The Portland daily press., 1892-02-01
SNATCHED FROM DEATH.
Food, Fuel and Hope Of Life Gone
When Aid Arrived.
STORY OF THE SUFFERINGS AND
RESCUE OF TEN MEN.

Which Drifted Out to Sea With Four
Scows-How They Battled for Life
Standing in Ice Cold water-Decks
Level with the Sea-One Scow Still
Missing.
VINEYARD HAVEN, Mass, January 81.
Captain George Clark and nine men
from the missing steam tug Edwin I'll.
Webster of New York, for whose safety
much anxiety has been felt, arrived in
this harbor Friday night. They are still
quartered on board the three-masted
schooner Everett Webster, Captain Bow
en- of Philadelphia. The Everett Web
phia, with a cargo of coal. She rescued
the ten men when nearly every hope of
their being saved had been given up. A
violent northerly gale has been blowing
since the schooner anchored here, max
ing it too rough for the rescued men to
make landing, and not until today
could the schooner be boarded and the
full particulars of the rescue ascertained.
Captain Clark, of the ill-fated steam
tug, states: I'VE left New York Tues
day morning, about 1 o'clock, for the
dumping grounds off Rockaway Inlet.
We had dumping scows Nos. and IL in
tow. and at 4.55 reached the ground.
After the two scows had dumped, we
started to return. The wind at this time
had attained the velocity of a gale, and
the tug was
Struck by Binding Snow Squalls
causing her to keep near and under the
east bank. In consequence of this, we
got into shoal water, and while endeav-
oring to get out into deeper water, the
hawser caught in the propeller. Just as
day was breaking, the tug Nichols, with
two scows ia tow, came to our assist
ance As all efforts to get the hawser
clear were unavailing, she endeav-
ored to tow the disabled tug and
scows to- New York, but was unable to
do so on account of the severe gale and
high sea. The Webster then anchored
and the Nichols proceeded toward New
York with her own scows. The Webster
with two scows, dragged oceanward, The
anchor not being sufficient to hold. After
an hour, the hawser holding the scows,
which was entangled in the propeller,
cut OF chafed itself clear and the scows
Drifted Rapidly Out to Sea.
Each dropped anchor, which were ap-
parently of but little service to them.
They could be seen by the Webster all
day drifting to the northeast, but the
next morning nothing could be seen Of
them. TIE Webster continued dragging
L. Il -,
plete mass of ice. She labored SO heavily
that she sprung bad leak, and by CON
slant pumping and all hands bailing
with buckets we could just keep her free
of water. The steamer rolled so badly
that the coal washed into her bilges and
under the pumps, choking them up bad
Iy. The men were obliged to stand in
the ice cold water,
Working for Their Lives
in the endeavor to keep the pumps
clear. In this manner, they
were all more or less frozen.
Sat midnight, Wednesday, the supply
of coal became exhausted, and all availa
BILE woodwork, berths, flooring, joiner
work, ETC., was burned, furnishing fuel
to work the pumps. About 8 o'clock,
while in this precarious condition, the
wind being still heavy, the fuel exhaust
ed, with the water UP to the CRATE bars
in the fire room, and the crew all nearly
exhausted from exposure, excessive la
Dor and hunger, having eaten scarcely
ANYTHING for 40 hours, a vessels lights
were sighted, heading straight for the
schooner Everett Webster. Signalled by
o,,,, 1;c,J,+o ha iYoYoedi ofaJu hora down
and lowered her stern boat manned by
First Officer w. M. Leeds and three men.
These men, by skilful management,
Rescued the Ten Men
from the sinking steamer one by one,
thus consuming about an hours time.
When the last man was rescued, the
guards of the tug were level with the
water and she could not have stayed
af1oat much longer"
When landed aboard the schooner it
was ascertained that all the rescued men
had their hands and feet more or less
frozen. They will leave for their homes
tomorrow morning. Capt. Clark states
that too much praise cannot be accorded
to Captain Bowen and the officers and
crew of the schooner Everett Webster,
for the gallant rescue. The schooner
was solid mass of ice, nearly to her
forecross trees, and almost unmanagea-
BILE. Captain Clark also, states that if
they had not been taken off at that time,
they certainly
Would Have Been Lost
as their own row boat was swamped. The
captain states that had a large steam tug
been sent out after them at once, the
Webster could have been saved. He has
no knowledge of missing scow No. 5, but
thinks she would not sink, being large
and new with water tight compartments
running nearly the whole length of her.
He manifests anxiety regarding the two
men on board as she was not abundant
ly supplied with food andfuel. The tug
Webster was abandoned about twenty
miles east.of the Highlands of Navesink.
Her crew saved only what they stood in
and are in destitute condition.
The tug Nicholas, after leaving the
Webster and her,tow, as related by Cap
tain Clark lin the above despatch, an
cbored he tWo .scows and aQain tried to