Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1854-10-16


wards, one of the men on the lookout struck
one bell and sung out, +" Hard to starboard."
The wheel was Immediately put as directed.
! | then saw a vessel on our starboard bow,
coming stem upon us with all her sail set.
She struck us on the starboard bow about 90
OF So feet abaft the stern. She left part of her
cutwater and stem in our bow. She then
drifted abaft the wheel, when she got clear of
us. l could see she was cut down as low as
the water, and as far abaft as the foremost.
could see the cargo in her forehold quite
plain. Our starboard quarter boat was then
| lowered with six of the crew, in charge of the
chief mate, to render assistance to the vessel
with which we had come in contact. The
boatswain's mate, and some five or six men
were also lowering the starboard guard boat
to render aid to the propeller, when Capt.
| LUCE cried out to hold on with that boat, and
| 90 forward and get the anchors over on the
port side, for the ship was listing over to star
| board very fast. | Immediately got about
| twenty of the firemen and coal passers and
some of the second cabin passengers to assist
| me. We got the anchors over, and then
| emptied the water out of the water casks and
| rolled them over to port and then filled them
in order TO give the vessel list in that direc'
| ton and get the holes out of the water We
| found it impossible. The carpenter was then
| lowered to examine the nature Of the damage
done our vessel. lie said there was hole
| about six feet below water mark, is inches
deep aud feet long. Capt. LUCE then told
me to fasten a sail over the hole. ordered
some men to get the maintopsail up, and get
the lines and sweep them under the ship $
| bottom, and make them fast to the clews of
the topsail, and have the sail drawn close to
| the ships side. Rut, with all VIC could do,
the water kept gaining on the ships pumps.
| We then got the mainsal and put that on the
| topsail. The Captain remarked that II this
did not stop the leak III less than ten minutes,
1t would be every man for himself, as we were
now up to the lower deck bows. Effort was
| then made to tighten the ship by letting the
! chains run overheard, all hope beng given up
of saving the vessel from sinking quickly after
this.
Capt. Luce began assisting the ladies and
children into the port guard boat, which had
been lowered for that purpose The port
| quarter boat was also filled with ladies and
| gentlemen while still hanging at the davits.
Five of the crew were among them. MIR.
| Kelley, the second assistant engineer; VIM.
Riar, quartermaster; Thomas Banver, VIM.
| Cummings, Chas. Steward, seamen; Mrs.
| Collins. daughter and son, l saw in the boat.
| One of the passengers, in the act Of lowering
the boat, let go Of the tressle fall, and all in
the boat, except Mr.. Goler and one of the
seaman, were drowned. By this time the
| guard boat had gone, having some sixteen or
eighteen ladies in it. This boat was in charge
of b. Van Arden.
l now went over to the starboard side
Capt Luce ordered Mr.. Baalham to lower the
starboard guard boat, which he did. Soon as
he had lowered her, some eighteen Or twenty
jumped overheard, who were picked up. 1
then got in this boat. The first quarter boat
was lowered, and twenty-six jumped into
her. We took six OF their number. Captain
Luce ordered our boats to leave He told us
Cape Race bore from us n. w. by w. We
very soon lost sight of the ship in the fog.
This was about l-2 o'clock. We steered for
land, as we supposed, by the heave of the
sea. We had neither meat nor drink for fifty
hours. Friday morning, o'clock, 10Th ult.,
we reached Broad Cove.
STATEMENT OF PATRICK ToBIN.
The 9th was calm, and the sea as quiet as
lake; but a very thick fog, such as is common
on the Banks, rendered objects at any dis
lance invisible. There was the usual "look-
OUT forward, and the steamer was going at
her ordinary speed.
had Just gone on the watch at noon
when the two vessels struck. The shock to
the Arctic was not very sensibiy felt by us.
We felt 10 immediate alarm. The doors Of
the fires were opened to reduce the steam, and
Mr.. Walker, one of the engineers, to whose
watch | belonged, sent me promptly to the
pumps. kept the steam pumps going until
they were unable to work. l was going on
deck when Mr.. Walker ordered me back. l
went, and threw in some coal, but the water
was now near the top furnaces, and all fur
ther effort was useless.
Mr.. Walker persisted in his duty, keeping
up steam until the water put out the fires.
Our only thoughts now were as to measures
of escape. When | got on deck all was con-
fusion; passengers were working with des-
perate energy at the forward pumps French
men, Germans and English were all calling in
their different languages to the fremen to help
them, and running to and fro on the deck,
sometimes rushing to the pumps and rushing
away again when relieved by others.
Still the passengers seemed hopeful of being
saved. The absence Of Mr.. Gourlie, the first
mate, was a great loss. He had been sent af-
ter the collision to ascertain what damage had
| been done to the French propeller, and when
| he returned he couldnot be taken on board
as we were making all speed for the land. L
believe that if he had been on board to keep
the sailors to their duty, and have RATS rugged,
many more would have been saved.
| The second mate, Edward Baalham, acted
badly iii my opinion. He lowered one of the
| quarter-boats about O'Clock k the ship did
not go down until about 4 o'clock-and him
self and most OF the sailors got into it. L saw
nothing OF them after | came on deck. Thr-
| ty-two were saved i'll our small boat, and the
second mates boat might have taken more
than double that number.
The departure of Baalham and the sailors,
left Capt Luce without experienced hands at
rigging RATS, as the fremen knew little of
what should be done. Mr.. Rogers, the chief
engineer, seemed most active i'll his efforts to
reduce the leaks and do all he could under
the circumstances. He staid by the ship until
it was dangerous to stay longer, as his boat
was in imminent risk of being swamped by
! persons jumping overboard,or of beng carried
down i'll the vortex made by the vessel sink
ing,
In tie meantime a raft was made of the
foreyard and spare spars, and dashed and
launched. Seyenty-six persons passengers,
coal-passers, &c.-got on the raft. They were
ALL subsequently, lost, except one picked up
by us. The Arctic was struck on the star
board side, little aft the bow. Three large
holes were made i'll the side-one below the
"copper" and two above.
Dorian, the third mate, was most active,
and stad by the ship until she went down.
The passengers, with despairing energy stuck
to the pumps to the last. They were working
on them up to the last moment. 1t was an
awful sight | got to the third mates boat
| just little before the final catastrophe,
When | first attempted to leave, the Capt.
caught me and tore the shirt off my back, to
prevent my going, exclaiming. "Let the pas