News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1884-10-23
SAVED FROM THE SAVAGES
A WRECK ON THE EAST COAST OF
AFRICA.
Over 600 Persons on French Transport
Rescued-An Onicer who Lost His Buttons.

Over 600 Persons on n French Transport
| Rescued-An Omcer who Lost His Buttons.
The British steamer Lord of the Isles,
running from New York to China and
Japan, which arrived in New York on
August %, rescued the officers and crew
and half of the passengers of the French
transport Averycn, which had been
| wrecked on the Somai coast near Cape
Guardafui, the eastern extremity of At
RIGA. The story of the wreck and the
rescue was told by Mr. Evans first officer
of the Lord of the Isles, to a reporter.
The Averyon was returning home to
France from Tonquin. She had on
board 600 people, including her officers
and crew and a marine guard of forty
| five men. There we're on board many
i"1 i"1pvSc5UlIts,ime this season+~--~h- Army
N n1lnga.a pensl
Meir wive5leH H1gast 20 she went
ashore near Cape Guardafui. There
was a heavy sea running in on the
shore, and the Averyon was swung
around so that the sea made clean
breach over her. A native village could
be seen, and soon there were 5000
Somalis congregated on the shore. The
chief came off to the ship and offered to
let the Frenchmen land if they would
pay Sc, 900. All the money that could
be collected in the ship only amounted
to $500, and for this amount the natives
agreed to let party from the transport
land and establish a camp in which to
store provisions.
The natives were nearly naked, and
were armed with bows and arrows,
knives, hatchets and assegais. They
swan off to the ship by the hundred,
but the marine guard, stationed with
loaded rifles in the chains, prevented
their boarding the transport. The first
lieutenant Of the Averyon started with
eleven men in boat to effect landing.
His boat was overturned in the surf and
the men thrown into the water. The
natives Immediately came to their res
cue, and as they were taking the French
men ashore stole everything out of
their pockets, and captured the ieuten-
ants watch and chain. The lieutenant
got a line to the ship and rugged up a
sling so that men could go to and from
the vessel Some provisions were landed
and camp established. One of the
men in the first lieutenants boat was
drowned when the boat was overturned,
so that only ten men were left on shore
The natives watched carefully to see
that no more landed, and any attempt
to reinforce the party at the camp would
have been the signal for a general mas
sacre. The next day German steamer,
the Massalia, came along and took off
800 sick soldiers and women from the
wrecked transport. She had no room
for more and sailed away, leaving the
306 others to their fate. The sea was
rising, the three thousand savages were
clamoring for money, and things looked |
black for the Frenchnen- There were |
no arms aboard except two small cannon
(Which were fired as signals of distress
continually, the rifles of the forty five
marines, and the pistols carried by the
officers. On the evening of August %,
the Lord of the Isles, passing up to-
ward the Gulf of Alden, heard the min
ute guns and ran in to the wreck.
The sea was so high that nothing
could be done that day, but on the
next the boats from the British steamer
went off to the Averyon and took every
one aboard the Lord of the Isles. The
savages swan around the English boats,
and tried to stick their hatchets through |
the boats bottoms. The party of French
when they saw that rescue was at hand.
The first lieutenant was the last to leave |
the beach. As he placed himself in the
sling to be hauled on board, the natives
off his uniform. When he was half |
way to the ship the savages began to
haul on the line by which the sling was |
drawn ashore. The sailors on the ship |
hauled equally hard the other way, SO
that in the confusion the lieutenant was
overturned and was hauled aboard feet
first. He was nearly suffocated when
he reached the deck.
Before leaving the Averyon the cap
tain set her on fire. AS the last boat
load left the transport the entire 5000
natives swarmed on board, and when
the Lord of the Isles sailed away they
could be seen shouting and fighting in
the midst of the flames on the deck of
the burning vessel. There was only
sixty pounds of powder on board, the
rest having been thrown overheard. just
before the Lord of the Isles got out OF
sight of the burning vessel the flames
reached the powder. There was an ex-
plosion, the masts went by the board,
and several hundred savages must have
been killed. The rescued Frenchmen
were landed at Alden.
Admits His Guilt
A diSpatch from Salem N T. SAWS