of the Independence,
dragged and logged it with great toll to the +
top of the hill, and with what little powder y
they had, fired twice to attract the attention of IL
the whalers; the boats in pursuit of the whale, P
had insensibly neared the eastern shore of the "
Island, and were at once attracted by the dis
charge and the smoke against the clear sky.-
sound was also heard by those on board g
the ships, and signals were observed to- 60 up !;
TO each masthead recalling the boats.
While this system of telegraphing was going
on between the shipwrecked and the whaling
another party had taken an iron boat be-
TO the steamer and carried it bodily
across to the lee side of the island and there
launched it, to pull for the feet; on their way
hey fell in with the returning whaling boats,
who were obeying the signal to return. The .
1ews Of the wreck Of the steamer and the dread. "
suffering of the passengers aroused all the
natural instincts Of sailor hospitality in the =
of the ships. Every boat was at once
'alled into requisition, they were loaded down !
With provisions and despatched to the scene of =
he wreck; the assistance did not arrive a mo-
nent too soon; the women and children were +
'ompletelyaexhausted by abstinence, and their I
offerings by the deprivation of water were most CT
Purser Freedom went on board the ci
hip Omega, Capt. Fisher, where every atten-
ion was shown him and his companions. Capt.
Fisher also sent directions that the sufferers !"
hould cross over to the lee side of the island :
where boats would be in readiness to convex
hem on board the ships.
Among the incidents of the day after the "
Rreck child was born on the beach, and is now II
ealthy and thriving; the mother was carried tn