The record-union., 1897-04-28
All But Four of Seventy-Three Persons
on Board Probably Lost.
One Boat Picked Up With Four People
Aboard, Who Were Raving Idiots
When Rescued - Two of Their
Companions Had Died and Were
Thrown Overheard, While the
Body of Third Victim Was Eaten
by the Surviving Shipwrecks.

by the surviving SnlpWrcCkS.
ST. JOHNS IN. FL, April 1.-THE
French fishing vessel Valiant, Captain
Pierre, from ST. Malo for Mlquelon,
struck an iceberg on the Grand Banks
on the 10th inst. and almost 1mme-
diately foundered She had seventy
three fishermen on board, and all took
to the boats. Only one of these boats
has thus far been heard from. When
it left the vessel its complement was
seven men. Three of them persisted
from exposure and hunger. The
bodies of the first two were thrown
overheard, but the survivors, in their
desperation, were driven to cannibal-
ism, and ate the third. The boat was
picked up by the schooner Eugene,
which arrived at St. Pierre to-day. The
survivors are in a shocking condition,
and are so badly frost-bitten that their
arms must be amputated.
A special to the World" from St.
Johns says: The Valiant was one of the
French fishing fleet of 100 vessels that
crosses the Atlantic every spring for
the codfishing on the Newfoundland
banks. 1t was about midnight, and the
night was dark and fOggy when the
brig and iceberg came together, the i'm
pact crushing the vessel from her bow
to the foremost and opening the hold
to a rush of water that awakened the
sleeping crew and sent them scamper-
ing to the deck.
The vessel must sink in a few min
utes, and the men turned at once to the
hi 10
of carrying not more than a dozen men
each. These had been firmly dashed
down, and it was only by most strenu-
Gus efforts that they were loosened and
put into the water. Men forgot their
brotherhood in the mad struggle to
secure place in one of the poor little
boats, and no heed even was paid to a
dozen of the company who lay dead
and dying in the debris resulting from
the collision.
1t was the survival of the strongest
and the contest was not for long. In
less time than it takes to tell it, the
four boats had cast off, not a second
too soon. for the boats had scarcely
been manned when the Valiant sank
1t is certain only that one boat es-
capped the whirlpool caused by the sink
ing of the brigantine The three other
dories may have gone down, or they
may now be floating about on the
ocean, freighted with the dead
With such haste did the sailors es-
cape from the sinking brigantine that
not only did they have no clothing with
them, but they We're unable to secure
water and food and in the morning
the seven men in one of the boats found
themselves afoat with nothing aboard
with which to sustain life. The fog
did not lift until late the next day, and
the weather was biting cold, while icy
spray fell over the men unremittingly
Worn out with cold and hunger, suffer-
ing from thirst, the seven men looked
out all day for a sail, but could see
no further than their noses, and night
fell again.
The weather cleared on the morrow
but nothing came in sight On the
second night two of the men died from
exposure and their bodies were thrown
overheard.
Next morning a young man named
Felix died, and he too would have been
given to the fishes, if his companions
had strength to lift his body, but they
bottom of the dory while the four re-
naming sat on the side seats and wait
ed for that which had come to young
Felix.
AS long as they kept their senses. the
four men did not give way to the long
ing that possessed them to satisfy their
hunger. On the fifth day, crazed be-
yond all doubt, they adopted the last
frightful resort Of men in their condi-
ton, and ate their friend They were
delirious after that
1t was on the twelfth day of their
shipwreck that the lookout of the fish
ing schooner Victor Eugene. bound for
Pierre, saw a far off speck upon the
ocean, which later proved to be the
dory of the Valiant, with the four mis-
cradle men still aboard-raving idiots
They We're rescued and tenderly cared
Tor, and as soon as the Victor arrived
in port to-day they We're removed to a
hospital.