The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1884-01-31
THRILLING SCENES,
Witnessed and Told by Survivors Of
the Lost City Of Columbus.
Heartrending Recitals from the Few
Survivors.
ICompi,ed from Various sources.l


had been on duty ever since they left Boston,
and, having taken the ship safely through the
most dangerous part of the sound, he went TO
his state-room for few moments TO get
warm. He left three mates and quarter
master In the wheelhouse, with instructions
| to follow the course he had marked out He
had been below perhaps twenty-five minutes
when there was bump. 1t was not crash
| or severe shock. Every one near the pilot
house heard the mate give the wheelman the
order TO 'port." Capt Wright felt sure, as he
jumped TO the wheeLnouse, they had run down
some sailing craft, and, without stopping TO
| look, he shouted TO the man at the wheel
lizard aport." Instantly realizing the actual
situation, he endeavored TO work the vessel
| of, first by steam power and then by setting
| the jib. Neither experiment was or any
avail, and within FIVE minutes Capt Wright
knew that his ship was doomed. The first
| blow on the rocks did not arouse more than
| half of those on board, but repeated pound
| ing and noise OF excitement soon brought
nearly all from their state-rooms When the
captain abandoned his efforts TO get her on,
| the vessel had already settled enough so that
| the sea began to break over her. Then
every thought was turned TO the
| means OF saving life. Capt. Wright
rushed into the saloon cabin, where
| more than half the passengers, hardly awake,
were trying TO realize the cause of alarm.
| The commander sharply, but without excite
| ment, babe everybody keep COOL but 10 dress
and put on their life-prese"vers. Even as he
entered a wave followed him, and there was
| a terribly distressing scene, But the crowd
seemed half parayzed instead of frenzied in
their terror. Ladies begged for help, but
| most of them obeyed the orders of the officers
| and the calmer men In the room. Nearly
everybody present had on ife-preserver,
| properly adjusted, before going on deck.
Nearly all had partly dressed before being
| driven from the state-rooms and cabin by the
| water. There were few exciting incidents
| at this stage of the catastrophe. One lady beg
ged Capt. Wright to save her two children, but
! the full extent Of the danger was not realized,
so that there was no great panic. The water
| filled the state-rooms and cabin slowly, and
| there was the continual pounding of the YES
! sci on the ledge. But within twenty minutes
| all below decks became untenable. and then
the real horrors of the night began. Just as
the passengers reached the deck tremen-
dous sea struck the ship. A great white
mass of roaring water fell upon the stranded
| vessel. Sixty terror-stricken passengers
| stood upon the gale-swept deck, seeking
| which way 10 turn in the darkness. mo-
ment, and they were gone. So sudden was IL
that not a shrek or a prayer came from the
| little company ere the great wave en-
quilted them. Every woman and child
Those in the rigging and upon the
house had only time 20 clutch tighter
| their supports when the fall of water was
upon them. There was no opportunity to as
sist the women and children TO the rigging,
| where they would have been for q time safe,
and il is well there was not time, for death
| would have been just as sure, though per-
| haps more slow and more asonizing About
| sixty souls remained on board after this first
/ stroke of DEATH The fate of more than half
of these was still more terrible. Half a
| dozen succeeded, after great struggles, in
| launching a boat, and when they got few
feet away from the ship their boat capsized,
and they, too, were drowned before the eyes
| of those remaining In the rigging.
With the shipwrecked men it became a
| test of endurance. Soon after daysreak
the smoke-stack was carried away. A
| few were cinging TO the stays, and most or
these were swept OF. Then the house broke
| up, and the few thereon succeeded in reach
| ing the rigging, they being in all sorts of POI
sitions. Two were supported on loose swing
| ing rope between the masts. They danSled
there in the wind for hours, with the rope
supporting them under the armpits The
| gale swung them back and forth like clothes
| on a line, while the spray of every wave
breaking over the ship drenched them. They
were soon benumbed, and probably died as
| they hung, the stifening of the muscles in
! the cold holding them. One of them was
! swept away about o'clock and the other dis
| appeared about IL. Men chung one above
another to the crosstrees. Those close to-
| gether could exchange few words occa-
sionally, and sad, hopeless words they became
! as the hours wore on and no help appeared.
| Those who, putting their legs through the
cross-trees and partially sat upon the rope,
were soon benumbed below the hips and lost
all control of their limbs. John l.. Cook, Of
Portland, Me-, who with Capt. Wright left the
| wreck last, says that among the
confused mass who were struggling
and screaming when the ship first
struck the reef he noticed a middle-aged man
| and his wife. Their conduct was in marked
1 A.
| The panic which had seized the others was
not shared by Them but their blanchcd faces
| told that they realized the peril which sur
rounded them. The only movement of mus.
cles or nerves was that produced by the
| chilling atmosphere. They stood close to-
| gether casping each others hands, as IL
| about TO commonplace suicide together, and
| thus fulfill the marital vow of standing by
| each other in the varying tide of LIES for
| tunes and misfOrtunes As the wreck ca
reened with the gale from one side to the
| other, and while the spray and waves
| drenched them at every moment the
husband turned and imprinted kiss upon
| the companion of his life, and while thus en-
braced n heavy sea broke over the wreck
and both were washed away and not seen
| afterward. Mr.. Cook remembers particularly
| two men-one n seaman and the other a pas
| senger-who held on in the rigging for five
| or six hours before they surrendered 10 the
| clements. Up To the last moment they were
4
/ from the ropes and went down, their last
| words were of their families and homes. One
| man who had held out against the stormy
| elements was killed by the falling smoke
| stack just as he was about To be rescued, and
| by the same event a couple of the crew were
SO disabled that they only survived the tenn
| pest a few moments longer.
Second Assistant Engineer Henry Collins
states he was aleep in his stateroom when
awakened by the shock of the vessels strik-
| ing. He hastily dressed and hurriedly ran on
| deck Passengers from the main saloon who
| were crowding on deck were washed over
| board as fast as they came up the companion
| way. Il went TO the engineers room and
| saw no one there, then returned TO the deck,
and, seeing the sea breaking clear over the
ship. made for the mizzen rigging where
watched everything and waited for
chance TO escape. passengers
drop out of the rigging frozen stiff.
| All the women were completely helpless,
| The shrieks of the men i'm the rigging were
| awful. ] prayed that might die and be re-
| lieved OF my terrible agony. Some men
cursed and swore, but the majority prayed
for death. All the suferings of lifetime
were crowded into these few terrible hours
In the rigging"
SPLINERS.