The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1896-02-14
SEVEN DROWNED.
Were Lost With Schooner Flor
ida, Off Plum Island.

Schooner Alliance Meets the Same Fate.
Captain and Two of Her Crew Find
Ocean Graves.
AMEsBURY, Mass, Feb. 10.-Schooner
Florida, coal laden, for an eastern port, is
a wreck half a mile off Salisbury beach.
The Plum Island lifesaving crew reached
here last night and attempted to reach the
vessel with line for the breeches buoy.
i Seven men were seen in the rigging when
she came ashore yesterday afternoon.
The Florida went to pieces at 10 o'clock
last night, when the masts gave way, let
| ting the seven occupants into the sea.
Two of the bodies were washed ashore
The lifesaving crew could do nothing, as
no boat could stand the sea. The vessel
hailed from Belfast, Me. She struck the
sandbed, near where the schooner Jennie
M. Carter was wrecked year ago, in
treacherous spot.
Big bonf1res were built ON the beach
! and attempts made by fishermen to reach
the fated schooner Bombs with lines at
tached, thrown by lifesaving crew, were
/ not caught by the sailors on the Florida,
who were in benumbed condition Five
of them were ON the mizzenmast, one ON
the mainmast and the other on the bow
spirit. During the evening matches and
portions of the Floridas boats came
ashore. A portion of the lifesaving crew
| will patrol the beach on watch for other
bodies Several hundred people saw the
wreck go to pieces.
Beyond Lifesavers Reach.
The lfesavers made gallant effort at
| w., rI~ ell I'D tlo;,n
lifeboat out into the towering breakers,
and, manning the oars, pulled with zeal
to make way but their effort was futile
The boat was caught in the trough of the
sea, was overturned, and their attempt to
go to the schooner had to be abandoned.
In the meantime, during all that long
wait, almost an eternity to the poor fe@-
lows in their perilous place in the rigging
with death awaiting them on all Sides
they could be seen. What their feelings
were as they saw darkness settling may
readily be conjectured.
Lifted by the surging sea and moved by
the gale the vessel had been slowly forced
farther toward the shore. Then the life
savers made an effort to save the impris-
oned and imperilled crew They made
her position as best their trained eyes and
ears could place her, and fired the lifeline.
Experience told them that they had
reached her, but that was the only result
attained.
Either the men had already succumbed
to their fearful sufferings or had become
so benumbed with cold that they could do
nothing to make the lines fast, and the
lifesavers were forced to abandon their
efforts to save.
In the meanwhile the seething foaming
and battering sea had been at it's work
breaking and tearing at the vessels side.
At 10 o'clock she was rapidly becoming
mass of broken planks and splinters, and
her masts had gone by the board. An
other sea grave had received it's victims.
The ships papers have been washed
ashore, and the names of the crew and
owners found as follows: Owners, Charles
Ryan, Joseph B. Stinson, Ed Mayhem
and Henry Miller, all Of New York.
Crew, all drowned-Arthur Brown cap
tain; r. McCullock, Albert Williams,
Gus Smith, John r. Johnson, Walter
Bell, William Wills. There was another
man. name unknown.
The Alliance Disaster.
The three masted schooner Alliance,
whick left New York last Sunday, went
ashore on Plum island last night, and was
stove to fragments, four of the crew being
saved and three drowned. The survivors
are foreigners, and particulars are not
understood.
The schooner had 400 tons of coal for St.
John, n. B., and was commanded by Cap
tain MELONS. She sailed from New York
and reached Edgartown, where she rode
out Fridays gale, and made Car Cod
Yesterday afternoon The captain kept off
shore in the teeth of streaky northeast
gale but he soon heard the whistling buoy
and sighted Plum island light. Before
they realized it the schooner struck, foated
and was driven u mile up the beach
through the breakers. She struck head
on. the spars came out and she went TO
pieces.
The lost are Captain MELONS of St.
John, n. b.. 80 years, unmarred; John
Reed, Calais Me, age %; Andrew -,
cook, of Spring Hill, N 5, 40 years. The
wreckage is being searched for bodies
Sea Giving Up Its Dead.
AMEsBURY. Mass, Feb. 1.-THE surf
breaking on Salisbury beach still con-
tinues to churn into smaller fragments
the wreckage from the Inflated schooner
Florida The fourth body, that of "A sailor
not yet identified, was recovered yesterday,
At $50 last night the fifth body came
ashore 1t was apparently that Of Mate
McCuller. A close watch is being kept
and the recovery of the remaining three
bodies of the crew is expected on the next
tide.
SIoo Reward SIoo.