Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1892-04-14

BosroN, April ll.-Last evening an in
structor and 10 boys connected with the
Boston Farmer School at Thompson's
Island were capszed in small boat and
the Instructor and eight of the boys
drowned.
structor Frank Hitchcock, Homer
Thatcher, George Ellis, Thomas Phillips,
William Cnrran, Charles Graves, Harry II.
Loud, Adelbert II. Packard. The rescued
boys were Owe Clements and Charles A.
Limb.
The instructor had been to the city dur
ing the day attending lectures and the 10
boys, constituting regular crew of the
school, left the island at $50 to sail to CITY
Point, To convey the instructor 10 the
island. The trip is considered perfectly
safe under ordinary circumstances, having
been made for years, even during the
winter months, without accident As a
precauton in view of the breeze, the crew
took single sail boat instead of double
sail craft in which the trip is often made.
STRUCK BY A sQUALL.
The trip to the point was made and soon
after p. m. the boat started on the return
trip. At point supposed to be between
Spectacle Island and Thompson's island
the boat was struck by squat and imme-
diately capsized. The II occupants were
thrown to the ice cold water, but being ac-
customed to strict discipline and the exer-
else of heroism in the school, thew all
secured positions where they could cling
to the overturned craft, and then began a
LONG WAIT FOR RESCUE,
which to most of them never came, Ac-
cording to the testimony of the two sur
vivors. they encouraged each other bv
words of cheer, occasionally in the hope
that they might be heard by some one on
shore.
At one time tug was seen in the dis
tance and they shouted with all their re-
manning strength, but could not attract at
tention.
THE NIGHT WAS COLD
and the shores and wharves were aban-
doned. When the time for the boat to re-
turn to the island had passed, the snperin-
tendent of the school, Charles II. Bradley,
went to the beach to scan the waters
toward City Point, to see if his boys were
approaching; The was fire on neigh
boring island. and he got in the range of
the freight. in the hope that it would aid
his vision, but he saw nothing. The sur
vivors say that they saw his form patrol
ing the beach and felt sure that rescue
would come, but it did not.
Finally the chill of the water and the
exertion necessary to keep their heads
above the surface overcame the unfor-
Inmates, and one by one they were
COMPELLED TO RELEASE THEIR HOLDS.
The instructor was the first to go. Each
offered prayer or word of farewell to
the others as he gave up his hold on life.
Some of them endured the unequal con-
test for nearly four hours, and it was quite
four hours or about IL o'clock when the
boat with the two survivors clinging to it,
but exhausted, drifted ashore. They were
Immediately cared for and apparently are
recovering from the effect of their ex-
posure.
Superintendent Bradley came to the city
this morning, notified the police, under
takers and the officers of the Boston Farm
School of the disaster. and engaged diver
to search for the bodies of the lost. This
is the only drowning accident that has
happened to the school since 1884.