The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-12-13
wRECK OF THE EONDoNIAN

WRECK OF THE kONDONnAN
Heroic EFFORTS OF the Crew Of the ved.
amere % Rescue the Mes from the
Doomed Vessel Forty. Five OF b
Men saved
Baltimore, December s-The John
stone Line steamship Vedamere, Of
Liverpool, Captain Robert Bartlett, for
who's safety fears were beginning to
be felt, as she was several days over
due, arrived this morning at Pier 81.
Locust Point, with forty-five ship
wrecked mariners, which she had pick
ed up at sea. Twenty-Five others went
down with their ship.
The men landed are the survivors OF
| the British steamship Londonian, Of
J with a large general cargo and $50 cat
tie on deck. She left Boston Novem-
yer 18th, and on November Path. in a
violent gale her cargo shifted and she
| almost capsized, h finally resting on
| her beams ends with big seas breaking
over her.
Her luckless crew were helpless to
right her, and for two days she drift
ed about at the mercy OF the winds and
waves. Assistance came at 5 o'clock
on the morning Of November 25th. The
Vedamere hove in sight five miles dis
tant and as it was still quite dark the
! Londonian burned signal fires and fired
| distress rockets. 1t did not take the
| Vedamere long to cover the five miles,
! thai lay between her and the London
ian, and as soon as she arrived along
side she was signaiied to stand by.
- L. 49, 0A if ~oIn
Second officer Hobb and a volunteer
crew CALAMITY launched one Of the
Vedamere's boats and attempted to
reach the sinking L~ondonian. For
three hours the steady Britons battled
| with wine and wave in a vain attempt
to reach her, but were finally forced to
| return to their ship. Captain Bartlett
then steamed to windward of the
doomed steamer and tried to fire rock
cts, with lines attached, to the wreck,
hoping by that means to establish a
connection with her, by which the sea-
men in peril could be saved. After a
number of vain attempts his idea was
+ abandoned and as night came on sew
eral other attempts to rescue the Lon
DOMAINS crew were made fruitlessly.
AS it grew too dark to do anything
more Captain Bartlett signaled "Will
stand by you until morning." The
piteous signal: For God's sake do not
leave u.s. came back in reply. During
the night the wind increased and by
morning 1T was blowing very hard.
Then it was that another means Of res
cue was decided upon. For hours life
buoys with line attached, were floated
to the Londonian and at last her crew
succeeded in getting one aboard. One
, of the Vedamere's life boats was i'm
provised as a life car, to be hauled be-
tween the two ships. 1t made a trip
--,~ --1 I-,~-4-- L-,~ I-I 49,
en-, exhausted men were hauled over
the high side of the Vedamere. AS the
boat was going back to the Londonian
wreck a big sea broke over it and de-
molished it. The lines were also car
ried away and the communication
broken.
Chief Officer Doran, of the Veda-
mere, stepped up to Captain Bartlett
and volunteered to launch another life
boat to attempt the rescue. For two
hours the boats crew struggled at the
oars, but could not get closer than six
ty yards Of the wreck. They were at
last forced to give up and return to
their ship. and in doing SO the boat
was smashed against the ships side
and lost. They all came near drown
ing, but were hauled aboard with lines.
Another fearful night of peril and
fear passed. The next morning TWEEN
ty-three of the men of the Londonian
succeeded IN launching one of their
own oats and reached the Vedamere
in safety. Their boat was also lost and
all IA day was spent in trying to
again establish communication with
the wreck. The gale was constantly
increasing and all efforts to save 9th
ers were in vain. Eve after night had
fallen the Vedamere "a kept cruising
about in the vicinity, but when day
broke next monring the Londonian had
vanished. The Vedamere then proceed.
ed to Baltimore.
The wrecked steamer was first sight
! ed in latitude As. 80, longitude Is. 10. Or
November 29th, the day after the Veda
mere lost sight Of her, the steamship
King Arthur passed her in latitude As
longitude 16. She was then abandoned
and all her boats were gone. It is
supposed the remainder of her crew at.
tempted to leave her in their own boats
and all hands persisted.
The L~OndOnian was a fine vessel
built at Glasgow in 1896 and registered
$500 tons gross. She belonged to the
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. Line. Hel
original name was Idaho, which was
changed to the present name about a
year ago.
London. December S.-A life boat
apparently belonging to the lost Fur
ness Line steamship Londonian, was
seen on December End. in latitude 4s
and longitude IA. There were some
oars on board, but 10 sign of life.