The Red Cloud chief., 1876-05-04
Unparalleled SuReringa.

Unparalleled sufEeringa.
A Wrecked Ships Grow Eating the Live.
of q Corpse-Ons Of the Number Dies OF
. broken Heat.
The survivors Of the crew Of the ship
Great Britain, who recently reached
Liverpool, tell a terrible story of suffer
Ing. The vessel vas bound from Dolby,
N. s., for Liv ,rpool. She sailed on the
18th of February. laden with a cargo of
pitch pine timber. The weather was
fine, and continued SO up the 10th of the
month, when she was overtaken by a
terrinc gale, which continued, with
scarcely any tntermission for days. On
Friday morning, the Sd ult., when in
longitude "a west, and latitude 4S 80
north, or about 900 miles from the Irish
coast, the vessel was struck by q tremend-
Gus storm. She had before this shown
symptoms Of becoming water-logged
and on the day previously the Captain
had put all hands to the pumps, and she
wa to q great extent freed; but this did
not avail. and before the masts could be
cut away,
SHE CAPsIEED.
The Captain had previously ordered
the men aft on the poop, 30 that in the
event Of disaster occurring they could
escape into tho miz.en rigging, and
fourteen of them managed to do 80, but
the Captain and the remainder were
thrown into the sea. The Captain, after
q severe battle with the elements, was
also fortunate enough to reach the rig
ging, and the fifteen remained in that
position nearly An hour, when, the MAN.
topmast and the m~ixzenmast giving
away, the hulk righted itself. Those
who had escaped drowning clambered
upon about twenty feet of the poop
deck which wa left, and there they
were doomed to remain for over eight
days.
The Captain, upon perceiving the
chance of the vessel being wsterlogged,
th~oughtfully directed that q quantity
Of provisions should be stored in the
booby-hstch, and this WAS being done
when the ship capsixed. The second
mate, Absalom Chilcott and the steward.
Jsmes Barbour, were indeed down in
the cabin at the time for the purpose of
bringing up an additional quantity of
bread, and were never seen afterwards.
The provisions which had been stored in
the hatch we're thrown into the sea BY
the upsetting of the vessel, and neither
food % drink remained for the susten-
tstion of the survivors. Saturated with
water and covered with every wave, they
were thus left in mid ocean inca pable
Of attempting escape beyond the hoist
ing .: q piece of sail upon a spar, with
the chance of attracting the notice of
any passing craft.
BATTING THR I'VE OF A CORPSE.
They were reduced by hunger and
starvation to such . pitch that they were
at length compelled to drink each others
refuse, and when the cook died, on the
seventh day, he was cut open, bis liver
taken out and divided. One of the orii-
nary seamen next succumbed; and on
the evening before the rescue of those
who survived, the Captains son. Robert,
and q young man, Wicklof, died. The
Captain had alternately Rugged the two
boys to his breast to preserve them from
the piercing cold, and his own son died
while in his fathers arms.
I oR A BROKEN HEART.
Shortly before the cook died . steam
or, with black funnel and oulwarks, brig
rugged and not over large-it is believed
she can be identided-passed within q
comparatively short distance, and was
hailed, but she took no notice, and pro-
ceeded IN her voyage. Up to this time
the cook had maintained q hearty spirit
and was the most cheerful of the desolate
party, but he afterward dropped, and,
tho Captain thinks, die1 of . br oxen
heart, induced by the presumed heart
less conduct of those on the steamer. A
bark wa also sighted, but she was at too
great Q distance from the wreck to dis.
tinguish 1t or the signals displayed. At
last the ship Greta came upon the wreck,
and, with great difficulty and much
gallantry, took of the surviving eight
N. r, ksreu,y.