The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1875-12-08
IN THE Vastly DEEP.
HOW THE ALBERT aALLATIN WENT
DOWN IN THE PACIFIC.

A PIUCKY WOMAN-THkILLIN6
-EIeHTEEN DAYS IN A SMALL BOAT.
The San Francisco Chronicle tells the sub
Joined story of the sea in It's interesting
style of narrative; On the steamer Miksdo,
which arrived in this port on Saturday last,
came Captain Groves and his wife and two
ehildren-one a babe--wbo had had most
remarkable escape from the never-satlsned
Jaws of old ocean. All that human beings
could suffer, endure and live, fell to their
unfortunate lot. The captain and his Vile
are both comparatively young, and look
sufficiently careworn TO have borne the
burdens OF many more years tnan
The lady is small, delicstely
formed, and yet plucky, or courageous, and
full of animation when detailing the thrill
ing adventures through which she and her
huaband had passed. On April %, they left
Antwerp for Csllao In the ship Albert Gal
three months. But August 2, off Cape
Horn, IS degrees south and 20 degrees west,
q heavy sea struck the ship and carried
away the rudder at about 10 o'clock P. NJ.
Then for fourteen days every effort was
made to replace it; but the weather con-
tinue6 severe and the rough winds and
waves tossed the rudderless ship to and fro
like q cork. And all this time, as
THE HEAVY SEAS ROLLED OVER THE VESSEL,
every soul on board was continually
drenched, so that not one of them wore dry
garment for two weeks. At length, August
18th, the over-wsshed ship was found to be
within two miles of the Ildefonso islands
and drifting on the rocks. Immediately all
on board the unmansgeable vessel were
compelled hastily to abandon her, which
they did IN two life-boats at about A. NJ.
The captain, his wife, two children and five
seamen took one boat and the re-
mainder of the crew the other, and the
latter have not been heard from since.
After all were in the small boat, the cap
tain's brave little wife rushed on to the ship
and snatched the chronometers and charts
and brought them away safely. The life
boat soon filed with water, and was well
nigh swamped beside the ship. The boat
got away with sixty pounds of bread, but
this was saturated with salt water when she
filed. They brought away no fresh water,
and for two days were without drop,
while driven about by the boisterous waves
and seeking hiding place. August IL they
got on shore on Hermit Island, but the six
days they remained there 1t
THUNDERED AND LIGHTNINGED AND SHOWED,
and was cold that they were little better
off than on the ocean. The rocky isle was
barren, uninhabited and desolate. August
"a they left this island, hoping to reach Sta
ten Land, SOME hundreds OF miles distant
but near the Straits of Lemaire, through
which the vessels often pass. They were
out but single day, however, when the sea
became too heavy tor them to proceed, and
drove them back into Scourfield bay on
Herschell island. But the sea was so rough
that they could not land, and had to stay in
the boat all night. Everybody wet,
and they had to bail constantly to keep the
boat from going down with them. That
night was very cold and the canvass over
their heads froZe stiff. They could not lie
down nor sleep, and had TO sit In q
STOPPING position, which Mrs. Groves did
with her babe on her lap, while the snow
on the awning pressed it down so low and
hard upon mead that her attitude was any
thing but comfortable. Next day they
navigated around this island and landed on
Wollaston island. While on these black,
barren and rocky islands they often found
IL difficult to get fire, and suffered iptOler-
ably from the cold. Here they found a liz
tie wild celery, which they mixed with
their salt sea-sosked bread and some pre-
served meats, which they had served in
small quantities. The daily allowance of
each one was but couple of ounces of this
coarse fare, which was warmed altogether,
and each one took spoonful. There were
NINE SOULS OF THEM IN ALL.
They remained IL this distressing condition
until the following Tuesday, when they
again started for Staten Land with a light
wind from the southwest. AT midnight
they were becalmed an hour or two, after
which the wind freshened from the NORTH
ward. Next day it blue gale from the
north-north west, and in the evening
the tempest became SO fierce they
were Obliged to make a raft of their oars and
lash the boat to them and let her drag,
while they were kept constantly bailing.
They again lost all the fresh water on board,
and the boat filled and destroyed all their
provisions, and Mrs. Groves looked up to
her husband ia and said sadly. 81 guess we
drifted back about forty miles from
the land they were approaching
Next day more moderate
Some Of the men fell esleep on
their oars and lost three of them. But in
they were all Obliged to pull, for life. After
week of such voysging the captains wife
one day saw ship. They pulled for her,
but were not observed. The day following,
about P. IL, they saw an island about
twenty-five miles of. At p. NJ. they
sighted vessel and made for her. She
proved to be the ship Syren, from Boston
to Honolulu. The shipwrecked wanderers
had now been afiost or on frozen islands
for eighteen days, in all of which time they
had never had a change of garments,
having lost everything when they aban-
doped the ship. When they were taken on
board
THE MEN WE'RE ALMOST BLIND.
All were nearly starved, and one sailor was
out of his mind They had to be raised on
board the ship, and not one of them could
stand or walk, their knees being almost
stiff and their strength being nearly ex-
hausted. Yet during allthese eighteen days
of dresdful suffering Mrs. Groves had man
aged to nurse her babe and preserve Goth its
life and her own. Captain Newell, of the
Syren, was extremely kind to the sufferers
and they say words can neither portray his
goodness nor express their gratitude. When
they reached Honolulu some of the good
people there cared for the s1ffe, 5B, and the
Aikado brought them to our city. The cap
tain and his wife appear to be very nice peo-
pie, and 1t would seem as II some Of our
worthy citizens could not bestow q wiser
charity than to aid these helpless ones in