The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1894-01-19
Awful Experience Of the Crew
Of the Maggie E. Wells.
Fourteen Lives Finally Saved by
Gloucester Boat-rale of a Hurricane
That Wrecked the Little Schooner
The Amsterdam's Attempted Rescue.

New Ork Dy the Dutcn steamer Afuster-
dam on Wednesday, narrating the loss of
Chief Officer Mayer and five of the crew
of the steamer while attempting rescue
at sea, seemed to indicate that the crew
Of the fishing schooner Maggie +. Wells,
numbering Ia, had all perished.
Good news came TO Halifax yesterday.
The Gloucester Mass. schooner Magnolia,
Captain Day, arrived with the Maggie T..
Wells crew. They were taken Monday
from their vessel, which was then set on
fire 100 miles east by southeast of Sable
island.
The Maggie +. Wells sailed from
Gloucester, Mass, Dec 23, on halibut ex-
pedition. She proceeded TO Quero banks,
off Sable island, and fished there without
interruption of storm or accident until
Friday last. Ten thousand pounds of
halibut had been captured by that time
and the voyage promised to be profitable
one for all concerned.
Early Friday morning the wind came in
puffs from the south and the sky dark
ened; the sea rolled rapidly and the wind
kept freshening.
In n Hurricane.
About n. m. the cable parted and fu-
anchor. The schooner was tossing about
so badly that the attention of the crew
was directed to keeping her into the wind
and securing movable articles about the
deck.
At 1890 o'clock the wind was blowing a
perfect hurricane, and huge black clouds
swept across the heavens. Wave after
wave rolled around the little schooner,
xxcs.. Il 90,
IL o'clock, an immense column of water
struck the Maggie Wells on her quarter,
tearingaway her after house and opening
o hole in her deck, which filled with
water.
The cabin and holds were half full of
water. The wind blew the foresail and
other sails to ribbons, and threw the
schooner so far down on her beam ends
that the mastheads were buried in
the ocean. Captain Davidson, II. X.
overheard by the waves. ALI three came
up again.
When she righted the schooner pre-
sented n scene of wreck and despair.
Every boat was smashed to atoms; not
sail was left standing; ropes and blocks
and lines were confused and hopelessly
tangled, and worst of all, her deck planks
were started and leaking like sieve.
Her Hold Flooded.
A great hole aft, where the house had
been, allowed hundred of gallons into the
hold. The vessel, from the weight of
water, was sunk two feet deeper than she
had been. Captain Davidson's left eye was
cut and bleeding and the thumb and in
dex finger Of his left hand were split.
Beds, sacks and boards were laid over the
hole In the deck and the pumps were set
going to keep the schooner free.
During Friday night and Saturday the
vessel drifted helplessly at the mercy of
the wind and sea. The captain reckons
he drifted 100 miles to the southeast.
Ii was ~ o'clock Sunday when the
Dutch tank steamer Amsterdam bore
down to within a quarter If mile of
the lee of the schooner. The crew of the
Maggie K. Wells were exhausted with
pumping and exposure and living on food
for 20 hours that was saturated with salt
water
They signaled that they were sinking
and wanted to be taken off. The steamer
hauled around to the schooner's weather
bow and launched lifeboat with which
to reach the Maggie K. Wells, and from
that position had to stem cross sea. The
was that before the lifeboat
had gotten 80 yards from the steamers
side it was capsized.
A man in the Maggie f. Wells rigging
saw one man floating in the water and
distinctly made out three others clinqing
to the overturned boat. This lookout was
positive that the Amsterdam afterwards
rescued those three that were on top of
the boat.
A Fatal Error.
Captain Davidson says that had the !
captain of the steamer laid off toward |
from the Maggie Il. Wells the |
accident to the brave fellows who manned |
the lifeboat might not have occurred.
After picking up the men from the boat |
the Amsterdam circled around the sink |
Ing vessel two or three times, and then |
moved off without making any signals or |
any further attempt TO save the men on |
the schooners deck. Ii was 4 O'Clock |
Sunday afternoon when the steamer drew |
away, aud at $3.50 O'Clock her receding
form was still visible against the western |
horizon.
Sunday night the weather moderated.
but the Maggie f.. Wells drifted 40 miles |
further to southeast Of Sable island, the |
wind having shifted on Friday night TO |
west-northwest.
On Monday the Gloucester schooner
hove in sight and rescued Cap |
tain Davidson and his men without much |
difficulty The Maggie T.. Wells was then
fired, being waterlogged and n menace
to navigation. The shipwrecked crew |
succeeded in saving their personal effects,
and the captain brought off his papers
and instruments
Gloucester Schooner Lost.
Captain Davidson reports that shortly
after leaving his own vessel he saw an
other vessel which had met the same fate
ss the Maggie T. Wells. She was about
10 miles west Of where the Wells had
been drifting. The vessel was partly on
her beam ends, waterlogged and on fire.
and there was an ocean steamer near b..
They found she was the Porter s.
Roberts OF Gloucester. and as there was
no sign of life on board, IL was supposed
that the crew had been rescued by the
steamer and the vessel set on fire. The
Porter ;. Roberts was built In Essex.
Mass. In lss2.land hailed from Glouces.
Ter.