Evening journal., 1897-05-03
LANDED.
Third Boat of Brigantine valiant
Is Picked Up.
SEVENTEEN DIE OF STARVATION.
Out of Twenty Occupants Only Four Wore
Alive When the Boat Was Sight
ed by the French Barken-
tine Victor Eugene.

tine victor Eugene.
St. Pierre. Miquelon, May 3.-Four
more survivors of the wreck of the
French brigantine valiant have been
brought to this port. making eight
saved out Of the 73 men on the vessel
when she was wrecked.
The valiant was bound from st.
Malo, France, to this port, bringing
over a large company of fishermen.
When on the Grand banks on the
night of April 16 sailing in dense
fog. the valiant struck an iceberg ana
quickly sank. The men had barely
time to lower and scramble into three
small boats when the vessel foundered.
One of these boats, into which 40
men had crowded, was swamped, ana
every one Of its occupants was drowned.
Death From starvation.
A second boat, the dingy, in which
seven men left the ship, was picked up
on April 26 by the French barkentine
Victor Eugene -Four men were lying
in the boat alive but helpless. The
Victor Eugene brought them to this
port on the following day.
one man had died of starvation on
the third day after the wreck; a second
on the fourth day and a third on the
following day. The first two bodies
were thrown into the sea. The living
were too weak to toss the third body
overheard. When they were rescued,
it was found they had been kept alive
by cannibalism.
In the third of the Vaillant's boats
were 21 men, They were lost sight OF
by the men in the dingy during the
first night, and their fate was unknown
~. 1.,.far ffraa A ma IaE
arrived here with four Of the Vaillants
company taken from the third small
boat They were the only survivors of
the 21.
Kept Alive by Dog.
Like their comrades in the dingy
these men had had no time to put food
and water into the boat after the Vail
liant struck the iceberg, but as they
were pushing away from the barken-
tine the ships dog sprang into the boat
To this dog the four rescued men owe
their lives.
one after another II of the boats oc.
cupants died from the effects Of hunger
thirst and the extreme cold. Some OF
them went mad before death put al
end Of their sufferings.
Not until the pangs Of hunger becam'
uncomfortable did the fishermen decide
TO sacrifice the dog. When he wal
killed, the greatest care was taken tina
not a drop of blood should be lost. bu
the few drops each man received 70
drink seemed to do little more than ag
gravate his terrible thirst. The dog
flesh served to keep some Of the mel
alive a little longer, and from it tn
four survivors gained enough strengtl
10 outlive their fellows. There was
fierce struggle for the dogs flesh whel
the animal was killed.
The boat drifted at the mercy Of win
and waves for days after the last NOR
sci of the dogs flesh had been eater
and the four men still alive were utter
ly helpless when their boat was seen b
the Amedee and Captain Fortin of tn
brigantine changed his course and picA
ed it up at midnight on the sixth da
after the wreck. The four nearly dea
fishermen were lifted aboard the Anne
dee and carefully fed and nursed unit
they reached st. Pierre, where the
were sent to join the other Vaillar
survivors in the hospital. They are sti
in a terribly weak condition, but 1t
thought none will die.
The surgeons performed amputatior
upon the valiant survivors. Two, WI
lost their hands and lower parts
their legs, are not expected to recove
The other two, who underwent similt
operations, are somewhat better OF
The remaining four are still very weal
None of the eight can be said to be OF
OF danger.
The story told by the party rescu,
that dog food was all they had to el
is discredited here by many. 1t is fea
ed and believed that they also we
compelled to resort to human flesh.