The Portland daily press., 1882-05-22
PORTLAND, MONDAY MORNING, MAY 22, 1882.
THE ICE.
perils of N srigation in the Gulf of
ST, Lawrence.
THE DISABLED ALLAN STEAMER Pc
RUvIAN LIBERATED FROM HER
PERILoUS POSITION.

MONTREAL, May 20.-The Allan Company
has received information that the steamer 70,
ruvian is in TOW of the steamer Acadlan, Douno
for Quebec, and is expected to arrive at tnai
port tomorrow,
Steamship Scotland arrived here this even
ing from London, Eng, after being thirty days
Que. She was completely hemmed in for nine
days by ice, between Cape Ray and st. Paurs
Island, and only got into clear water by the
passengers and crew emitting an opening
through the ice, in some places 20 feet thick
Provisions almost gave out, and all on board
were on short commons for several days. Eigh'
steamers for this port were sighted, IN the
same predicament as the Scotland, the Texas
being one, and she came near being lost, q
huge hole being made in her bow by COLLISION
with an iceberg.
QUEBEC, May 20-The ship Western Belle,
from Glasgow, was crushed and sunk by col,
lision with an iceberg May 1st, Capt. FreW and
thirteen of the crew going down with the ship
Six of the crew were picked up IN a boat the
next day, and brought here tonight BY the
schooner President.
a Sealer Crushed and Abandoned.
/. ST.. JOHNS, May 21.-The sealing brigantine
Rescue, belonging to Harbor Grace, Concep-
ton Bay, was crushed in the ice during tAa
gale OF last Wednesday week, while midway
between northern Graves Island and Bell Isle.
Tne crew, consisting of 72 man, had to aban-
don the sealer and take to the ice. There was
q heavy rolling swell surging among the fioes,
and the position of the seal hunters Tor some
time was eminently perilous. Fortunately
steamship Mastiff was within reach of their
sirnals OF distress, and bore down upon them.
The whole crew we're safely transferred to the
steamer and landed at Harbor Grace Friday
night.
The few steamers fortunate to have run the
gauntlet of the ice pack in the Gulf OF ST
Lawrence describe the bank of Newfoundland
as fairly bristling with danger. One captain
says the icebergs passed by his vessel were not
less than thousand feet high, the largest he
has ever seen in an experience of half life
time in these waters. Those vessels fortunate
enough to get through describe the peril of a
whole feet of sailing vessels and several steam-
ers as very great. The Polynesian had her
share of the ice pack. The Lake Huron was
fast for several days, and several other steam
ers which have arrived bear the marks of the
encounter in getting through. But the worst
of disasters seems to have befallen the Peru
vian, one of the Allans' finest vessels. She
has. some 900 or 1000 passengers on board, and
for six or seven days was drifting at the mercy
of wind and tide, with broken propeller To
those who do not know the Gulf OF st. Law
renee, this is not significant fact, but to the
public who recollect the fate OF vessels going
ON the "Terrors," or Bird Rock, the scores OF
vessels lost with all on board and none left to
tell the store, the terrible position of the pas
sengers on board the Peruvian may be imag-
ined readily. Cooped up in mass of shifting
ice, which crunches against the vessel's COM
partments, may leave room for further ripping
and grinding, and then the final struggle for
life among the masses of ice, with no hope OF
succor. Those are the terrors that frighten
the stoutest hearts. Bad as it is on the steam
ers, however, it must be far worse to the sail
ing vessels. They are not owned by rich COM
panies, aud less trouble is taken about them,
especially as most of them are foreigners. Sew
eral were wrecked last season, and some lost
every soul on board.