Evening star., 1897-03-18
ONLY FOUR SAVED
Wreck Of the French Steamer Vile de
st. Nazaire.
WENT DOWN OFF CAPE HATTERAS
Story of Suffering Told by Sur
vIvors.
d r F TING FOR DAYS
WENT DOWN OFF CAPE HkTTERAS
D r I FTIN FOR DAYS

The French line steamship Vile de ST
| Nazaire, which sailed from New York
March o, bound for the West Indies found
| cred at sea.
OF her eighty-two passengers and crew
| only four are known to be saved. These ar
rived at New York yesterday on the
| schooner Hilda after a weeks drifting
about the Atlantic in open boat during
which thirty-four of the thirty-eight occu-
pants went mad or died Of starvation.
| The saved are:
Berry, -, inspector Of the Compagnie
| Generate Transatlantique.
Marie, -, the ships doctor.
Stauts. -, third engineer
Tagado, -, a San DOMINICAN.
Telling of how the wreck occurred the
survivors say that the steamship sailed
bound for Port au Prince. Hayti at noon
| March g. That was Saturday. Sunday
came with the wind blowing stormily from
the southwest
The ship began to plunge heavily i'm the
seas, waves burst over the deck i'm torrents
| ard early Sunday night when the vessel
was off Hatteras, the flood invaded the fire
| room and clouds of kissing steam that arose
| from the matches told that the fires had
been drowned
An attempt was made to heave the ship
| TO, but water was bursting over the deck
| hatchways 50 fast that Captain Jagueneau
| seeing that his vessel was the point of
laundering, thought then only of saving the
| crew by means of the boats.
| The steamship was almost wholly unpro-
| vided with bulkheads having only one of
| the safeguards against such disasters
| wEereas modern vessel of her type and
size would have had at least half dozen
| But she did not have them, and as re-
| suit soon was unable to lift her decks to
| the rushing masses of water
| Such passengers had been below before
| the fires were drowned came hurrying on
| mir ng ha
orencning storms of spray that came flying
| over the ship.
Then came the launch of the four boats
! that were left and the crowding into them
| of passengers and crew
| And then there a lurching under of
| the storm-conquered ship, whirl of white
water where she vanished and the shouts
OF the boat crews half drowned in the
ringing gale.
Dawn came. and with 1t an eager search
| OF the sea line. but no ship or boat could
| they could do to look out for their own
craft, and. giving a prayer for the safety
| Of the three that had gone from their hori-
zon. they turned their attention to their
own salvation.
Four children and their mother were in
the boat. Mrs. Tagado and her brood. She
was the wife of San Domingan who " as
also in the craft. The little ones We're
terribly frightened at first But the moth
er managed to quiet the fears of her chill
dren only to hear them beg for food and
Another day and hopeless night, and
death appeared board. Then was
claimed another, and vet another victim
and the rawlings of the mad were heard
Some in the agony of thirst drank salt
water. to suffer fiercer pangs and TO be-
come raving madmen. whom the saner ones
had to struggle with to prevent them from
doing harm.
The few stouter ones managed the craft
and relieved each other at the task. Some
leaned over the gunwale. with heads lol.ing
and froth streaming from their lips. And
some Others moved their CLASSY eyes to
the horizon searching vainly for that res
cuer who would not come.
For six days and nights the wretchea
castaways drifted helpless. famishing and
growing mad with thirst, and then the
slow-footed rescuer came at last. Four
dead were in the boat when the four liv-
ing were dragged from it, so nearly dead
themselves that they hardly knew that
they had escaped the dea h that had over
taken the others.
The rescuing craft the little ccasting
schooner Hida, from Savannah for Perth
Amboy. She sighted the boat at 3:30
O'clock on the afternoon of March a.
The survivors were tenderly treated when
taken on board. They were brought to
New York yesterday and landed at Perth
Amboy.