The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1870-04-07
THE PERILs or THE SEA.
The Passage of the Steamer
Smidt Across the
Atlantic.

It will be remembered that the YES
sci left Bremen in January, and was
over fifty days in making the passage.
There were twelve cabin passengers
and 2S4 in the steerage. On the 10th.
of January, being five days out at sea,
heavy northwestern gale set in, beat
ing the waves furiously against the
sides of the ship. q During the follow
ing three days the wind often suddenly
changed from northwest to west, rem
rdering it impossible to carry sails, sew
eral of which had been torn into
3fssds, the vessel rqeliHg ana tossing
: " It like a shell. Many of the waves
swept the deck with tremendous
weight, the iron masts bending before
the "greeni seas'' like reeds. One Of
these latter rose in height even above
the smoke-stack, thirty feet above the
deck. On the 29th of January the en-
gine was stopped, for fear of having it
damaged by the force of the beating
waves against the screw.
For twenty-four hours the Smtdt
was at the mercy of the waves, with
out sails and without the screw. On
January 31st and February 1st the
weather seemed to moderate, and the
engine was.put in motion, but did but
little service against the heavy sea. In
the night of the I'd of February the
gale resumed all its former fury, and
the doctor describes the scenes amid
the bowling storm, the drenching
rain, the rolling waves, the thunder
and lightning, as "sublimeIy awful
In the morning the engine was dam
aged, but was repaired in two hours
yet it was not used, for toward noon
the storm grew to Il perfect hurricane
The barometer at this time fell to 28.5
Inches. The iron ship lay flat on it:
side against the waves, which rose like
pyramids around her, and often broke
lover her deck. The crew fastened
themselves to the rigging, and the
men at the wheel were also bound fast
The engine was again set in motion
during the night Of the Sd, but aftel
working four hours the follower in the
cylinder broke, and there was an enc
of its usefulness. The skylight of tht
saloon was dashed in and the cabir
flooded. All the sails were torn, thO
wind changing its course with grea
Isuddenness all around the compass
This lasted till the 10th of February
without interruption, full fourteen
days.
On the 9TH the Smidt passed Floro
Island, one of the Azores. Chief En-
gineer Graf succeeded in repairing tn
engine within twelve days, and whel
, the storm had subsided the ship wa
headed to the west.
The greatest suffering arose from tn
] fact that the passengers could neithe
stand, sit nor walk, but had to lie i
s their berths and to hold fast with thei
hands with all their strength, thu
making sleep almost impossible.
= The close atmosphere of the steeragt
5 with so many people, was also burden
[ some, and the heat is said to hav
t been painful. Under the circumstar
/ ces, the usual rules of cleanlin ess an
/ ventilation could not be observed
: which also increased the suferings {
a the people. Yet, strange to say, til
r health of all was remarkably pre-
= served, and when they landed, Marc
18th, they all looked we'll, and non
g complained.