The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1870-03-24
uorrors at LONG Branch.
FEARFUL sBIPwRECKs ON TIE srETSoE
HOUSE BEACH.

FEARFUL SbJPWhECkS ON 64GASOH
HOUSE BEACH.
Wednesdays storm, though short, was
terrific. Il began about day break, ragged for
several hours with undiminished strength,
and died away as suddenly as it had arizen
at about 80 a. m. At Long Branch, the
beach in trout of the famous Stetson House
was the scene of thrilling interest. Several
vessels intending to make Sandy Hook,
| which is about seven miles from Long
Branch, were suddenly caught by the gale.
which blew with tremendous violence right
! on the land. A large schooner from Port
| land, which was thus coruered, was watched
| impatiently from the shore. The wind car
rying away her gaff and forctopsail. the
captain seemed to realize the impossibIlity
Of rounding the point, SO he turned her bow
| straight for the beach, and steered her right
on shore in front of the Stetson House, the
scene of so much summer gaiety. the surf
| was laundering on the beach in three serried
lines, the foam-topped
WALL OF WATER
rearing itself to height of at least eighteen
| feet The giant waves broke over the strand
| ed vessel, and the men were in imminent
danger of freezing to death. When, how
| ever the storm subsidized, the drenched men
were carried to a hospitabe farm house,
where they were fully restored. TIE vessel
was from Kingston Jamaica, bound for New
| York, and was loaded with coffee and log
wood The cargo is all sound. and the hull
! is uninjured, but is buried ak feet in the
sand. Mr. Green. the wrecking master, is
| in temporary charge.
Another schooner went ashore near the
! old Ocean House. Tbs Captain, finding
| that he could not weather the Hook resolved
! to anchor, but such was the fury of the COM
/ bined winds and waves that he was dragged
| broadside en- the beech, and there the vessel
| grounded, the waves
| WASHING OVER HER IN VAST SHEETS
and king hei to pieces. She was laden
with cordwood, which drifted ashore in i'm
mense quantities, and lines the beach. Her
| crew of six men were all lost. They were
seen endeavorirg to get out q boat, but IL
was swamped aud stove against the side Of
! the vessel, It's fragments drifting to the shore
| The men became frozen, and their lifeless
! bodies were seen washing about among the
! debris and wreck Of the vessel One man
! climbed tie rigging to escape the furious
! peltng Of the waves, but he was drenched
with the torrents Of spray. and became stiff
! fened like wooden block. His frozen fin
! gers were broken from their grasp, and the
| inanimate mass of icy humanity would have
| fallen on deck, but his foot was caught in
| the rigging. suspendiug him head downward.
| As the ehriekiug demons Of the stsrm hurled
the unconscious body to and fro, IL broken
spar. riding on the angry tide.
SNAPPED THE HEAD FROM THE TRUNK.
| and it fell into the swash on the ice side of
| the doomed vessel, and, drifting with the
waves, it was seemingly made playthiug
| by the surf, bounding back ward and for
ward between the triple lines of foam. The
! Il
! Anderson. There was also two other New
Workers in the crew--Clayton Cambern and
man nick-named Dumb Bill. The mate was
German. The vessels name was James Il.
| Hoyt.
The vessel had gone to Virginia for cord
wood and WAS returning TO New York " hen
overtaken by the storm. The Captain at
tempted to anchor both at stern aud stem,
but the hurricane overcame tbs resistance Of
the anchors. and the vessel plunged into the
land, dragging them after her. The vessel
STRUCK THE BEACH
somewhere near Navesink Heights, about a
mile from the Old Ocean House. The sta
| tion men were on the alert and fired lines
| from their mortar to the poor wretches whom
they saw in the rigging. Que line by
stander saw fall within the grasp of a man,
but he was so numhed that he could not
ingly. ard suddenly his hold breaking, fell
into the debris of cordwood floating on the
deck. Ore by one the rcen
! LOST THEIR HOLD ON THE sHRoUDs
and dropped either on the deck or into the
angry surf beneath. The men on shore
were powerless to help them and were
obliged to see them die. The bodies washed
ashore with the next tide all but that of the
man whose head was broken from the trunk
The bodies of three have been recognized :;
| that of the Captain by his aged father, thai
of Clayton j. Cambren, by his father, and
that of Stephen E. Bowdoin, by his brother,
who arrived from Virginia last evening to
identify it if possible. Il was not hard for
none of the bodies have suffered sea change.
But are
| LIKE FROZEN MEN.
The forebeads are com pletely skinned, and
there are marks of bruises on the faces Of all
from the cardwood, and the floating spars.
| There remain now to be identified Stevenson
| Wehmeyer and Dumb Bill. One of the
bodies found is very probably that of Web
meyer. The hair is light and the features
are distinctly German. II is lying with that
| of the handsome young Virginan at the
Office of Mr.. James Riddle, the Coroner of
| Monmouth county, a. Pleasure Bay. Bow
| doin's body is to be removed this morning
by his brother to Accomac county. The
bodies of Cambren and Anderson will also
60 to New York
Stevenson had served on the schooner in
the capacity of mate for some time yet not
one has been able to recognize the body. 1t
is probably one of those lying with the un-
dertaker of Long Branch. Borden Morris
The kindly exertions and hospitality of Mr.
and Mrs. Green are spoken of WITH admira-
tion by everybody. They received gold
medal for their heroic conduct in 1853.