Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1873-04-03
Loss OF the Steamship s'Atlantic''-
Seven Hundred and Fifty Souls
Find IA Watery Grave.

Seven Hundred and FIFTY Souls
Find IA Watery Grave.
THE ILL-FATED ATLANTIC - ANOTHER
STATEMENT - THE FEARFUL NTELLI-
GENoE OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES OF THE
THIRD OFFICER.
HALIFAX, y. S., April 1.
This afternoon the report being cur
rent that steamer had been wrecked on
the coast and several lives lost, was at
first regarded as cruel April Fool hoax.
But in the evening, the Cunard agents
here received news that it was all true,
and that only little of the truth had
been told, the fact being that the White
Star steamer, Atlantic, Captain Will
liams. from Liverpool for New York,
while coming into this port for coal,
struck on Meagher's rock near Cape Pros
pect, twenty-five miles west of Halifax,
and had become a total wreck. Of
about one thousand souls OH board, up
ward of seven hundred were drowned.
The third officer, Brady, arrived in this
city this evening. He says that the At
lantic left Liverpool on the Goth of
March. with upward of nine hundred
steerage passengers, and about fifty
cabin passengers. They experienced dis
astrsus weather during the passage,
but all went well until noon Monday,
the Dist, when the supply of coal be-
came nearly exhausted. The captain
determined to put into Halifax. The
captain and third officer were on deck
until midnight. Their position was
then Judged to be near SambrO Light,
bearing n. n. W., 80 miles. The cap
tain then went into his chart room, leay-
ing orders to be called if there was any
change of the vessels position. Brady
went to bed about the same time as the
captain. The next thing that he remem-
beers is that he was thrown out of his
bunk and he felt the ship strike several
times. He then rushed on deck, and
found the captain and officers there, and
the deck full of passengers. lie got an
axe and commenced to clear away
boat The captain and other officers
were busy doing the same thing. Brady
got his boat out and put two women in it.
A number of men attempted to get into
il and about a dozen succeeded. Just at
that moment the steamer fell over on
her beam ends and sank. Only one
boat had been got out, and that was car
ried down by the steamer and all init lost.
Brady scrambled into the mizzen rig
ging, which was above water, and see
ing he could do nothing there, then went
forward and unwove the halyards being
assisted by Quartermasters Speakman
and Owen. Brady then took the hal
yards, and all three swan to the rock,
and then a line was hauled ashore and
a number of passengers landed by it.
A number had got on the rock, but as
the tide was rising, their position was
no better than on the vessel. just then
a fisherman on shore came out in boat
and rescued those on the rock and a
large number from the rigging. Brady
remained at the scene until noon to-
day. All who were alive on board had
been saved except chief officer Firth,
who was in the rigging shouting for
help. Brady says he tried to get the
crew TO go to the rescue of Firth, but
the sea was so heavy that nobody would
volunteer. Altogether about 25O per-
sons were saved, including Captain Will
liams and also fourth officer Brown, the
doctor, and several of the engineers and
sailors. Not a single woman or child
was saved Most of them, as well as
hundreds of men, were drowned in their
berths. The steamer struck about two
o'clock this morning. The weather at
that time was dark, but not thick, and
the sea rough. Steamers are going down
tonight TO render what assistance they
possibly can. All the people saved from
the wreck, with the exception of Brady,
are still at Cape Prospect, where fisher
men are giving them all the attention
they possibly can.