The San Francisco call., 1897-11-08
LIVES LOST
TN THE GALE
Nineteen Men PeriShed
on the Steamer
Idaho.
Only Two of the Crew Were
Only Two of the Crew Were
Rescued After the Vessel
Went Down.
1t Was One of the Worst Storms
Ever Experienced on Turbulent
Lake Erie.
. Special Dispatch to THE CALL

| BUFFALO, Nov. THE following are
| the names of sixteen of The nineteen men
| who lost their lives on the steamer Idaho,
which sank during the gale on Saturday
morning a bove Long Point, on Lake Erie ::
Alexander Giles, captain, Buffalo;
George Gibson, first mate, Buffalo; Will
liam Clancy, chief engineer, Buffalo;
John D. Taylor, steward, Buffalo; Nelson
SIX nner, first assistant engineer; Louis
| Gilmore, watchman; Richard Mclean,
wheelman; Rober; Williams. wheeI man,
| A. J. Richard, lookout; Henry Thomp-
son, lookou; Conrad b. Lanker. fireman;
William Gregory fireman; John Holly,
assistant steward; Frederick Miffort,
oiler; Edward Smith, deckhand, Roches-
| ter; NJ. Bell. deckhand.
| The names OF three men drowned are
unknown. One was fireman. another a
! d-ckhand and third porter. The names
of the two men saved are: Louis Laforce,
| junior second mate, and William Gill, a
| deckhand, living at 137 Kent street,
! r, chester.
| II is not known at the office OF the
Western Transit Company where the
greater portion Of the dead men hailed
! from. The Idaho went out of com mission
three or four years ago, but this sum mer
| she VS. thoroughly overEauled. After
! her overhauling she was placed at the
disposal of the Naval Veterans Associa-
ton. and by that organization used as a
| flagship during the G. A. R. encampment,
| in August. AT the close of the encamp-
ment she was put into commission again
as freig hter.
| The captain of the ill-fated steamer,
Alexander Giles, was one of the most
widely known of lake seamen. He was Al
years of age and knew the lake waters like
a book. His brother, Donald GILES, is
! captain of the steamer Harlem.
| When the steamer Mariposa arrived in
port, about midnight last night. with
| news of the disaster to the Idaho and
having on board the two surviving men,
bers of the crew. Ca ptaiu Root had this TO
say regarding the storm on the lakes and
the rescue OF the two men: lit was one
OF the worst gales l ever experienced in
all my years on the lakes. We started
from Chicago with a load of oats. All the
way down the lakes we had a fight with
the storm, and | thought once or twice of
| putting in somewhere until Il blew over.
l am glad l did not, for fear if | had
| these two men who came down with me
| would have jcined their mates by this
! time.
.'It was about 1913 0o'clock in the after
| noon when l first learn OF the wreck OF
the Idaho l was on deck when my first
| mate, Myron Cham berlaln, came 10 me
and told me that he mad sighted a spar off
| 10 the north and that he thought there
| were a couple of men clinglng to it. He
| pointed it out TO me, and when | got the
glasses on it l could distinguish the men
D ainly. We were running under good
| mead OF steam ut the time and put on
more ana headed for the spar. VIII IL
nearing il | was puzzled how to help the
| mel off, for l could not lower q boat in
such storm. Finally I circled about
the spar until / ran alongside and my
men picked the poor fellows off. They
| had to drag them away from the spar by
| force, for the men had been there so long
| that their arms had become numb ana
| frCZ fast to it.
| when we got the men on board We put
| them in Dunks and gave them some
warm food and soup and had them feeling
pretty good physically when we reached
| harbor."
| William Gill. the rescued deckhand, a
| swarthy, well-bullt man % years OF age,
| has sailed the lakes since he was youth.
| He is more intelligent than the average
| seafaring man, and his story OF the dis
aster as told early this morning is thrill
| ing one.
1--WE left here Friday night bound for
| Chicago with a.cargo of general mer ham
disc" said he. "Everything seemed all
| right until we got outside tie bre eakwater
| and then we were struck by the worst
| storm | ever saw. When the first big
| breaker struck us We were tossed up in
the air like top, and second later big
| wave came over the port bow and rolled
down amidships. The wind howled, but
| we did not pay much attention 10 the
storm. We had felt wind before. The
! captain consulted with the mate and de-
| cidea that he could weather il, and he
| kept on his course.
'As we headed up the lake dead against
the gale it appeared to be getting worse
every minute. The waves wer- running
high, and the wind threw the tops from
the breakers like dust.
I'VE moved slowly against the heavy
| wind and sea, and when we were we'll up
! the lake we found that the boat was max.
| ing water. 1t kept coming faster and
faster, and the bilge pumps were put to
work. but the water gained and every
| minute the ship kept getting less buoyant
and the big rollers continued breaking
| over her.
I'VE were near Long Point at this time,
and the captain started to put in the re
| with the intention of beaching the shi q.
But the water gained SO rapidly that it
| was too late. She was already laboring,
| and the two men at the wheel could DO
nothing with her. Two more men went
to work with them, and finally they
brought her around and headed her to-
ward land.
Captain GILES started the pumps, or
dered the men to get the fire buckets, and
| we formed line and began to bail, but il
was of no use. The water gained on the
pumps and the buckets. and soon the
water put the fire out. When it was found
that the power was gone and that the
| Idaho could not be moved we knew we
could not live in the trough of that fear
full sea, and the only hope left was to rnn
out The anchor and bring Ter head up to
| the sea and let her ride out the gale.
Every seaman realized the danger of
attempting to do that in face .of a hurri-
cane. and when Captain Gllles decided to
do it he ordered the lashing of the boats
cut and told the men they were forced to
| take one last chance for their lives
lat the word the anchor dropped from
| the bow and the chain began to pay out,
| but the sea was too heavy, and instead of
| the anchor catching W tn firm grip and
bringing the ships head to the storm with
jerk it went too slow and simply
4 L II