The Portland daily press., 1895-01-31
they recovered sufficiently to tell the story
ACCOUNTS OF THE SURVIVORS.

afternoon. The few hours of the voyage
| before the disaster were uneyentful. AT
four O'Clock this morning the wind was
| blowing very hard and tremendous sea
was running. The morning was unusually
dark, and numerous lights were seen in all
directions. showing many vessels were near
| by. The captain ordered. therefore. that
rockets De sent up at regular Intervals to
| warn crafts TO keep out of the Elbe' S
course. Near six o'clock, when the Elbe
was some fifty miles off Lowestoft. on the
coast of Suffolk, when the lookout sighted
| a steamer of about fifteen hundred tons ap-
proacing.
He gave the word, as a precaut1on, and
the number of rockets were doubled. They
were sent up at short. intervals, but the
| warming was without effect. The steamer
came on with unchecked speed, and before
| the Elbe could change her course or reduce
her speed, notably, there was the terrific
crash of collision.
| The Elbe was hit abaft the engine room,
| and the smaller steamer wrenched away,
| and an enormous hole was left in the Elhe's
| side. The water poured through and down
into the engine room in cataract. The
room filled almost instantly. The engines
were still and the big hull began to settle.
AFTER THE COLLISION.
| The passengers were in bed, as the bitter
cold and rous b sea prevented early rising.
and no one except the officers and crew on
duty We're on deck when the ship was
struck. The shock and crash reused every
| body. The steerage was in panic and in a
moment men, women and children. half
dressed or in their night clothes. came
crowding up the companionways. They
clung together in groups, facing the cold
| and storm, and cried aloud for help or
| prayed on their knees for deliverenoe. The
officers and crew were calm for few
moments. and they went among the terror
stricken groups. trying to quiet them and
encouraging them to hope that the vessel
might be saved. 1t was soon apparent that
the Elbe was settling steadily. The officers
were convinced that she was about to
founder and gave orders to lower the boats
| In short time three boats got alongside,
but the seas were breaking over the steamer
with great force and the first boat was
swampedA before anybody could get into 1t.
| The other two boats were lowered about tie
same time. and filed quickly with members
of the crew and passengers, but the num-
ber was small. as the boats held only twenty
persons each. The boat carrying twenty
one persons that landed at Lowestofr put
| Off in such haste from the sinking steamer
that nobody in it noticed what became OF
the other boat. The survivors believe that
she got away safely. They say they were
tossed about in the heavy seas several
hours before they sighted the Wild Flower.
The little smack bore down on them at
once and took them aboard. They were ex-
hausted from excitement and exposure, and
several were in state of collapse and had
to bs carried and dragged from one boat to
! the other.
MISS ANNA BUECKER.
the OILY woman in tho party. was pros
trated as they got clear of the Elbe. She
lay in the bottom of the boat for five hours
with the seas breaking over her and the
water that had been shipped half covering
her body. Although her physical strength
was gone she showed true pluck. and did
not utter word of complaint, and re-
peated]y urged her companions not to mind
her, but look after themselves. Hofmann' s
leg was hurt severely while he was chang
ing boats. The Wild Flowers crow gave
the survivors every possible attention, and
upon landing the survivors We're taken In
charge by B. S. Bradber. the German con-
sui at Lowestoft, who sent some Of the
sailors home and others to Suffolk hotel.
Miss Buecker. who took passage only to
Southampton, will probably be able TO go to
London IN day or two. 1C
BOFMANN'S STORY.
Carl Holman. who came ashore In the
! Wild Flower, said in an interview: MY
| home is in Grant Island, Nebraska. / had
my wife and boy of seven with me on the
Elbe, and l am utterly wretched. ] became
separated from them and hardly dare hope
they are saved. I was abroad TO visit rela-
tives in Germany during the last fouI
| months and was accompanied by my wife
and boy We left Bremen for home; on
Tuesday. / was asleep in a state room
when a noise like gun shot awoke me. ]
jumped ouJ OF bed and spoke to MY wife
who had been aroused as suddenly. asked
her what she thought the trouble was but
she seemed to pay little attention to it.
was not greatly alarmed, although ! heard
scufiing feet and hoarse shouts on deck.
hurried into few clothes and went 10 the
upper deck, here I saw only too clearly
what had happened. rushed below and
helped my wife and boy to throw on few
clothes and we went on deck together. The
excitement and confusion cannot be
descibed. never saw anything like it. and
everybody seemed to have lost their heads
The scene was distressing beyond anthing
IL ever saw. Men. women and children
we're running about madly, the women
screaming with terror and every man was
getting in the others way. The darkness
increased the confusion and fright. Sud
denly heard sh1ill despairing cries from
the women. ''there are no more boats. I theI
saw the men at the davits. and motto ed the
ropes were frosen SO hard or so tangled ol
some thing Of the sort, that the sailors hat
TO chop them frantically to get the boats
clear. The sailors were doing their best
and worked with might and main. The!
finally got out he quarter boat on th'
mort side and could see that it was full O.
neople. but the sailors could not lower it
Meanwhile the steamer was settling per
ceptibly. took my boy in my arms and go
into the second boat, my wife was close be
hind when somebody shouted: All wome1
and children go ON the other side of thu
: ship,' l believe the captain gave the order
NV wife started 10 run across the deck, ant
that is the last saw of her. ! clung to tn,