Ceredo advance. [volume] (Ceredo, W. Va.) 1885-1939, 1897-03-24

NEW NoEK. March l9.-'rhc French
line steamship VILE &c ST Nazaire.
Capt Jacquena, which sailed from this
port on March 9th bound fo- the IVES,
Indies, foundercd at sea. or her -
passengers and crew only four are
known 10 be saved. These arrived
here Wednesday on the schooner Hilda,
after a weeks drifting about the At
lantic in an open boat. during which
81 of the IS occupants went mad or
died OF starvation.
The saved are: Berry, inspector OF
the Campagne Generate Trans-Atlau.
tique; Marie. the ships doctor; Stauts.
third engineer, and Tagado, a san Do.
mingan.
Pitiful and tragic is the story of the
sad disaster. 1t tells OF brave steam.
ship tamping in a turmoil off Hatteras.
of four boats being crushed again 81
the sides in that midnight horror: of
the launch of the four boats that were
left and the crowding into them of
passengers and crew.
The survivors of this ocean tragedy
are hardly yet able to give n connected
story OF the last II DAYS Captain
Berry, the inspector general of the
French line. is confined 10 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 tho
sea The other survivors are on board
the Normandie and the Vile de Brcst.
u sister ship of the Inflated vessel.
They are emaciatcd from hunger and
their nerves are completely unstruug
by their sufTcrinCs.
The Vile de St Nazairc encoun.
tered severe weather on March while
of Hnttcras. Tremendous seas swcpt
over her Great waves bore away the
hatch coverings.
An attempt was made 20 heave the
ship TO, but water was bursting over
the deck in such torrents and pouring
down the hatchways so fast that Capt.
Jacquena, seeing his vessel was on the
point of laundering. thought only OF
saving the crew and passengers by
means of the boats.
Darkness gave an added horror 70
the scene and this night the survivors
say, was as black as pit They could
make out the dark figures of the seamcu
struggling to get the boats overheard
and heard the crashes as boat after
boat was dashed into spill ntcrs against
the side, until four OF the eight had
been rendered useless. And then al
last was the successful though hurried
launch of the other boats and the
crowding into them of passengers and
crew. And none too early was tn,
snip abandoned, for those who reached
here think that she pitched under a
few minutes after the last boat had
showed clear,
In the haste 20 leave the vessel il
was impossible to get provisions OF
water to last more than day. or the
four boats only one has bccn heard
from. II is believed that the other
three We're lost. The largest boat. the
ships longboat contained IS persons
including six Of the passengers
Dawn came and with it an eager
search OF the sen line. but no ship or
boat could anywhere be seen. The
crew had then all they could do "a
look out for their own craft and Civ.
ing prayer Tor the safety of the
three that had gone from their hori-
ION, 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 a san Do,
miugan, who was also in the craft.
The little ones were terribly fright.
encd AT first but the surges did not
quite ergulf the craft and the mother
managed TO quiet the fears OF her chill
dren only 10 hear them beg for food
and water. There was none 20 bc had
and when the next night drifted in anG
the next day had come and went the
pleadings Of the furnishing children be
came heartrending.
Another day and hopeless night. ant
death appeared on board. Then wa.
claimed another, and yet another vic
tim, and the rawlings of the mad were
heard. Some, in the agony OF thirst
drank salt water, to suffer ferccI
pangs and 90 become raving uaniacs
With whom the sane ones had TO strug.
pie 10 prevent them doing harm.
The stouter ones managed the craft
and relieved each other at the task.
some leaned over the gunwhale with
ncads lOliing and froth streaming from
their lips, and some others moved
their CLASSY eyes 90 the horizon. search
ing vainly for the rescuer who would
not come.
For six days and nights the wretch
cd castaways driftcd helplessly, fam
ishing and grooming. mad with thirst.
and then the siow-footcd rescucr came
az last, but too late 90 save any but the
four whose names have been given.
-Four dead were in the boat when the
four living were dragged IRON it. so
nearly dead themselves that thcy hard
~ knew that they escaped the death
that had Ovortakcn the others
Tagado suffered most OF all. Hc
saw his wife dying before his eyes.
lie saw his children washed away. lie
swore and prayed by turns
Capt Berry, a veteran commander,
sat In the stern aud bore the to-tdres
OF hunger and thirst like the soldier Of
the sea that he was. The doctor and
the engineer nearly gave way under
their suHerings.
Bloody Conflict In Paysuda.