Prescott journal. [volume] (Prescott, Wis.) 1861-1871, 1867-08-03
NEWS AND MISCELLANY.
Burning of The Bark Meteor at Sea and
lass az gEx Lives

Toss OF six Lives.
The following interesting particulars
of the burning OF the bark Meteor,
from New York bound to London, are
given by Captain Mason, who was one
of the survivors
We left New York Jnne 18th for Lon
don, with cargo of petroleum oil. -
All went well until the morning of the
18th, when in latitude thirty deg.
twenty-one minutes north, longitude
sixty-nine degrees nine minutes west,
at 8 a. M, the watch was thrown into
confusion by the decks blowing up and
flames running up the mast, boats all
destroyed and sails all on fire. In "A few
minutes all three masts went over the
side in flames. At the time OF the ac-
cident there were five men below, two
of whom got on deck; the rest perish
ed In the flames. The remainder of the
crew, ten in number, then took to some
pieces of the deck and what else could
be taken hold of. L ordered them, be-
fore the masts fell, to wait for them,
but two of them did not do So
The chief officer and one of the crew
kept to the pieces of the decks and
drifted away, and when the masts fell.
which took place about three minutes
after the explosion, the remainder of
the crew, with myself, took to them,
but to our. sorrow we found we could
not get away from the burning ship ow-
ing to the bobstay holding us fast, the
heat at that time being so intense that
we had to immeTae our bodies in the
water. Our sufferings at that time no
tongue can express, all being SO Grip
pied with burns and bruises. not being
able to assist ourselves. One of the
men with broken legs we dashed TO the
So lrs, also another with one broken
leg. One was so burnt that ne had no
skin on his body from the waist to the
top OF his head, and blinds another with
the skin burned OFF lis legs and back.
The ship coming head to. the wind she
was Burning all aft, the mast drifted
alongside, and expecting her to sink
every minute taking the mast with her,
the only thing we had to sit on. About
eleven a. IN. the man with both legs
broken died on the spars. We were in
the same position till about one p. m +,
when the spars drifted little ahead,
which gave us slight protection from
the flames, which at that time were up
ward of one hundred feet high.
A few minu es after that a vessel
came III sight to leeward, but could not
get to us owing to the wind being
hgnt. She did not leave us but beat
to windward, and the captain made the
best of his way to our help, but it was
eay,o fftoa Iafora no could aaoarfa;n
whether any OF the crew were left alive
owing to the glare of the fire and the
intensity of the smoke. At a distance
of four miles he put off his boat, but
before it reached us one of our burnt
men died. The fire had now reached
the copper. About six p. ia. the boat
came up and we were got in truly eX-
hausted. We found the vessel to be
the Prussian bark Lucy and Paul,
Schiel, from New York for Cork or
Falmouth for orders, and also that the
captain had picked up one of the crew
at three p. IN. ON loose spar. The
chief officer had been drowned who
was with this man.
We can not speak too highly of the
kindness and attention shown TO us on
board the Lucy and Paul, tine captain
himself attending US with medicines,
bandages aud other necessaries, land
ing us at Falmouth July s.
The following were saved-AIatthew
Mason, master; j. c.. LambtOn, @.
Brien, leg broken; James Malcolm, John
Boyd and Peter Johnson. The follow
ing are lost: H. Il. Danielson, mate,
drowned; Adolphus Scher, died; John
Grippe, died; Robert Bakes, burnt;
second mate, name unknown, burnt,
and ali able seaman, name unknown.
died.