The Portland daily press., 1882-01-10

Horrible Stories Told by the Captain and
Capt Packard, of the Almon Bird, says he
and his crew were caught in the storm on the
night of January /, between Monhegan and
Seguin, and concluded to run into Portland,
but the gale was SO heavy that they thought 1t
unsafe and hauled off to run for Cape Cod.
Halfway between Boone and Thatcher's Is
land on the following day the vessel became
disabled and they took to the boats. Says
Capt. Packard:
The boy, Horace Small, had had his wrist
broken when heavy sea swept the decks, ana
Law disabled in his berth below. We got him
out of the forecastle and placed him in the
boat, but such was the haste with which we
had to work that we had not time to get him
properly dressed, and he had no suit OF OIL
clothes. We had no time to get suitable pro-
visions, and all that we could take with us in
the boat was some hard bread in small
barrel, about peck in all, quart OF rum and
three or four quarts of oatmeal. We had no
water. We threw into our boat q few bed
clothes and an old coat and launched her.
Our drag kept the boats head to the sea,
but notwithstanding this the heavy waves con-
tinually boarded her, deluging her with
water, and the utmost efforts of all hands were
required to keep her free by constant bailing.
The cold was intense, and we were chilled to
the very marrow. had been drenched before
leaving the vessel, and I had no oil-clothes,
excepting an oil-skin, so that I was wet to
the skin The boy, Horace Small, was also
unprotected by an oil-skin suit, and he too was
wet through, although we covered him up as
we'll as we could. The boy bore up bravely
under it all, and would not complain, but his
sufferings, increased by the pain of his broken
wrist, must have been terrible. The oatmeal
which we had brought with us being raw, IN,
cooked was absolutely UNBEATABLE. The hard
bread was at first so dry that we could not
swallow it without water and water we had
none. Afterward it became so wet with the
spray and salt that we could not possibly use it
for food. The rum we made last till the tirst
part of Wednesday evening by taking only
spoonful at time. Water was our greatest
need; it seemed as if our parched throats
would dry up with the thirst. Some OF the
crew were SO thirsty that although they were
warned of the terrible consequences, they per-
sisted in eating salt water ice. During the sec
ond day, two of them, Chaples, the mate, and
the seaman Hogan, used such large quantities
that they were made crazy thereby. was
fortunate enough to find under the thwart
lump of snow about as large as my fist, which
was very little impregnated with the salty
flavor. This ate, and shave no doubt that
it aided greatly in keeping up my strength
during those terrible hours.
Horace Small died about 10 o'clock Wednes-
day evening. The poor boy passed away with
ont much suffering at the end. NumDed Dy
the cold he fell asleep, his head resting in his
brothers. lap, and fromlthis he passed uncon-
sciousy into the sleep of death. The two men
who were made crazy from the effects of eat
ing of saltwater ice died much harder. The
second mate in his delirium seized the saw,
and before he could be prevented, sawed his
own hands with it, infictlng terrible wounds
The young Irishman, Patrick Hogan, died
first Of the two, about an hour after the death
of the boy. The second mate, who was large,
nowerful man, died in delirium about O'Clock
Thursday morning. Thus we were left, i've
living men and three dead bodies, in small
open boat, buffetted about by icy winds and, at
The mercy of the waves. Onr boat was filed
with ice, and covered with blood, which had
flowed from the wounded hands OF the second
mate The dead bodies lay stark and stlit u
the bottom of the boat, the clothing frozen still
and covered with ice. The scene was terri
BILE one, and most terrible of all to the survi-
yors because of its horrid suggestions OF their
own possible fate.
What followed seems now like an awful
nightmare. Famished with hunger and ac-
tually dying from thirst, we werescompelled to
do that which made our hearts revolt with
horror. Driven to the last resort and in an
untold agony of desperation, opened the
iugular vein of the second mate, who had been
dead about two hours, and we wet our parched
lips and throats with his blood, still warm. we
selected the mate rather than either of the
other two, because in life he was large, stout,
healthy man, while the others were smaller IN
size The draught of blood revived us Won
derfuly, and it is my earnest belief that 1t was
that alone which saved our lives. Afterward
we threw overheard the body OF the second
mate, leaving the two others lying IN the bot
tom of the boat.
William H. Hartman, of Prospect, Me-, the
first mate of the Almon Bird, gives the follow
ing additional particulars:-"B Before leaving
the vessel, when we had become convinced
that to leave her was our only safety, made
the drag, which in all probability saved our
lives. The captain was soaked and chilled
through, and was unable to do much. He lay
in the bottom of the boat which was launched
| with him in her. The boys wrist was broken
in the morning watch, heavy waYe hurting
him against cask. He and the captain were
| not provided with oil clothes as the rest OF us
| were. He suffered great deal at hrst, but
| soon became numbed with the cold, and he
| died with hardly any pain at all. He was q
delicate little fellow, and was not fitted to un-
| dergo such hardships. The other two men
| died hard and in delirum. The second mate
| was delirious about twelve hours and the other
about half as long. The former babbled inco-
| herently all the time, while the latter kept
| talking about something to eat. 1t may seem
| strange, but did not give up hope at all from
| the time we entered the boat till we were tax
en- out. felt that sooner or later we must
| meet some vessel and be taken ashore. think
| it was nv courage as much as anything that
kept me up. For the last twenty-four hours I
| was the only man in the boat who could do
| anything, and I knew that If gave out all the
| rest would GO When we were rescued three
| of the men were SO nearly gone that they could
not have lived three hours longer me cap
| tain was better off, but still nearly gone. /
| think could have lasted twenty-four hours
| longer without much trouble. One thing, l
was not wet as the others were, my oil-skln
| suit, and the fact that was at the wheel
before the vessel sank, having kept me dry"
Allen Small, seaman, of Deer Isle, Me-, says
that his brother Horace was 10 years old. he
| (Horace) was anxious to go to sea with his
brother but his parents refused to let him, and
SO he ran away and shipped unbeknown to
| them. They did not know where he was until
they received the telegraphic despatch an
nouncing his sad death. His father and moth
| er are both living, and have one other older
son who lives in Portland. Other children
have died young. The boy, Horace, died IN his
| brothers. arms. He was conscious up to within
an hour of his death, and at that time said to
his brother that he was not afraid to die. lie
also spoke of his mother, and sent. last mes
sage to her sAt one time he was slightly delir-
io1s and kept asking, when shall we get 70
lahd?n He complained of the cold, and his
brother took off his coat and wrapped him up
in it. At last he fell asleep, and while he was
in this sleep, death came. He breathed his
last about or o'clock Wednesday night:
Captain Packard says that the Almon Bird
was a three-masted schoonar of 1877 tons, and
was owned in Rockland, Me-, by Captain j. j.
Drinkwater, the Birds and others. She was
| built at Belfast in 1874 or 1876, and was thor
oughly staunch and sound. Two years ago last
May she got ashore, and at this time was
on her, and being newly coppered. She wal
worth about 10000, and excepting the small
portion owned by Captain Drinkwater, wa'
uninsured