The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1861-01-05
THE MARCH OF DEATH.
Thrilling Narrative Of the Loss Of the Jersey City
Holc BraUe Men Died-Honor to True Hero,
Captain Monroe. ...-. .ra-... r.. ..


From the Cleveland Herald, December
The sad details of the loss Of the propeli
er Jersey City on the afternoon of Saturday,
the Gath of November, have at length been
received. The annals of lake disasters pres
emit few incidents that can compare in in
tensity of horror with the simple narrative
of the survivors of the wreck. Rarely have
there been scenes of suffering and acts Of
true heroism that could equal the tragedy
enacted on Long Point beach. The story,
as narrated by the survivors to one of our
citizens who went after the body Of the la
mented Mr.. A. H.. Derby, is substantially
as follows:
The propeller Jersey City, Capt. Monroe,
from Toledo, bound for. Buffalo, was out in
the great gale CT Friday and Saturday, the
23d and 24th of November. Finding it i'm
possible to reach Buffalo in the storm, Capt.
Monroe headed the steamer for Long Point,
Canada, intending to take shelter behind it.
Every one in this latitude will remember
the terrible morning of Saturday, the Gath
of November, The wind blew with resist
less force, and the snow swept through the
air with such violence that 1t cut like sharp
hail, and was so thick that objects at short
distance were invisible. r-#
About eleven o'clock in the morning,
during a momentary rift in the snow cloud,
Long Point was seen = head. and Capt.
Monroe discovered that he had been driven
too far in to weather the point without great
difficulty. The steamers course was chang
ed, and an attempt made to get around the
point. The ordinary fires were found IN
equal to getting up the great pressure of
steam necessary, and kegs of lard and butter
were rapidly thrown in to feed the flames.
But every effort was vain. A sudden shock
"a dull grating sound that was fell above
the bowling of the tempest. and the Jersey
City was a hopeless wreck. She had
grounded on the shoal, about two miles dis
tant from the point.
Captain Monre Immediately ordered every
one to the hurricane deck as the only chance
of safety. A number, needless of his warn
ings, jumped into the lifeboat and made
for the shore. They were all lost among the
breakers that Missed across the intervening
waste of water. g s.r r- -.
re- Soon after grounding the propeller heel
ed over broadside to the seas, and with her
deck exposed to the action of the waves
Her deck-loadwas At once was swept off, and
the repeated blows of the huge waves stove
IL her deck and dashed her sides into piec-
es. The hurricane deck. with its load of
half-frozen sufferers, foated toward the
shore. About three o'clock in the afternoon
the hurricane deck grounded within short
distance from the shore in shallow water.
At this moment boy who was on the wreck
was washed off by the waves, but was res
cued by Captain Monroe. After this the
boy became frightened, for the first time.
and chung eagerly to the preserver. Cap
tain Moure fastened plank life preserver 70
to his body, and. taking the boy in his arms,
leaped into the water and waded ashore.
AS the boy was. landed, his suspenders
broke and his pantaloons fell about his an
kles. where they froze to solid mass, chan
ing him to the spot where he stood. In 8
few minutes the half-naksd boy was dead.
Captain Monroe walked back to the piece
of wSeck. and directed his comrades where to
leap so as to strike in the sballowest water
One by one the leaps was made ia safety,
until but one was left on board, and that
one was Mr.. A. H Derby, the clerk Of the
propeller. He was seen sitting on the
wreck. with his head bent down as If in de-
spair. Captsin Monroe called him by
name, hut ne did not answer, although hrs
month opened To . second hail he again
opened his mouth without giving an attic
ulate sound. Captain Monroe and engineers
Manchester and Cummings went TO the
wreck, and, after considerable difficulty. |
got of the helpless man. Captain Monroe
took Derby on his back. while the two en-
gineers steadied his legs so as TO prevent
the waves washing him off. In this way
the party waded through the water. ice max
ing on them At every step, the surf dashed
around them, the bitter wind freezing their
hands and faces, and tie binding snow OBJ
securing their, view. g.. .7-f.,,o-- ~,
On psaehing the shore, Capt. Monroe at !