Delaware gazette and state journal., 1884-01-24
lated by them without the slightest
rafaranou 10 tb..

| anu ieit hanging Dy the other to pound
to atoms against the ship. Another was
launched aud went to sea empty.
Another was manned by a few officers
and men without passenger or half
complement and disappeared, Still
another was cut loose, veered oil along
side and drifted outward, secured only
by her painter, where she hoated sll day
among the debris.
THE PLOTS WHEREABOUTS.
AS previously reported, II. X. Fairbanks
OF dorham, Me-, passenger who saved
his life by lashing himself in the rigging
and remaining there until the approach
Of rescuinE boat to which he swan,
stated that while they were in the rig
ging together, the pilot said to him that
he liked the course of the vessel and
fastened the wheel, and az he was very
| cold, he went to the smoke-stack to warm
himself. He remained there Is or 20
minutes, and when he returned to his
post he found that the ship had veered
around. When he asoertained that the
vessel was among the rocks, and that to
save her was probably impossible, he put
her right on shOre and ran her as high
up as he could, with the result that, al.
though she drew II fest, her forefoot WAS
Il
in IL feet Of water.
| THIS statement was read to Captain
Wright this Afternoon on board the
Storm King, and in reply the captain
said "At the time OF the disaster the
second WAS i'll charge of the ship, and
was In the pilot house experimenting
the steering of the steamer, which was
being done by qusrtermaEter. The
pilot house was heated by steam, and
was very warm, 30 there was no necessity
OF leaving 1t to get warm. No person
but the officer in charge could change the
course of the steamer. There Was no at
tempt made after she struck to drive her
further up on the rocks" Captain
Wright states that he gave the course of
the vessel to the second officer when of
Tarpaulin Cove, and that it should have
taken her we'll clear of every obstruction.
The captain thinks the officer must have
altered her course to the southwark.
PURsER sPAULDING's STORY.
Purser Spsulding gives the following
story OF the wreck
retired at 10 O'Clock Thursday night,
at which time the steamer was OIL the
Pollock Zip ligbtship. | was awakened
by the shock when the vessel first struck
on the ledge. hastily threw on my
clothing and rushing out of my stateroom
inquired of the first person l met what
time it was. passenger replied 3 80.
The vessel kept grinding on the
rocks for several minutes after the
first shock, each heavy ssa alternately
forcing her on and off the slope
of the ledge. | met First Officer Fuller
moment after came out Of my stateroom,
which was on the hurricane deck. Fuller
was then on the port side amidship work
ing at the davits. | said to Fuller, ,"WhRt
does this mean 7" He replied, sit Seems
10 me that we are on the Devil Bridge,
and il 30 we are iOst.n | asked him how
much deeper the ship would siuk, and he
replied, "No deeper" | then went into
the cabin and there saw Charles House,
the second steward. | said to him
"Get your crowd out, knock on the doors
and pull the passengers OF to their feet"
| remember having heard him tell at
least Two of the passengers in state
| rooms to get up and 20 to
Social Hall, on the hurricane deck, He
went through the starboar6 side OF the
uain cabin, knocking on all the doors OF
the state. rooms, and | went through the
port side doing the same. | raped at
-Very door on my side of the cabin.
Before reached the last door on the port
| side the vess-l keelvd over. There Were
a humber of passengers 10 the saloon,
aud | called out to them to save them
selves as b 81 they could. | then rushed
through the main saloon aud up the
staircase, climbing up to the weather
| side of the deuk. The vessel keeled over
30 far ou the port side that all the state
| rooms on that side Ol the ship were tOm
| pstely suhmersei 0I the weather side
| OF the deck there were three or tour pas
sengeis. We stayed there Tor = lew
moments, When the ship righted and
settled there was u terrible scene OF CON
fusion oil the deck. Men and womun,
some with children in their arms, clam
bered up to the deck, oiiilsine franli1ally
to every available projection that offered
resistsuos. They crowded uUoD each
other 80 fast that they could not be
counted ss they rushed upOu deck, only
10 bs met by some mvnstrous wavo and
sWept oil into the sea Urosns, yells
and cufees oonteuded with the fury Oi
the gale; women shriek1d, and mer
shouted themselves hoGrse, men aud
women olutched eRch other regRrdlessly,
shouting ali the while and strug-
Cling with each other in fren-
zied attempts to secure every o0ign
of vantage. But this aoul-reniiDg sight
could not last long. Sea after sea swept
over the ship, carrying of every thing not
made OF iron. 1t had been blowing mod
srately when retired, but nov il was
hurricane. Still the moon shown bril-
liaBtly, and the land WAS plsiniy visible.
saw Chief Steward Pitmen ON deck, AID
told him to take to the rigging saw at
this time eight or ten men hanging to
the seaboard rigging. The chiet steward
aud went into the maintop with pas
senger. A very few moments after the
weasel struck, she heeled over aft, then
shifted her position slightly, gs il sliding
down of the ledge, and the after part OF
the ship filled and sank. As the stern
went down the vessel right-d, and
tue swell carried her head up again on
the ledge, when she settled permanently
apparently between boulders or on a naid
bottom. | don't think shs shifted her
position more than Is feet after she had
first struck. The sea at this time was
making q clean sweep over the ship, aud
the wind was blowing head on. From
the maintop saw the life raft oil the
after part of the hurricane house. There
were half a dOzsu men standing rs il:
waiting for wave to launch it into the
sea. One If the hremen cut the lsshiugs
of the raft with razor while the
vessel was lying on tho port
side. saw one of the port
boats launched aud upset. Then
saw port boat No. launched By
Quartermaster Macdonald and sailors
Robert Gallant and Edwin Lesry. A
passenger named Tihbetts also got into
the boat. Many Of the passengers we're
! swept overheard as soOOn as they came on
deck. When | saw the lashinga of the
raft cut, | thought that there was 8
chance for Spauldings, and left myself
, down the maiDstay, hand under hand,
! but beiors l could reach the raft, 8
monstrous wave rolled on deck and
swept the raft overheard, carrying those
/. on It of into the sea, the raft floating
, away in one direction, aud the former
+. occupants in another. These must al
. have been lost. l olung to the
q rope and endesvored TO swing
s myself upon the hurricane house, but
. before | could do so the waves had
2 torn it away and the same gigantic sea
I caught me and swept me again into the
i port rigging. was badly hurt, but after {
q time managed to crawl into the msintcI
: again where | stayed until 9 80 in til,
. morning, when | was taken on by lif,
i boat from Gay Hsad. A steamer passed
y the wreck four miles to the southeastwart
l 4 - Il that hsrl