Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1886-05-13
The sinking of the Aiabama.

John NJ. KelI. in April Century:
when the firing ceased. Captain
Semmes ordered me to dispatch an
officer to the Kearsarge to say that
our ship was sinking; and to ask that
they send boats to save our wounded,
as our boats were disabled The
dingey, our smallest boat, had escaped
damage. dispatched Masters Mate
Fullam with the request No boats
appearing, / had one of our quarter
boats lowered, which was slightly IN
jured, and / ordered the wounded
placed in her. DR. Gait, the surgeon,
who was in charge OF the magazine
and shell room division, came on
deck at this moment. and was at once
put in charge OF the boat, with orders
to'take the wounded to the Kearsarge.
They showed off Just in time to save
the poor fellows from going down in
the ship.
81 now gave the orderfor every man
to jump overheard with spar and
save himself from the sinking ship.
To enforce the order, | walked forward
and urged the men overheard. As
soon as the decks were cleared save OF
| the bodies of the dead, returned TO
the stern-port, where stood Captain
Semmes with one or two of the men
and his faithful stewart, who, poorfel-
| low was doomed to a watery grave,
as he could not swim. The Alabama s
stern-port was now almost to the
waters edge. Partly undressing, we
plunged into the sea, and made an Of
fling from the sinking ship, Captain
Semmes with a life preseryer and on
a grating.
THE Alabama settled stern fore.
most, launching her bows high in the
| air. Graceful even in her death strug-
gle, she in moment disappeared
from the face of the waters. The sea
now presented a mass of living heads,
striving for their lives. Many poor
| fellows sank for the want of timely aid,
| Near me saw float of empty she'll
boxes, and called to one of the men,
| a good swimmer. to examine it; he did
so and replied, 1T is the doctor, sir,
dead Poor LleweIlyn! he persisted al
| most in sight of his home. Theyoung
Midshipman Maffit swan to me and
offered his life-preserver. My grating
was not proving very buoyant float
and the white caps breaking over my
head were distressingly uncomfortable,
| to say the least Maffit said: Mr..
Kell, take my life-preserver, sir; you
are almost exhausted The gallant
boy did not consider his own condi-
ton, but his pallid face told me
that his heroism was superior to his
bodily suffering, and refusedit. Aft.
| er twenty minutes or more | heard
near me some one call out, There is
our first lieutenant and the next mo.
ment I was pulled into a boat, in
which was Captain Semmes, stretched
out in the stern-sheets, as pallid as
death. He had received during
the action a slight confusion on
the hand, and thestruggle in the water
had almost exhausted him. There
were also several of our crew in the
boat, and in few moments we were
alongside little steam yacht, which
had come among our floating men,
and by throwing them ropes saved
many lives. Upon reaching her deck,
I ascertained for the first time that
she was the yacht Deerhound, owned
| by Mr.. John Lancaster, of England
In looking round saw two French
pilot boats engaged in saving our crew
and finally two boats from the kear'
sarge"