The Hillsdale standard. [volume] (Hillsdale, Mich.) 1851-1909, 1854-10-24
STATEMENT OF CAPT. LUCE.

bcc-saved by the ship Cambria.
QUEBEC, Oct. H.
Tho bark Cambria picked up Capt. Luce,
or of passengers and of tho crow of the
| Aric from raft.
The following is a correct lit of tho passen-
gers saved with Capt. Luce:-F. May, G. F.
Allen and Joseph Smith OF the Artc; j. A. G.
Francois, of the Vesta. Seamen-Patrick
| Norman A. Grant, Michael Russell, John Ri
ley and John Patterson.
| Tho names OF those who arrived at Quebec
on the ship Huron, aro-Lukc McCarty, Rich
ard Maclne, Joas. Abrys, Chris'r Moran, Eras.
tns Miller, John Drury, James Ward, David
Bcnney, Robert Bryson Jos. Comfy, Jas. Con
ner. Thomas Wilson and Grant Conway.
Mrs. Collins and family are certainly lost.
STATEMENT OF CAPT LUCE The Artic sail
ed from Liverpool on Wednesday, the goth
Sept, at III A. NJ, with 233 passengers and
about $50 of crew. Nothing of special note
occurred during the passage until Wednesday
tho 9th, when at noon we were on the banks
in latitude 46:45 with long. 52 west, steering
west by compass, The weather had been iogy
during the day. Generally. q distance of ! to
2 of mile could be seen, but at intervals of q
few minutes, a very dense fog followed by be-
ing sufficiently clear to see one or two miles
| At noon left tho deck for the purpose oi
working out the position of the ship. In a few
minutes heard a cry of "land starhoar6,
from the Office of tho deck. rushed on deck
when felt crash forward, at the same mo-
ment saw a steamer under the starboard bow.
and the next moment she struck our guards and
passed as,ern of US. The bows of the strange
vessel seemed to be literally cut or crushed of
for full 10 feet, and it seemed that she must
probably sink in few minutes, and taking a
hasty glance of our own ship, and believing
that we were comparatively unnjured, my first
impulse was to endcavor to save the lives of
those on board tho sinking vessel.
Tho boats were cleared, and tho first officer
and six men left with one boat, when it was
found our own ship was leaking fearfully.-
! The engineers were set to work. instructed to
put on the steam pumps. and tho four dock
pnmps were worked by the passengers and
crew. The ship was headed for land, which
judged was about fifty miles distant. l was
compelled to leave my boat and crew with the
| first officer TO take care of themselves.
| Several Intellectual attempts were made to
stop the leak by getting sails over the bows
and finding the leak gaining on us very fast
Notwithstanding all our powerful efforts to keep
her. ] resolved to get tho boats ready, and as
manv ladies and children placed in them as
possible; but no sooner had the attempt been
made than the firemen and others rushed into
them in spite Of opposition.
Seeing this state of things. ordered the
boats ascrn to be kept in readiness until or
der should be restored, when, TO my dismay, |
saw them cut the rope in the bow, and soon
| disappear astern in the fog. Another boat was
| broken down by persons rushing at the daviis.
| aud many persons precipitsted into the sea and
| drowned. This occurred while had been en-
gagged in getting tho siarboard guard boat
| ready. and placed tho second officer in charge,
when the same fearful scene n with tho first
boat was enacted: men leaping from tho top
of the rail. twenty feet, pushing and manning
| those who were in the boat.
then gave orders to the 2d officer to let 90
and row after the ship under or near the storm,
| to be ready to take on board women and chill
dren rs soon as the fires werc out and the on
gipcs stopped. My attention WINS then directed
| to tho other quarter boat which found broken
down but hanging by the tackle. rush was
made for her also and somc dozen or fften got
in and cut the tackle. |; was soon out OF sight.
In the meantime, found that not seaman
was left on board nor a carpenter; and with
out any tools to assist us, built raft as our
only hope, md tho only officer left was Mr..
Dnran, the 3d officer, who aided me, with the
assistance of many of the passengers, who de-
servo great praise for their GOODNESS aud enor-
gy in doing all in their power. up to the very
moment before the ship struck
The chief engineer, with a part Of his assis-
taDts. had taken our smallest deck boat, and
before the ship went down pulled away with
about fifteen persons. We had succeeded in
getting the fall and main-yard and two top
gallant yards overheard, and such other small
spars and materials as we could collect when
was fully convinced that the ship must GO
down in a very short time. Not moment was
to be lost in getting tho spars lashed together
to form a raft-to do which, it became neces-
sary to get tho life boat our only remaining
boat. into the water.
This being accomplished, saw Mr.. Doran,
chief engineer Of the boat. taking care to keep
the oars on board TO prevent them from eav.
ing the ship. hoping still to get most of tho
women and children into this boat at least -
They had made considerable progress in col
lcc'ing the spars when an alarm was given that
the ship was sinking. and tho boat was show
ed off without oars or anything 10 help
themselves with, and when the ship sank
the boat had got, probably, one-eigth' of a
mile leeward, and in an instant, about quar-
ter TO p. NJ. the ship went down, carrying
evory soul on board with hor. soon found
myself on the surface, after a brief struggle,
with my own helpless child in my arms.
again found myself impollod downwards
TO grea, depth, and before reached the sur
face second ,imo lad nearly pcrished, and
had lost the hold Of my child. AS | struggled
to the surface of the water, a most awful and
heart rending scone presented itself to my
view.
Ovor 200 mon, women and children.
struggling together amidst pieces Of wreck Of
every kind. calling on each other for help, and
imploring God to help them. Such an appall-
ing scene may God preserve me from witness
ing again. 1dt d f0
was in the act of trying TO save my child,
whom portion of the paddle box came rush.
ing up cdgcways, just grazing my head, and
falling its whole weight upon tho head Of my
darling child In another moment beheld
him lifeless on tho water.
/ succeeded in getting on the top of the pad
die box in company with eleven others. Ono,
however, soon left for another piecc. finding
that it could not support so many. Others re-
mainod until they wero one by ono relieved by
death. We stood in water of tho temperature
of 45 ,, up to our knees, nd frcqently the sea
broke directly over us.
We soon separated from our friends on 9th