Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1881-02-02
ADRIFF IN LAKE MICHIGAN.
SufrsrinSs of Passengers and Crew of the
St tAlbau-Twepty-fOur Hours lee
Fields In Open Boats.


St tAlban-TwsDty-four Hours IN lee
Fields In Open Boats.
A special dispatch from Milwaukee says:
The propeller St. Alban. OF the Northern
Transit line, left Milwaukee for Leidington
yesterday morning, with 4 cargo OF $500
barrels Of flour, consigned to different par
ties in the East, five passengers, OF whom
four were women, and crew of twenty
mcn. She was commanded by Cap
tain Edward Casey, of Ogdensburs, n,
Y. When the vessel reached point
twenty miles northeast OF this port and
fifteen miles out from the west shore
of the lake. she suddenly sprung leak
aft, and began to take water rapidly.
The pumps were set to work, but the
water gained SO rapidly that the captain
saw that his vessel must so down, and
ordered the lifeboats to be put in readi-
ness. Two lifetoats and two yawls were
lowered and placed in charge respectively
of the captain, first mate, second mate
and the engineer. The steward
then filled them with blankets, pro-
visions and life Dreseryers and the twenty
seven persons left the sinking propeller at
12t p. m.. yesterday. with the hope OF saw
ing their lives by rowing to the shore.
When they started their hope. seemed
likely to be realized, but they had not pro
ceeded far when they encountered \ field
of floating ice, which the northeastern
wind had driven along the whole line of
western shore, and which suddenly closed
in around them as the breeze freshened,
so that nothing but huge cakes of ice
could be seen i'll any direction. The four
boats kept we'll together, and their crews
worked rs men never worked before. The
crew took turns in standing in the bow OF
the leading boat and cutting Il passage
through the ice with axes, which
they were fortunate enough to have
taken from, the sinking vessel, while
the Oarsmen forced the boats through the
narrow channel that had been thus opened
by the choppers. The passengers and
| those of the crew that were not engaged
at the oars and at the axes, though wrapped
IN blankets, shivered and became be-
| numbed by the cutting wind that pierced
their clothing, and were soon d .cnched by
the water that washed into the boats.
This bufleting Of waves and breaking Of
the ice was kept up throughout the whole
of yesterday and the long dismal night.
| Occasionally strip, Of clear water
few rods in length, would fill then,
with Joy as they kept their eyes
that shone from the Milwaukee light,
house. At Il this morning it began to
snow, and then they could not see more
than ten rods in front of the boats. The
weather was intensely cold, the thcrmom-
eter ranging at zero and the. water froze tc
everything ittouci,ed The sufierings Of the
passengcrsand crew were terrible, and wher
rescued this morning in the ice in the
| hov in front Of tho c;tv tha most of them
were SO badly frozen that they had 10 bt
carried to the shore. The feet and limbs
Of all of them were frozen, and that any o
| them lived is considered miraculous
! Several of them will tie, and others vii
lose their limbs. The ST. Alban was a
propeller OF 450 tons, was built in Clcvc
land fifteen years ago, and completely re
built in Port Huron.last year. The tota
loss on vessel and cargo. will aggregate
$50, 900. The boats We're i'll the ice twenty
four hours.