The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1895-01-07
SUDDEN DEATH.
Sinking Of a Pilot Boat Off Minot's
Light.
ONLY ONE OF HER CREW OF FIVE
ESCAPED DEATH.

The Other Four Went Down with Their
Freezing Gale Saturday Morning-Story
of the Accident.
Boston, Mass, January 6.-The GIou-
cester fishing schooner Horace B. Par
ker, Captain W. H. Thomas, arrived this
morning and reported having been in
collision with the Boston pilot boat D.J.
Lawler, No. 8, Captain William " Abb
bott. The collision resulted in the sink
ing of the pilot boat and the loss there
from of four of her complement of boat
keepers. Steward Rudolph Harrison,
the only survivor, was brought here by
the Parker. All the pilots had been put
on ocean steamers pound to this port,
previous to the disaster, and have since
arrived here safely.
The accident occurred about 8. 40 a. M,
Saturday. The vessels were eight miles
ENE of Minot's light, trying to work
into port against a heavy northwesterly
gale and thick vapor storm. The pilot
boat was struck on the port side, abaft
OF the main rigging, and sunk in 81
fathoms of water in less than three min
utes Two of the crew who were
drowned were asleep in the forecastie.
| The drowned men were all foreigners.
They were:
Albert Lowrain, first boatkeeper, a
Russian Finn, 35 years of age, who
leaves wife and child in East Boston.
Augustus Larsen, second. boatkeeper,
26 years of age, a Swede. who was
married about two weeks ago, and re-
sided in this city.
Charles Jansen, third boatkeeper, 20
wears of age, Swede, who lived on the
Lawler, unmarried.
A Russian Finn, known as Andrew.
: CAPTAIN ::THOMAS'S STORY.
Captain Thomas. of the Parker, states
he left the Georges last Thursday night
for Boston, with fare OF q, 900 pounds
of haddock Stormy Weather,s with
easterly winds, was experienced until
Friday night, when the wind came from
the northwest and increased to a gale,
which was ATTENDED with intense cold.
The fierce northwesterly gale brought
clouds of vapor with 1t. We kept beat
ing up the bay against the fierce head
gale. and finally made Minot's light.
The weather was so bitterly cold that
the vapor would rise up in clouds, and
observation was considerably obscured.
After making MiAor's the vessel was
put on the port tack and stood over to
the northward. The captains watch
was below, and Thomas robin was az
the wheel with two of the crew on the
forward lookout. About $40 Saturday
morning, one of the men on the lookout
yelled out Hard up" he having seen
fiaring light loom up in the thick vapor
directly ahead. before the helmsman
could avert it the Parker came in col
lision with the Lawler with horrible
across the cabin. Whsn I regained my
feet, rushed on edeckgto help the men
try TO launch the dOries, but this could
not be done, as every thlng aboard the
craft was frozen stiff. The dories were
stuck to each other. Cries of man over
board were heard from the other vessel,
and Lookout John Sullivan grabbed the
only available article which happened to
be the vessels log line, and threw it in
the direction of the voice. Harrison
orasped and hung to the fOrestay of the
Parker and made his way to the deck.
The Parker remained in the vicinity of
the disaster until daylight, in hopes of
finding the bod IS OF the drowned sea-
men. No signs of the bodies were dis
cerpibIe. and later in the day the wind
blowing up favored the Parker in her
crippIed condition getting into port. The
Parker had her bowsprit broken off close
to the stem, her gear carried away, and
stern damaged and bow cbafed, The re-
naming damage amounting to about
$780,"
Rudolph Harrison, the only rescued
mem her of the crew of the Lawler, speaks
in the warmest terms of the humane
and kindly treatment he received aboard
the fishing vessel. He says:
THE SURVIVORS, STORY.
"The Lawler left her berth at Lewis
wharf on Christmas day. The Lawler
was bound out to the Cape Cod station,
where she was to go on duty on Wednes-
day, December 26, and remain until the
following Wednesday. We arrived off
Cape Cod station all safe, and after the
pilots aboard had been placed on incom-
ing vessels, we started for Boston. Fri
day morning we sighted Highland light,
where we were obliged to remain until
noon, owing to dead calm. Shortly
after noon the wind breezed up from the
northwest, afterward increasing to
heavy gale with extreme cold. AT 5
O'Clock the vessel was off Race point,
where she was put under close-reefed
sails and her nose pointed toward Bos-
ton. A very rough sea was running, and
it was dead beat to windward, but
every thing went well. The decks were
a complete mass of ice. Between 8 and
Z o,oIock % Saturday morning. eight miles
ENE from Mineu's, the Lawler was
standing on the starboard tack, heading
west. when First Boatkeeper Albert
Lowrain discerned the outlines of ves-
sci which was beating in and beaded to
the northward. The Lawler which had
the right OF way according to all mari
Parker also persisted in keeping her
course, The Lawler was close hauled
on the starboard tack, while the Parker
had port tacks aboard. Before one
could say "Jack Robinson the Parker
crashed into our vessel, striking her on
the port side, abreast Of the cabin house.
Before we were struck Boatkeeper Low
l. ,od lin.ht nf he