The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1895-07-20

her. but no other person saw him, and he
doubtless sank from exhaustion or received
q deadly blow from floating timbcrS. Ev-
cry one OF the four victims bore on the
body marks of blows violent enough to
have disabled If not to have caused death.
Wild as was the undertaking of the life
savers in venturinq upon the flood, IL was
the rashness of the deed that led To the sal
walton of the three who survived. When
the lifeboat made its extraordinary plunge
down the ways, il caught the eye of the
light keeper on the breakwater, and think
ing some terrible emergency had arisen to
call for such extreme risk he ran up the
white flag and sounded the signal of dis
tress. The alarm reached the captain of
the river tug Alva Il, which was lying at
her dock in the inner harbor. Having
steam up, the tug lost no time in making
for the breakwater to learn the meaning of
the signals.
On top of the structure a man was seen
lying limp and PROSTATE, and in the face
OF the heavy sea, surging and boiling
around the wall, the tugmen got him
aboard. 1t proved to be Wilson, the com
panion of the luckless Symonds on the ce-
dar post. After Symonds went down Will
son had carried out his plan of working
toward the breakwater. Reaching it, he
had just strength enough to grasp n ring
bolt in the wall. Getting little breath
ing spell, he recovered strength to climb to
the top, where he fell exhausted. Drawing
the heavy sea and the dangerous drifts of
the flood, the tug turned into the broad
lake to search for others. The surface of
the water was broken by hollows, and an
object so small as man could scarcely be
made out, but sharp watchers soon pointed
TO Il floating body, tossed about by the con
tending waves. 1t proved to be Surfman
Loher, supported by the plank which he
had for time divided with Johnson. He
was picked up by the tug and rcgaincd
strength to go back to duty in few days.
The following month he lost the life so
narrowly saved, while on duty along the
lake shore.
The brave Keeper Distel was the last
man taken up by the tug. His experience
in the water had been the most trying of
all. After the capsize of the lifeboat he
found himself deep in the current, but
struggled to the surface and dashed for the
receding boat. He caught at the painter,
trailing behind her, but il was wet and
slipped through his fingers. Then he drift
ed helplessly until he collided with q piece
OF thick plank, and seizing that felt greatly
relieved, for he was far out in the lake and
nearly exhausted. He saw the light keep
er's flag and heard the signals Of distress.
These encouraged him to hold out, but the
good luck soon met with reverse. A raft
of lumber, driving headlong in the river
current, bore down on him, striking his
right side. Fast losing consciousness and
utterly without hope, he drifted on. In a
daze he heard some one cry, Take this
line He felt n line strike his arm,
clutched it mechanically and gave it a
turn around his wrist. That was the last
he knew of the flood, or the plank, or the
rescue, until he came TO in the life saving
station house where the tug bore him
with Loher and Wilson. He was disabled
for life GEORGE L. KILMER