The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1897-03-25
ONLY -FOUR PERSONS RESCUED.
THIRTY-THREE WERE LOST.
Horrible Pate Of the Crew and Passengers
Aboard an Atlantic Coast Steamer.

The steamer Vile de st. Nazaire, belong
ng TO the French line 10 the West Indies,
sailed from New York on March 6 for Port
au-Prince, with 81 persons on board and has
not since been reported. She was a bark
rugged screw steamer Of 2.640 tons register.
The schooner Hilda, that plies along the
coast between Perth Amboy and Savannah.
came into port Wednesday night bearing
with her q story horrible even in tine annals
OF the Atlantic ocean. She carried in her
cabin four passengers whom she picked up
in a boat Monday. ten miles of shore. II
was Captain Riemes. skipper OF the Hiida.
who arst sighted the boat. As the schooner
drew nearer the outlines Of human figures
were made out. Then on the prov OF the
boat the words, "Nille de 81. Nazaire.' A
boat was lowered and the chief mate and
four seamen iumyed in and rowed out to the
helpless craft. Nearer and nearer they came
and the faces Of the s!tters gradually came
into view.
At the Prov Of the boat and apparently in
charge OF the party was an old man wearing
the uniform of a ship officer. The mate pre-
sently recognized in the face, hollow and
sunken with the cold and want OF many days
the features Of Captain Jules Berri, one Of
the best known Of the commanders of the
Hsvre branch OF the French line. and now
long transferred TO the West Indian SER
vice.
Remind him. on the center seat, we're two
hali-d ressed, ~coatlcss. hatless men, hugging
themselves and gibberlns at the startled
faces OF the Bilda's sailors. At their feet
was a fourth man. The old man ut the Prov
opened his lips a. II to speak. but no sound
came from them.
One BY one the four men were lifted in. In
the stern of the craft was a fifth man. One
Of the sailors touched him on the arm and
began 10 draw him gently forward. when he
slid quickly of the seat and settled n lifeless
heap on the bottom Of the boat. Three more
corpses were In the boat. Then the sailors
towed the dreadful freight back to the Hilda
Nothing could be lone but consign the dead
to the sea. Captain Berri and the three men
were carefully looked after and partially
brought back 10 life and reason. All that
they could tell was that the Vile de 81. MAJ
aire had somehow been wrecked or abandon
ed and that these four men were the survi-
vors Of those who had taken to the boats.
But how many were dead, how many living,
remained untold until midnight on Tuesday,
Captain Berri, the first to recover was able
to gasp out some words Of his story.
"There were ,hirty-seven souls on the boat
when We abandoned the st. Nazaire. or all
those men and women we four are the only
ones left alive. The others starved or frozs
where they sat. They died In all ways.
They sank, dropped of, one by one, except
where they went mad, and then some Jumped
into the sea and ended in that way. The
captain was the first to 20. The men were
quiet enough mostly until they saw the
women die, then they seemed all at once to
get rayinc, stark mad. All are here now.
One, my comrade. DR.. Marie Stants. our en-
gineer and Tagardo, first mate That is all
| can tell now
But with the hours the old man gradually
grew stronger and able to talk with some
thing like coherency and clearness. DR..
Stants. too, recovered his speech and strength
enough to talk.