The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-03-18
WERE EIGHTY TWO.
Only Four, However, Known to
Be Saved.
French Steamer Abandoned in Mid
ocean by Passengers and Crew
Survivors of the Tragedy Hardly
Know How it ALI Happened.

New York, March 11.-The Frencf
line steamer Vile De Saint Nazaire
which sailed from this port on March
6, bound for the West Indies, foun-
dered at sea. OF her 81 passengers and
crew only four are known to be saved
These arrived here yesterday on the
schooner Hilda, after a weeks drifting
about the Atlantic in an open boat
during which 81 of the SO occupants
went mad or died of starvation. The
saved are:
Berry-Inspector of the Compagnie
Generate Trans Atlantique.
Marie, the ship doctor.
Stauts, third. engineer.
Tagado, a San DOMINICAN.
Among the lost ere:
D'Andrews, first lieutenant.
1ejeune, purSer
Nicolay, second captain.
Mariana, chief engineer.
Mrs. Tagado and four children,
starved to death.
The steamship Vile de Saint Nazaire
left this port on March 6, bound for
West Indian ports. She was one of the
smaller vessels of the French line and
had been engaged in the West India
trade for years. She was one of the
first to come here when the line be-
tween New York and the West Indies
was established here.
The steamship encountered severe
weather on March Z, while off Halter
as. Tremendous seas swept over her
and she rolled and pitched greatly
The hatch coverings were carried
away and floods of water found their
way through the gratings to the en-
CINE room and extinguished the fires
The vessel was unable to make any
Roadway. being waterlogged. Captain,
Jacqueneau gave the order to man
the four boats. There were 80 persons
in all.
In the haste to leave the vessel it
was impossible 20 get provisions or
water to last more than a day. Of
the four boats only one had been
heard from. 1t is believed the other
three have been lost. The largest boat
contained So persons. 1t had practi-
cally no provisions. 1t was tossed
about upon the rough seas for seven
days and seven nights, and for six of
these days and nights the passengers
were without food or drink. Their suf-
ferings were most intense The sea
Gained and they drifted about
The survivors of this ocean tragedy
are hardly yet able to give a correct
story of the last II days Captain
Berry, the inspector general of the
French line. is confined to his room in
the Hotel Martin. His story is a mar
rative of privation and hardship such
as is seldom heard in the annals of the
sea. The other survivors are on Eeard
the Normandie and the Vile De
Brist, a sister ship of the Inflated YES
sell
Telling of how the wreck occurred,
The survivors say that the steamship
sailed for this port, bound for Port Au
Prince, Hayti, at noon on March g.
That was on Saturday Sunday came
With the wind blowing from the south
vest. The ship began to plunge heav-
ly in the seas, waves burst over the
leck in torrents and early on Sunday
light the flood invaded the fire ROOM |
Ind clouds of Kissing steam that arose |
rom the matches told that the fires |
lad been down. An attempt was made !
o heave the ship to, but water was /
bursting over the deck in such torrents !
md pouring down the hatchways so |
asst that Captain Jaqueneau, seeing |
hat his vessel was on the point of |
oundering, thought then only of saw
ng the crew by means of the boats.
'he steamship was almost wholly I'M |
provided with bulkheads, having only |
ne of the safeguards against such |
disasters, whereas a modern vessel of |
Ter type and size would have at least
half dozen.
But she did not have them, and as a
esult soon was unable to lift her
ecks to the rushing masses of water