The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1875-09-23
DANGERS OF THE DEEP:
NARROW ESCAPE FROM FOUNDER
ING.

NARROW ESCAPE FROM FOUNDER
ING.
THE STEAMSHIP MoRAvIAN ENCOUNTERS AN
ICEBERG IN HID-oCEAN - SHE SPRINGS a
LEAK AND Is ALMOST LosT-ACTS OF HERO.
Ism ON THE PART OF CREW AND PASsEN-
GERS.
The accidents on the ocean and on tie
lakes during the past year have been so
numerous and so disastrous that the public
mind is agitated upon the subject.
The following from the Quebec
Chronicle will be OF absorbing interest
to the readers of the Sentinel: From
statements OF various passengers who az
rived from England or the Allan Lire
steamship MoTavisn, Captain j. Wyle, we
learn that the vessel had narrow escape
from going down with a large portion of
those on board. 1t appears that Just about
midnight, between Thursday night and
Friday morning last, the Moravian was dis
tant from land about 100 miles from the
entrance of the straits Of Belle Isle. steam
ing inwards.
THE NIGHT WAS MOoNLESS
and both mprky and hay, so that objects
were not distinct a few hundred yards from
the vessel. The watch was just on the point
OF being relieved some of the men had gone
on board aud others were proceeding to
take their pisces. a passenger who had
left the saloon and had come on deck to
smoke cigar prior to retiring, thus de-
scribes what occurred: 81 was on the point
OF walking forward in the direction of the
bridge, when the sailor stationed in
the how called out. "Ice aheadr'
The captain, who was on the bridge at the
time, instantly called out very distinctly
'Ice ahead" and simultaneously gave the
orders to the engineers, through the cleo
trio wires, to ease, stop, and reverse the
engines; he also wired the signal to the man
at the wheel, "Hard-a-port." His orders
where Immediately acted upon, and tie sig
nal to that effect was sounded on the bells
so that he might know his instructions
were promptly obeyed. This action, OF
course only took a few seconds to carry out,
when the passenger, on looking toward the
Prov of the boat, saw a large iceberg
directly in the ships course, and looming
up through the darkness as high as the
lower yard OF the foremost. Immediately
after, in spite of the shifting OF the helm
and the reversing of the engines,
SHE STRUCK THE ICE MOUNTAIN
with a tremendous conclusion. 1t seems
that the Morsvisn, as Is the case with one or
two of the steamers OF this line. is provided
with stout bowspirt some twenty feet in
length, and, under Providence, it bearing
so well the first burst of the shock, the hull
was completely STAYED in. This tough tim
Der pierced the ice in oblique onward
direction. and was for half its length shat
tered and splintered in q most severe man
ner to within a few feet from
the bulk-heads. The hull next came in
contact with this dread of the sea, and
with such force as TO bend and twist several
of the ribs of the vessel and bullying the
the outer plates ia such manner that they
were forced in and out until they looked
like the undulsting waves of the ocean.
The strain on the rivets was terrible, and
had it not been for the unusual strength
and excellency of the construction, hole !
big enough to have sunk her Immediately |
would have been the result. AS it was, the !