The Portland daily press., 1892-01-06
They Attempted to Save Life and
Game Near Perishing.
ABANDONED IN 4 SMALL BOAT FAR
OUT ON A STORMY SEA.
They Left Their Ship to Rescue a Passen-
ger Who Had Fallen Overboard-They
Found Him Clinging to a Life Preserver
in His Death Agony-The Ship Had
Steamed Away and They Had to Row
for Their Lives.

LivERPooL, January 5.-A boats crew
composed of six men belonging to the
British steamship Eleanor, arrived here
this morning in a half frozen condition.
The sailors tell tale of much suffering,
from which experience several of them
viii be permanently injured. 1t appears
that one of the passengers of the Flea
nor, who had been acting in a strange
manner all the time he had been on
board that vessel, suddenly jumped over
board on Sunday while the steamer was
going at full speed. The Eleanor at that
time was off Green Ores Light, County
Louth, Ireland, but far out ut sea. In
addition, it was night time and a nasty
sea was running. The weather was bitter
ly cold. In spite of these facts the cap
tain of the steamship stopped and then
reversed his engines and ordered a boat
to be got ready for launching. He called
for volunteer crew and burned blue
lights while the boat was being swung
overheard and lowered away. A crew
of six volunteers slid down the falls the
moment the small craft was ready for
them, and with the steamer still burning
colored flare lights the rescuers disap-
peared in the darkness, pulling with all
their strength in the direction
IN which the drowning man
was supposed to be. Under
the influence of wind, sea and a strong
current, the boat was soon so far away
from the steamer that her lights could
not be seen. The gallant seamen. how
ever, continued their search for the pas
senger who had jumped overheard.
When the first alarm of MAN overboard''
had been given on board the Eleanor, a
life-buoy had been thrown overheard
from the steamer, and after an hour of
fruitless search, the men in the boat
found this buoy, and clutching it fiercely
IN his death agony was the unfortunate
passenger He died before he could be
pulled into the boat
The six rescuers then turned their at
tention to their own safety and anxious
ly scanned the horizon in search of the
steamers light or of Green Ores Beacon.
Neither could be seen. The men were
cold and numb. They shouted for hours
without avail, and at last recognized the
fact that the Eleanor had abandoned
them and that their chances Of getting
ashore again were very slim. The boat
was half full of water, and to make mat
ters worse, a drenching downfall of
rain swept over them, still further
adding to their misery. Some of the
men were so exhausted that they could
hardly grasp the oars. There was moth
ing to eat or drink in the boat, and in
this weather the men and boat were coat
ed thick with ice. When morning
dawned they could see in the distance a
low line of black, and pulling toward it,
with renewed vigor, they were oyerjoyed
to see that they were approaching land.
Some hours later the Eleanor's sailors
ran theirl boat ashore at Green Ores and
were soon being tenderly cared for by
the coast guardsmen. 1t was seen that
the rescued men were badly frostbitten,
and that several of them would lose fin
gers and toes. As soon as possible, the
Eleanor's rescued mariners were for
warded to Liverpool, where that steamer
was bound. The Eleanor had, in the
meantime, reached Holyhead and report
ed the loss of the six men and the pas
senger. The greatest indignation is ex-
pressed against the captain of the steam
ship for having so hastily concluded that
the six seamen were lost. The injured
seamen propose to bring suits for dam
ages against the Eleanor's captain and
against the owners of the vessel.