The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1892-02-23
The Burning of the Loodiana.

Especial to THE HERALD-Examiner Dispatch.l
New York, Feb. 22.-The steamship
Egyptian Monarch arrived yesterday, and
Second Officer Jordan describes the sight
ing of the ship Loodiana on fire January
49, She (the Loodiana) had a cargo of
petroleum for London. Officer Jordan
says: 81 was on the lookout. The wind
was blowing furiously and the water
seemed mountains high above US. Suddenly
away over the port bow [ saw glare in
the heavy sky. Then l saw sudden fash
and there seemed to be an explosion light
ing up the horizon for miles around. Seiz-
ing glass | found that sailing ship was
on fire. l sent for Captain Irwin and the
Egyptian Monarch was headed in the direc-
ton OF the light. AT l 80 a. N. we rounded
to near the burning vessel. 1t was the
Loodiana, and she was ablaze almost from
stem to stern. The flames had nearly
reached to the bows. In the bright glare
saw two figures sitting astrde the jlb-
boom. The glass showed them 10 be man
an6 woman, AfLerw ards we learned they
were the captain OF LoodiaLa and his wife.
There was no hope of saving the vessel
even If any one had thought of doing
SO. The flames had run up the masts and
rigging and had obtained such a hold that
nothing could stop them until the ship was
burned to the waters edge. Big patches
of burning oil foated around and about US.
The storm had not abated, and as we cut
through the waves we seemed 10 be sailing
through a sea OF fire which leaped up an
grily around us. We got as near 10 the
Loodiana as possible. The two survivors
cav US. That agoniZing cry for help which
escaped them at that moment chilled the
blood in my veins. The man astride the
H. ,o1,,, n h.,,
| ing with his other the waist of frall look
ing woman. We launched boat, though
none of US believed that the boat would live
| in such a gale. In fact, for the first time
in its history, the Egyptian Monarch had
/ to throw oil over to calm the fury of the
waves, but before we could launch the boat
the fire had forestalled US. We shouted to
the couple to be of good cheer. Their az
swer was a piteous cry for help. The
burning ship was lying with its head to the
wind. The flames were creeping
slowly toward the boom, hut the
| tempest seemed to favor the
captain and his wife. Occasionally
the ships stern was tossed high on the
waves when flames were blown along the
bows until it seemed as If the clothes of
the couple were scorched by the intense
heat. The stays supporting the iib-boom
had been burned away. A few minutes
| afterwards the ship slung around; the
flames leaped towards the keel OF bowsprit:
an awful cry of agony went up from those
poor tortured ones Down they fell into
the fire lit waves. We saw them for one
short moment. The man was holding on 10
the stump of a spar and the woman was
clingiug TO him. A heavy wave lifted
them up and dashed them against the side
of the burning vessel. We never saw
them again. We steamed around the blaZ-
ling hulk in the hope of seeing boat con-
tanning the crew. Then we steamed &c
leeward for twelve miles, but no sign of
boat or raft could be discovered. We laid
around as long as possible, but no boat
could live in such sea as was running al
that time.n