The record-union., 1895-05-04
RESULTING IN THE DEATH OF SEW
tENTEEN OF HER GREW.
Struck a Submerged Reef While Being
Carried Before a Gale, and Her Hull
Smashed Into Splinters-Twenty-
eight Men Thrown Into the lee
Cold Waters, With the Shore Three
Miles Distant-Although Nearly All
the Twenty-eigh Survive.
Special to the REcoRD-U UNION.

was received this afternoon from Kodiak
Island, Alaska, of the wreck of the
schooner George r. White, attended with
the loss of seventeen lives. A. Z. Biges,
late engineer on the steamer Francis Cut
ting, arrived in Sitka on the Western
steamer Dora in time to take the steamer
AL Ki for this port, and brought meager
particulars of the accident, but was un-
able to give the list of persons lost. The
schooner Lescoei arrived ut Kodiak few
hours before his departure with one of
the survivors. who was SO exhausted that
he could scarcely give straight account
of the disaster.
On Easter Sunday terrible northeast
gale, mingled with binding snowstorm,
and with the thermometer 80 below Zero
prevailed along the southwest coast OF
Alaska. The schooner White, which was
hunting sea otter, was caught in the
storm, and lost her bearings. 10 make
matters worse, some sails we carried
away and part OF her toretr y mast went
over the side, and then tho steering-gear
became dismantled. In this helpless con-
dition she was carried lightly before the
gale, and just before midnight she struck
submerged reef. and a moment later
uoI null w dS SIudSueU luCO SpllnL6rSs
TWenty-eight men were thrown into
the ice cold waters, with the shore three
miles distant, TO which they must pass
through heavy surf. Some of them in
sheer desperation clutched onto floating
debris. and others were drowned. About
twenty were fortunate enough to reach
the beach through a,gale- whipped sea and
snowstorm almost dead, with their
clothes frozen to their bodies. Without
chn fhAvv n.
night, and at daybreak on the beach they
found ten corpses. The survivors them
selves were too exhausted to bury the
dead. The most they could do was to
drag their bodies up on the shore away
from ravenOus animals of the sea. Clad
in light garments, with no fire or shelter,
su bsisting on shell fish and suffering
from intense cold, three or four men
died.
On the third day after the wreck some
native hunters chanced to pass by, and
from them fresh meat and a supply of
matches to start fire were obtained. By
that time only eleven out Of the original
twenty-eight had survived. Many OF
them were badly frozen, their limbs FROST
bitten SO severely that they must suffer
surgical operations to save their lives.
One man is said to have lost the use OF
both legs and arms. Scarcely one of the
survivors will get through the ordeal
without being manned for life.
The schooner Lescoei, after reporting
the accident at Kodiak, returned for the
survivors. The place where the accident
occurred was three miles from Tugeduk
Island, twenty-five miles southwest of
Kodiak Island. The news had not reached
Kodiak an hour before the Dora sailed
for Sitka, said Biggs, and it was impos-
sible to learn the identity OF the sur
vivors.
The schooner was owned by Justin
Chenoweth and Paul PanIson of Seattle.
Both of the owners are supposed to have
been aboard at the time of the accident.
The vessel was in charge of Captain j.
l.. Wheeler
THE WHITES CREW.
SEATTLE, May 3.-The schooner Geo.
r. White cleared from this port on July
ID, 1894, for years cruise in the North
Pacific Ocean and Behring Sea. Her crew
was signed by United States Shipping
Commissioner j. j. Burns, and was as
follows: Master. j. l.. Wheeler; mate,
Steve Baretech; cook, Nj. Buttee; hunt
ers, Edward Pomeroy, Andrew Daniel
son, Justin Chenowith; seamen, Richard
Redmond, G. Morris, Louis A. Burrell,
John Harrison, Chris. Swanson, Robert
Baxter, Henry Parker; cabin boy, James
Carton. Her dimensions were: Net tom
o,
depth, 6.3. She was built in 1890 at Port
Madison. Wash.
The schooner and her crew were we'll
known at this port She was owned by
Paul PaulsOn Of LacOnner, and was fitted
out for her cruise by Hibbard dE Norton
of this city. Captain Wheeler is one Of
the best known sealing masters on the
Sound, and is said to be capable, daring
navigator. During his cruises on the
litt
Captain Wheeler went up as far as Cop
per Island. which is considerably farther
up than any large schooners have ever
gone. Justin Chenowith, one of the
hunters and owners, is also we'll known
in this port. His home is in Laconner,
and he went along to represent his and
Paulson's interests.
II was the intention of Captain Wheeler
when he left here last summer to hunt
during the balance of the season in Beh-
ring Sea, and as winter approached to go
south toward the Hawaiian Island and
then on to the California Coast near
Santa Barb when he would cruise
along up the coast and hunt the seal that
are supposed to migrate in that direction
at this season. Instead of carryinE out
that plan, he undoubtedly wintered near
Kodiak.
OFF Kodiak and extending northward
over q distance of 200 miles is what is
called the Fortlock Banks, where there
is excellent hunting, and which affords q
good harbor in the winter season, and
probably he has been hunting there all
winter. When the schooner was last
spoken in Behring Sea by Captain Miner
OF the Ella Johnson, last September. she
had between 100 and 200 sealskins. 1t is
also believed that she had several black
bear and otter skins. all of which will be
lost.
She was valued at about $1,000. and was
we'll insured.
ROBBER BARNES.