The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1898-03-28
TERRIBLE
CALAMITY.
Scaling Steamer a Verit-
able Death Ship.
TWENTY-FIVE MEN DEAD.
Story Of Frightful Su'ferings Of
Seekers After Seals.
MANY VICTIMS LEFT FAMILIES.

Halifax. March 2s.--Details of ter
rible calamity which overwhelmed half
of the crew of the sealing steamer Green
land in the ice fields have been received
from st. Johns, N. F., which port was
reached by the Greenland. turned into
verltable death ship. Sunday afternoon.
The steamer sailed into the harbor with
the most grewsome cargo that has ever
freighted ships of the sea- Twenty-Five
corpses. stark and frozen, were piled
upon the deck fTifty-fve men were
moaning with terrible suffering in the
holds from the pain of frostbitten limbs
and bodies. The little sealing steamer
which sailed for the huntin9 grounds
three weeks ago returned as an awful
charnel house.
Never in the history of the sealing
industry has O more terrible calamity
fallen on ships crew 1t was grew
some spectacle. The dead bodies were
in tiers on the decks of the steamer, dis
figured and almost unrecognizable from
the effects Of the terrible suffering which
they had endured, presenting one Of thel
most horrible sights human eyes ever
beheld. Nearly one-half of the Green
lands crew OF 300 men drifted away
from their ship on an ice foe last Tues
day and pershed in severe storm. In
addition 23 men are missing and have
undoubtedly perished
The Greenland set sail from st. Johns,
N. F.. about the first of March on her
fateful voyage. She was commanded
by Captain George Barbour, and carried
arnt 1f asslxr he
steamer proceeded northward with the
rest of the sealing fleet. but after
couple of days she diverged on separate
track. She reached the hunting grounds
not long after. All went well until Tues
day last. Seals were quickly encoun-
tered and several good packs were se-
cured. Tuesday morning the hunters
left the ship about o'clock as usual.
The lookout In the crowsnest reported
seals plentiful around them. The men
were clad in light clothing, for the
slaughtering of seals Is exhaustive work.
They wandered far from the shelter of
the ship. gale and raging snow
storm shut them out from view. The
foe parted and they drifted away from
the steamer Many of them drifted to
certain death. Long ere the storm sub
sided many of the unfortunate fellows
had succumbed to the terrible cold and
exposure. Those who did not were ter
ribly frostbltten and suffered excruciat-
ing pain.
The long night passed, but morning
brought no help, for the storm still ragged
and the atmosphere was thick with snow
driven before the gale. Snow continued
nearly all day. and the evening brought
no cessation to the high wind. Another
night. one which seemed TO the helpless
drifting sufferers who still lived thou
sand times longer than the first. was
passed in untold agony. Some OF the
victims had already given up hope and
In despair lay down and died. and every
hour witnessed at least two deaths on
that awful night on the foe. Toward
morning the storm subsided and clear
weather enabled the survivors to see
that tho Greenland was not far away,
searching for the missing
The steamer bore down on the drifting
ice, which had by this time separated
into number OF sections. and began the
work OF picking up the bodies of the
dead and the half lifeess bodies OF the
living. Twenty-Five corpses were taken
on board that morning but % men were
stiil missing and, though the search was
continued all through the day. no more
were recovered. Thursday night the
Greenland headed for shore, reaching
Bay DE Verde Saturday, proceeding
thence to st. Johns with her CHASTITY
cargo and dread tidings. Most of the
hunters who met this awful fate on the
treacherous foes are married men with
large families. who are thus deprived
OF all visible means of support. Ca
lamitous happenings OF. this nature are
frequent among those who follow the
hazardous eprecarious hunting in those
dread north seas. but seldom has
steamer feturpcd with such tale of
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