St. Landry democrat., 1879-06-28

| re.
the fog. Another boat was broken down
while it was hanging over the side Of
the ship on the tlavits, by the rushing OF
a crowd Of tiremen, sailors, and pas
sengers into it, and many of them fell
into the sea, and were soon left behind
To- drown. III the mean time, Capt
Luce was personally engaged in lower
ing the starboard guard boat. No soon
er was it lowered, half full of frigllten-
ed wrctches more stalwart than their
| fellows, than dozens of persons leaped
| into it from the rail, twenty feet above,
crushing and manning those already in,
and some of them getting crushed and
manned in return. Orders We're given
to the second officer, who was in com
mand of this boat, to hold Oh to IL line
at the stern and be ready to take off wo-
men and children rs soon as the fires
| were out.
The quartcrboat had been broken
down by rush, and was found by the
Captain hanging by one tackle. 1t was
successfully lowered into the water,
however, and a rush was made. Only Il
dozen or two got into it before some one
in it cut the tackle, and it was soon out
Of sight. There was now not q seaman
or carpenter on board, and only few
trcmen. As long as the fires remained
lighted, Assistant Engineer Walker
and Fireman TObin remained at their
posts and kept the vessel driving to-
ward the land. Chief Engineer Rogers
had seized the smallest deck boat OF the
steamer, and with about fifteen COM
panions had roWcd away from the ship.
He was seen to take provisions, and
even Il box of cigars. However, neither
he nor any that went with him was ever
heard Of afterWard. No tools conld be
got at to make a raft with, and only one
boat left. This was the livehoat. Third
Officer Dorian was ordered into it, with
Il few volunteer passengers to aid him,
and it was put into the water, but,
taught by experience, Capt. Luce kept
the oars aboard ship. Then, with the
aid of passengers, the Captain got the
fore and mainyards, the maintops;,il-
yard, and two topgallant yards over
board, and such other spars as they
could collect. Then Third Officer Dor
ian began to lash them together us we'll
as he could in the water. The fires had
gone out, and the vessel now ceased to
make head way.
The ship had settled far down in the
water, and every landsman on board
could feel by her motion that she had
lost her buOyancy, and could not remain
afioat much longer. 1t was hoped, how
ever, that, at the last, most Of the wo-
men and children could be got into the
lifeboat. Some progress had been
the water, when the alarm was given
that the ship was sinking. There was
no time left to do anything. The final
disaster came within three or four min
utcs. The lifeboat was to far away
from the vessel to be of any service.
Men and women began to shrek and
pray. Before one of the boats had been
cut loose from the ship, some of the
sailors offered to take Capt Luce with
them. He refused the offer with indig-
nation. The sailors then told him to
hand down his is11-year-o old son, who was
standing by his side, but he told them
that his son should not owe his life to
such a cowardly proceeding. Soon after
| his sailors deserted him, he directed a
young American student of engineering,
named Holland, to take charge of the
signal gun. 1t was loaded and fired
steadily thereafter, and its last shot was
heard after the final alarm had been
given. Holland was one OF those who
were lost.
A minute before the vessel went down
Capt. Luce took last leave Of Mrs.
Collins, whom he found calm and re-
signed to her fate. Then, with his lit
tie boy, he mounted to the top of one
OF the peddle boxes. This was about
A. Z. NJ. There were no Water-tight bulk
heads in the ship, and although the leal,
was in the bow, the water freely found
its way aft. 1t thus happened that the
stern went down first, but only by
few seconds. From the paddle box the
Captain saw the water from each end
meet in ridge along the open part Of
her deck, lifting up and tossing about
the multitude OF passengers. Over two
hundred men, women, ard children,
after appearing for few seconds in the
rushing waters, were drawn down into
the vortex. Capt. Luce afterWard es-
timated that he was drawn down about
thirty feet. He was a long time in COM
ing to the surface, and he thought he
must drown. During this time he lost
hold of his sons hand. When he had
nearly lost his breath he found himself
at the surface, and not far from him
was his son. The water was full of
struggling persons, now mostly men,
They We're calling for help to God and
to each other. Many We're clinging to
such pieces of wreck as had foated up
from the ship. Capt. Luce's first care
was to grasp bis son again. AS he got
close to him and was about to take hold
OF him, large piece of the wreck came
up out of the sea with so much momen-
tum that it rose nearly half way above
the surface, and then fell over on one
side. In falling it struck the father a
slight blow on the forehead, and killed
the son instantly by striking him on
the top of the head.
After discovering that his SOB was
dead Capt. Luce climbed on the piece of
wreck, which proved to be the curved
after half of the top of one of the paddle
boxes, 1t had been burst off as it was
dragged down through the water by
the weight of the ship. The inner side
of the curve was uppermGst and the
two ends rose out of the water. Had
the sides been boarded up water ight
it would have formed rude sort of
boat. Such as it was, however, Capt. |
Luce and eleven other men found tenn
p0rary safely in it, though their weight
caused It to sink until they stood in
water up above their lfnees, The water
was only Is degrees above the freezing |
point, but was not so cold as to cause |
much suffering at first. One of the men, |
seeing that tie paddle box was over
loaded, swan off to another piece of |
wreck. That left eiieesgan in all. There
had been a door in the paddle box to |
enable the engineers to look in at the |
wheel. This door had been fastened to /
with a piece of rope yarn. Capt, Luce |
now cut this piece of rope yarn loose /
from the door and tied il to an upright |
post that remained on the outer side Of !
the paddle boy. Using this rope as the
rider of a yicinuS {taa;sa usas n b,,;Ilo |