The Portland daily press., 1880-09-06

when at 4.12 a. m. the sea broke into the engine
room and through the saloon making crash
like battery Of artillery and striking terror
for an instant into every one, dashing saloon
passengers, tables, doors and loose furniture
together and into the water knee deep. The
general came to me Immediately after this
with Master Wallendge about nine years old
and said "Romeo you and l must take this
little boy and care for him between u.s." I al
lowed he had been but fifteen minutes to live
and argued that it would be mercy to let the
little fellow go down with the ship, and the
general kindly insisted and said, II cannot
leave this little fellow behind; you and 1 must
save him; take him until l come back.''
The next moment a sea came into the
saloon more terrifcaly than ever, filling it
waist deep in water and smashing most of the
portside. The little fellow and myself were
rolled over among the chairs and tables and
lost him, but he was picked up and brought to
his father. called to Torbert to come to the
deck with me. He said. 81 will go aft and
meet you above" never saw Torbert again
alive. Passengers now crowded into the
social hall which was at the top OF the saloon
steps. Here they said farewell to each other.
We adjusted the life preseryers ana extended
sympathy one to another Never before per-
haps was there set of passengers SO quiet and
unexcited under circumstances so appalling
Mr. Attridge brought his little boy to me and
said, "Mr. Owen, will give you $1,000 gold
ii you will take my little son and get him to
us
minutes after the ship went down. l told
him it would be mercy to himself and son to
go down as quick as possible. l told him, sT
Can see nothing to hope for in storm like
this, and said also "Let us look at it as if
our characters on this world's stage were about
ended" Miss Sadie Fay asked me in the sweet
est manner to take care of her, but 1 said to
her and the others that nothing was to be done
but to stick to the ship until we were washed
from her, and then cling to the fragments as
10 nj ~ r,1o
by every passenger.
The captain was seen last before the sea
smashed in the port side of the upper decks at
4:12 a. NJ, but whether he got excited and
jumped overheard or was swept away is not
known to any of us. Mr.. Harris, the first Off
Ger, second mate and one or two more of the
crew took the starhoard boat and were killed
before it could be got free. Mr. Miller and his
engineers stood by the ship till she sank. The
quartermaster, VIM. O'Neal, and a sailor, name
unknown, stood at the wheel until the ship
sank. The captain never came near the pas
sengers during the storm, nor did he send to
inquire into their condition. 1t was 6 o'clock
a. M, when the ship went down, breaking in
the middle and filling the sea with fragments
Oh stores and merchandise, men, women, child
rem, horses, cats and rats were mixed in and
went in, through and over this mass. The
waves were fifty feet high, not in swells and
ridges, but in peaks like sugar loaves. Four
peaks beating like surf tore into each other.
When we went up on one it was not to 60 down
on the other side, but to be turned over at the
top and sent rolling through the air to the op-
posite one, and so back and forth This lasted
about two or three hours, after which the
waves took more natural character, and came
In swelling ridges, and we were hirled down
and over them, and then to the opposite side
among the living and dying. I never passed a
person not bleeding from some wound inflicted
by passing fragments, and half of them were
dead or dying within fifteen minutes after they
took to the water. passed Mr.. Attridge and
son ten minutes after the sinking. They were
about ten yards apart, clinging to diff
ferent fragments of the wreck, and
the little fellow looked as calm and handsome
as when playing in the saloon two days before.
His father was depressed, but only for his son,
no thought of himself entered his head. The
stewardess was jammed in the saloon among
the doors and tables She was crying bitterly
and appealed to me for help, but the water was
pouring in upon her like Niagara / stood
by the mainmast till the wather rushed in over
the hurricane deck, and then climbed up the
rigging % feet and was washed off by wave.
An instant after fragments of wreck piled in
and over me. was stunned by blows across
my head, chest and eyes as climbed first upon
one thing and then upon another. For half
an hour rushed up one mountain of water
and then down another until finally caught
hold of piece of the ship about % feet long
and 10 feet wide. This was the port side Of
the dining saloon. Through one window was
the head and shoulders of man, Thomas
Grambal He asked me to break the frame
and get him out, but as that was impossible 1
showed him down and he came up through the
next opening. We now threw eff our life pre-
servers and stuck to fragment of the wreck
through thick and thin for "a hours. During
that time we were at least two-thirds under
water. In the night we were both completely
blind from salt deposited in our eyes, When
we struck the surf at a m on Monday our
raft went to pieces and we were turned over as
many as six times before coming to the sur
face. We were landed at Mr.. Botefnhr's
farm near Dayton, 60 miles south of st. Au-
gustine, and II miles north of Mosquito Inlet
Charles Smith, James III. Kelly and Mason
Talbot, part Of the crew of the Vera Cruz,
landed near us within five miles of each other
Charles Brandenburg and John Greenfield,
paat of the crew, landed at Mosquito Inlet,
while others of the crew and two passengers are
at Smyrna south of the inlet. Their names
we were unable to learn. None of the lady
passers were saved and but three passengers
and eight of the crew are known to be saw ed
out of 50 old told. Gen. Torbert's body was
washed ashore at New Britain Monday morn
ing about six miles above Mr.. Botefuhr's
farm. He was found by Mr.. Pitts floating on
the surf. His body was warm, his heart beat
ing and blood flowing from wonnd over his
right eye. He had evidently reached the
breakers sound and we'll and there had been
struck by fragment. He was stunned so
that he drowned before he reached the shore.