The Belmont chronicle, and farmers, mechanics and manufacturers advocate. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1848-1855, 1854-11-24
LOSS or THE SHIP NEW ERA.
LOSS or ESQ PERSONS.
sta,cmontof capt. Thomas J. Henry.


steerage, six second-cabin, end five cabin
passengers. Our cargo consisted of600 tuns
of Chalk, and 20 900 cubic feet of Bremen
merchandise. During the whole of the pas
sage, we had heavy gales from The westward,
and, about the 2Oth of October, were struck
by sea, which swept everything fore and
ait, us we were laying-to. 1t stove the pas
sengers' cookng-range, killed several OF the
passengers who were in tho caboose at the
time, and injured several of the crew. 1t
also stove the main hatch covering. Thu
passengers killed were all Of the steerage.-
| The shock OF this sea caused us TO sprug a
leak, and by the time we had got off the
American coast, she leaked enough tc keep
our pump-goihg all Of the time. The last
observation which took was on Friday last,
when W is in 66 . w. Ion. 4l 30 min.
lat. Since that time | was prevented from
taking an observation on account of the thick
and rainy weather. On Saturday, judged the
ship to be in ~ 80 min. lon., 40 20 min.
lat. On Saturday night we d, had strong
wind from the eastward, which changed to
southeast, at about midnight, and the wind
began to blow and the rain to fall heavily
The lead was thrown every hour, and ! sup
posed the ship to be on the coast Of Long Is
land, and | carried heavy press of sail to
keep her eff. At 81 O'Clock on Monday
morning, Oh sounding, we found that we
were in from thirteen to fifteen fathoms Of
water. At o'clock, heweather being very
thick and the sea rough, we struck. The
first mate was on the deck some ten minutes
before the vessel struck. Twas in the cabin,
about going on deck myself, when all at once,
heard him ask the watch forward what it
was that looked so light forward! On hear
ing this Immediately jumped on deck, and
then, FOR the first time, heard them cry out
"Breakers!" ! at once ordered the wheel
up, and in the same moment the ship struck.
at once caused the yards to be braceG aback,
to get her off, but we only thumped further
on She went head on, made two or three
:humgs, and swung around broadside to, and
found that she was hopeessly aground
The sea at once commenced breaking over
her side, breaking up everything upon the
deck. | got the passengers up out OF the be-
iween-decks to the main deck. then or
dercd a boat to be lowered in order to get u
line ashore. We got the line into the boat,
and tie crew, first mate, cook, and five men
rowed ashore, but in going let 90 the line;
they subsequently said that they did this in
order to save themselves The boat reach
ed the shore all right, but the sea ran too
high for them to return in safety. Within
half an hour after the first boat had left, the
remainder OF the crew, with enc or two eX-
ceptions, seized the other two boats and de-
serted me, taking with them two ofthe cabin
! 81 N,,l IL L
me the people on shore attempted to launch
n srrf. boat to come to our assistance. Then
they fired a shot over us from the mortar
the attempt at launching The suh-boat hav-
ing failed. This was also unsuccessful
The first shot went ahead; several of the fol-
lowing shots were uscless---thc wire conncc-
ting the line to the ball breaking. Near
noon line was thrown over us, and with
the assistance Of the passengers we hauled a
stouter line on board. By this means we
hauled lifc-boat from the shore. but when
it reached US it was full OF water. jumped
into it TO bale it out, when found the pass
engers crowding on me. and Stacked the line
out little, and ordered those on shore to
haul her out from the ship. They did so, and
we got the boat ashore, with the loss of five
persons. The boat capsizcd twice in going
ashore, and finally the line Of connection be-
tween the ship and the shore parted. Five
persons together with myself were, with great
difficulty, saved. The boat, in cap5zing,
turned me under, and it was some time be-
fore | got ou.; at length suc e,ded in mount
ing the keel, when ! was saved.
At the time | go; ashore the passengers
were in the fore, main and mlzzen rigging,
Il nd so remained through the night, as no
earthly assistance could be offered to them
from the shsre, The scene on board Of my
ship was dreadful. | hope in Heaven mag
never behold like scene again.
The night was warm and pleasant, and the
sea had fallen great--the wind having chang
ed to the wcst-s0uth- west-else not a soul
would have lived through the long night.
or the crew, all were saved except the
steward, George A. Drew, of Boston, who
stad by me on the ship, and was drowned in
the cabin.
We had a crew of 30 men, and IL passen-
ger cooks; making in all, with myself, 427
souls.
The two cabin passengers who came a.
shore aid were saved, were named VIM. Won
J KonZelaer ana GuStaVuS Benne OF Reading,
Pa. They went to New York yesterday
J One of them was saved in the frs: boat, and
the other in the second The other two
cabin passengers were lost, while the wife Of
Wm. Won Ronzeaer died soen after leaving
Bremen. One Of them was the physician of
the ship whose name | cannot recollect, and
the other young lady named Doretta, (so
! she was called.
Forty of the passengers, including these
lost, as have already described, died during
! the passage-most of them of eholera-this
disease having broken out before we quilted
Bremen--one passenger dying OF it, indeed
before we got out ot the roads. With refer
ence to the complaints of the passengers gen
orally, that the food was both bad and scanty,
can only say that according to the best of
my knowledge the food and water were both
good and sufficient for seventy davs, and |
know that their food was served out strictly
in accordance with the Bremen regulations,
which direct that it should be served out by