Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1873-04-10
The Horrors Of. the Beep'
TERRIBLE Loss OF LIFE AT SEA

j HALIFAX, Aprll f.--ane Stesainsu4E az
lantic, of the White Star Line, from Lily
erpool, Mar Goth, for New York, running
short of coal, made for HalifaA.: When
Il about twenty miles from port, off Cape
} Prospect, at 2:So O'Clock this morning she
ran ashore on Meagher's Head. There
were on board over 1000 MEN, women
and children. Only 25o succeeded in
! landing. The remainder, including all
the women and children, were lost. The
captain and third officer were saved. The
first officer was drowned. On the first
iErsceipt of theneMs of the disaster her e
Cunard and Government steamer
started to the assistance of the Atlantic,
But the third officer, who arrived here at
$50 this afternoon, says the vessel and
cargo are a total loss. .,J 80, Il
The foho*sing is the Captains state
meht: 10. ~ /! III l.
we sailed from, Liverpool on March
Goth. During the first part Of the passage
we had favorable weather and Easterly
winds. On the Oath, 25th and 26th expe-
rieneed heavy Southwest and Westerly
! gales, which brought the ship down TO
one hundred ahd eighteen miles day
/ on the 3lst of.iMarch. The engineer b
report showed but about 127 tons of coal
on board; we were then 46O miles East
of Sandy Hook, with the wind South
west and high Westerly swells and fall.
ing barometer, the ship steaming only
eight.knots per hour, and considered the
risk too great to push on, as we might
find ourselves, in the event of & gale,
shut out from any port supply, and SO
decided to bear up. for Halifax. AT one
O'Clock, P. NJ, on the 3lst Sambro Island
was distant ITO miles-the ships speed
varying from eight to twelve knots per
hour, with wind South and rain, which
| reered to Westward at P. M. with clear
weather. At midnight judged the ship
to have made 122 miles, which would
place her 4Spailes South of Sambro, and
1 then left the deck and went into the
chart room, leaving orders about the
lookout, and to let me know, if they saw
anything, and call me, at 8 A. NJ, in
tending then to put the ships head to the
Southwark, and await day light, My
first intimation Of the catastrophe was
the striking OF the ship on Marrs Island,
| and remaining there fast. The sea i'm
mediately swept away all the port boats
the officers went to their stations and
commenced clearing away the weather
boats. Rockets were fired by the second
officer before the!boats could be cleared,
only ten minutes having elapsed the
ship keeled heavily to port, rendering
starboard boat suseless. Seeing no help
could be got from the boats, I got pas
sengers into the rigging and outside of
the rails, and encouraged them to so
forward where the ship was highest and
less exposed to the water. Third officer,
Mr.. Brady, Quartermaster Owens and
Speakman by this time having estab-
lished communication with the ort-lyipg
rock, aboutforty yardsdistans.by III cans
Of line got four other lines to the rock,
along which about two hundred people
passed Between the rock and the shore
was passage one hundred yards wide.
a rope was successfully passed across
this, by which means about fifty persons
get.to land, though many were drowned
in the attempt. At ) y. NJ. the first boat
appeared from the Island, Lut she was
toe small to be of any assistance. Through
the excrtions of Mr.. Brady The Islanders
wsse aroused, and by q a. NJ. three
larger boats came to our assistance. BY
their efforts all that remained on the
side of the ship and on the rock were
landed in safety, and were cared for by
fisherman named Clancy and his
daughter.
During the day the survivors, to the
number of four hundred and twenty
nine were drafted off to various houses,
scattered about. Resident Magistrate
Edmund Ryan, rendering valuable as
sistanco. The Chief officer having got
up mizzen rigging, the sea cut off his
retreat. He stood for six hours by a
woman who had been placed in the rig
ging. The sea was too high to attempt
his rescue. At o'clock P. NJ, aclergy-
man, Rev. Mr.. Ancient, succeeded in
getting him alive, and getting him Off
Many of the passengers, saloon and
steerage, died in the rigging from cold,
Among tho number, the purser of the
ship. Before the boats went out placed
two ladies in the life boat, but finding
the boat uselesscarried thomtot ths'main
rigging where left them, and went af.
to encourage others to so forward OH the
side of the ship,
At this luncturo the boilers exploded,
and the boat rolled over to the leeward.
The slap at this time being on her beam
ends, and finding myself useless there
went to take tho ,ladios forward but
found them gone, nor did5I see aherp
afterwards. Many of the passengers at
this TIME could not be stimulated to any
effort to save themselves, but lay in the
, rigging and died from fright and expo-
| sure. remained on the side cncoura-
ging, helping qnd directing, until about
fifteen we're landed, when, finding that
my hands and legs were becoming use-
less, 1 left the ship. Two other boats
being close to aid, ! embarked the re:
mainder On reaching the shore, ! dis.
patched Mr.. Brady, the third officer, OFT
| to Halifax ACROSS the country to telegraph
news of tho disaster and to obtain assis-
tance, Mr.. Morrow, the Ounard Line
Agent, promptly responded, and sent
two steamers with provisions to convey
the survivors 10 Halifax, where they will
be cared for and forwarded to New York
the first opportunity, in charge of the
first and fourth officers, the third officer
and four men being left at the island to
care for the dead as they came ashore.
Captain S. Hendon Dever has received
provisional authority as to salvage OF
cargo and materials. The second officer
was lost with number thirty life boat.
HALIFAX, April 2.-Early this morn
;nr the Dominion Government steamer
f,adyheead, the Cunard. steamer Delta,
and the steam tug Goliah, left the city
a, =. ,,.,;,,a.If tba '1yrnpR of the WlitA