The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-03-22

by Thirst-ReIief For the Rest
All the Survivors Improving But
One.
From the New York Sun.
Capt. Jules Berri. DIR. Alphonse Marie.
Pierre Sauts and Juan de TICS Tejada,
the four survivors from the wreck of the
French line steamship Vile st. Nazaire,
passed a fairly comfortable day yester-
day, and each one showed a marked inn
provement In his condition. Capt Berri
Is still at the Hotel Martin He was able
to leave his bed yesterday and spent most
of the day reclining on a couch in his
bedroom. He was able also to add to his
liquid diet several soft-boiled eggs.
Capt. Berri is over 60 years old, and
when this fact and the terrible exposure
to which he was subjected for seven days
in an open boat are considered. II must
be concluded that the old sea captain has
a wonderful constitution. 1t was Capt.
Berri who was in command of the boat
that carried away from the lost vessel
the only survivors of the wEeck.
He was a soldier of France before he
became a captain in the service of the
French line. and later its inspector gen.
eral. He served with distinction In the
war of the Crmea and was decorated by
the French government with the cross of
the Legion of Honor before he was 90
But before Capt. Berri was a soldier,
even, he was a medical student. and aft
err the Crimean war he completed his med
ical studies and practiced medicine for a
few years.
In the little that Capt. Berri has told OF
| the experiences of himself and hts thirty
six companions after they had left the
ship and took TO the boat he said that
his training as a soldier, physician and
| sailor was of invaluable aid to him In
| telling friend at the Martin yesterday
something about the experiences in the
boat Capt. Berri said
| After we left the ship and had swung
| clear of her, Surgeon Marie and Mr. Sauts
| the fourth engineer, seemed to look to me
to take command OF the boat With the
| exception of these two persons, l hardly
| think there was any one in the boat who
knew who l really was They understood
that l held some position in the line, but
| that was all.
| 'The sensation all Of us felt most keen
| ly after we had taken to the boat was
| that of extreme cold. In our haste 20
| leave the ship, none of US had time to put
| on much additional clothing, and, OH how
| we felt that biting wind. II cut through
| us like knife. After a time a feeling OF
| numbness began to steal over us. l felt
| 1t and concluded the others must feel the
same way. / knew that something must
be done, and / ordered those at the oars
| to be relieved by others who were sit
| ting idle in the boat. This was kept up
| until one by one, the men died at the
oars, or, In their frenzy jumped over
| board.
"only a little while after the boats left
the ship we saw from our boat the torches
| In the other boats go out, one by one. AS
| fast as one would go out we would row
| in that direction to see II we could find
| the boat and keep near 1t. 1t was pitch
| dark, and when we got where we thought
| the boat whose torch we had seen go out
| ought to be, we found only a waste of
water 1t is possible that some of those
boats were picked up as we were. but 1t
/ is more likely that they all went down in
| the waves that engulfed the st. Nazaire.
Just a little after the dawn on Sum
day morning. March Z. we thought three
| different times we saw a sail away down
on the horizon. Each time It was only a
delusion. The supposed sail would come
| nearer and nearer and then veer off in
one direction or another and then we
| concluded that what we thought was sail
was only gull.
"The little food we had In the boat was,
of course, soaked in salt water. but IT was
not from lack OF food that we suffered
| so much as from lack of water. The thirst
| Of those at the oars was something fright
| full The men worked like mere automa-
tons. One might have imagined them
galley slaves.
They kept pulling away until their
poor. swollen tongues hung out of their
mouths, and all the while the stare In
their eyes grew more ana more awful 20
look upon. Then, suddenly, an oar would
hang idly In It's lock, there would be
splash in the water. and some poor devil
had found a grave and eternal forgetful-
ness of his misery in the ocean.
at was really a relief to those who were
left IN the boat TO have those who could
hold out no longer jump overheard. When
some Of those left died in the boat and
we had not the strength 20 throw them
overheard. and sight OF them lying there
dead before our eyes came nearly lying
the rest of us mad oh, II was awfulg'
Capt. Berri's limbs are swollen TO about
twice their normal SIZE and the salt
which his flesh absorbed is coming 20 the
surface He Is still very III, but Or. de
Plasse. the attending physician, says that
there is not the slightest doubt now of the
captains recovery
OF the other survivors, DIR. Marie and
Engineer Sauts we're removed from La
Normandie. which sailed this morning at
s o'clock, TO the Hotel Martin. DR.. Mario
Is fairly comfortable but Mr.. Sauts' con-
dition Is more serious. He was not so
well last evening as he was earlier In the
day. and. although there Is little doubt
as to his ultimate recovery. he will have
to have most skiliful treatment and con-
slant attention. Mr.. Tejada ls at the res
idence OF his friend, Pedro Ortiz. $50
West Twenty-fourth street. II was said
az the house yesterday that his condition
had been rendered very serious by the de-
yeIopment OF fever, which the physician
has not been able TO check.
MT Forget made a statement yesterday
afternoon about the Ville de 81. Nazaire
He said that any one who insinuates that
the ship was unseaworthy is guilty of a
malicious falsehood. He rs anxious for
the speedy recovery Of any one OF the
four survivors, that the public may OBJ
tain a detailed story Of the catastrophe
The mails dispatched on the vile de