The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1898-07-07
LA BURGOYNE SHIPWRECK
Continued from First Page.)

vessel with which they had collided was
at that time unknown, A-few minutes
! later her whistle was heard and several
rockets were sent up. Captain Hender-
son replied in Ike manner, thinking the
steamer was offering assistance, bat in a
few minutes all was quiet and those on
| board began to realize the awful results
Of the collision.
At $50 the fog lifted and two boats
were seen approaching with only a few
men on board. Later the weather clear
ed still more and men were 20 be seen in
every direction cIinging to wreckage and
floating on lie RATS It was a terrible
scene. No pen can picture the appalling
sight revealed 20 the onlOokers when the
curtain Of mist arose. The work of res
cue was commenced without a moments
delay and over 200 persons were picked UP
and taken or board the ship.
NO EFFORT TO SAVE WOMEN.
Mrs. Henderson. who mad ample oppor-
tunity OF interviewing those who were
rescued, expressed her belief from what
she heard that there had been no effort
70 save the women. There were too many
foreigners on board who fought for places
in the boats. 1t was fully ten minutes to
a quarter Of an hour before La Bour-
gogne went down and during that time
the was ample opportunity offered to
rescue a least some of the women and
children. AS it was only one woman
Mrs. LeCasse, was saved. She has been
on board ever since. She IS the wife of
A u 7
Plainield n. j.
ADVENTURE OF THE LACAGSFS
The crew OF the Cromartyshire com
ment freely upon the fact that only one
woman was saved out of 300. Nearly all
the fret class passengers were lost, those
saved being steerage and sailors. La
Case and his wife were in the water
eight hours, ciinging to raft, before they
were picked up by a boat from the Gro
martyshire. They lost everything but
what they stand in, including money and
valuabIes. One passenger was going
home to France with his two children,
his wife having died a month previously.
He was saved, but his two babies went
down with the ship. Mrs. LaCasse says
the officers bravely stayed by their posts
going down with the ship. The only Of
ficer saved was the purser. He went
down, but being a strong swimmer man
aged to save himself. When the ship
struck they were off Cape Sable.
The passengers, with the sole excep-
ton of Professor La Case, were below
decks. without warning came the ter
rible shock. La Case rushed in haste to
his state room on the saloon deck and
got his wife out Of bed and partly dressed.
They FASTENED on deck, only to be pre-
cipitated into the water. They were not
long in the water, however, when they
found a partly submerged raft, upon
which La Case lifted his unconscious
wife and clun gto it himself Some of
the boats La Case says, capsized and all
on board were drowned. The struggles.
Swishing5 water and terrible scream of
the drowning made the situation an awe
Inspiring one, never to be forgotten. One
man nthe La Beurgogne. when she sank
went out of his mind and jumped to a
watery grave.
HOW THE VESSELS STRUCK.
On the morning of the collision, Cap
tain Henderson was nthe poop with his
third mate, A c. Stewart. Sailor Haley
was on the looout and First officer Kill
man was also on the forecastle deck.
The Cromartyshire was making about
five knots an hour, with several sails
set and taking in all the time. Not
sound was heard until Lookout Haley
saw a large steamer half ships length
ahead on the port bow. In an instant the
Cromartyshire' jibboom struck the La
Bourgogne's bridge and the sailing yes
sci crashed into the liner, slowing a big
hole near the engine room. The La
Bourgogne scraped the whole length of
the the Cromartyshire's port side and she
veered off The Bourgogne blew long.
mounrful whistles fer assistance. Third
Mate Stewart of the Cromartyshire says
that the Frenchman evidently thought
they were another ship and that they
fhe Bourgogne) had sunk the colliding
vecSAI