Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1898-06-09
A SEA TRAGEDY
Schooner Jane Gray
Goes Down With 81
Passengers.
NINETY MILES OFF FLATTERY

| Sprung Leak at Night and Sank
Almost ImmediateIy-Twent Seven
survivors-The Inflated Craft Was
Bound for KOtzebue.
Seattle Wash, June 3.-The schoon.
err Jane Gray, which sailed from Seat.
tie for Kotzebue sound on May 10, with
81 people on board, foundered Sunday,
May %, about 800 miles west of Cape
Flattery at o'clock in the morning,
while lying to in a moderate gale under
foresails. Ten minutes after the alarm
was given she lay at the bottom of the
ocean, with "a Of her passengers. The
remaining ~ succeeded in embarking
in launch, and reached this city this
afternoon. Those lost are:
Signor Gaia, Italy; Signor Bresseta,
Italy; Jack Lindsay, Everett; W. H.
Gleason, Seattle; W. A. Johnson, Seat
tie; V. j. Smith, Seattle; G. G. Smith,
Seattle; p. G. Little. Seattle; S. w.
Young, Seattle; w. d. MILAN, Seattle;
Horace Palmer, Lebanon, o.; F. q.
Sausberry, Minnesota; A. B. Dunlap,
Dwight, H.; b. D. Ranney, Mexico;
B. E. Snipes, jr., Seattle; J. M. Staut-
man. Westfeld, N. j.; f. NJ. Taylor,
California; +. S. Taylor, California;
b. 5. Spencer, California; ". +. Doxey,
Edward F.. Ritter, f. W. Ginther, b.
S. Frost, ". F. lowering, William
Otter, O. F. Mckelvey, NJ. c. Brown,
c. G. Atkins, n. Hedlund, Charles Will
liams; V. G. Gambel, wife and child,
missionary on st. Lawrence island, in
Behring sea- one other.
Nearly all OF the Jane Gray's pas
sengers were prospectors.
1t is possible that there may be four
or five survivors whose names cannot
be ascertained
Captain Crockett gave the following
account OF the wreck:
eve We're lying to under our fore
sail. A moderate gale was blowing,
and the sea was running high. | had
gone to bed, and was asleep when the
Waterman Weakened me with the an
nouncement that something was wrong.
| arose at once, and found the vessel
leaking. A hurried investigation
showed that she would soon sink, and
at once notified the passengers of the
situation. Most of them were asleep
underneath the deck. A scene Of con-
fusion then took place, and it is impos.
sible to give any detailed account OF
the events that followed. The dark
ness added to the confusion. The Jane
Grnv co,-riaJ txuo l;faIooko orJ <wo
launches. at once ordered the boats
lowered. The first lfeboat was
swaned. The launch Kennoma, be.
longing to the Ingraham party, was
successfully lowered. At this time the
Jalre Gray was almost under water.
"A heavy sea struck her, throwing
her on her beam. There was no time
to launch other boats. The water was
over her matches, and every one below
was certainly drowned. Those on deck
hurredly got in the launch. A sack Of
prunes and one of turnips were hastily
taken from the ships stores, and this
was the only food we had till we reached
Vancouver island. AS the launch drift
ed away from the almost submerged
schooner We saw eight or ten men stand
ing on the lee rail clinging to the
rigging. Soon they disappeared from
sight. Two Of them, Job johnson and
G. J. Reilly, kept ahoat by clinging to
bundles of boat lumber. Two hours
after they were picked up by our
launch, making 81 in all we had on
board. 1t is barely possible that there
will be four other survivors.
Just before the Jane Gray disap-
peared under the waves we thought we
saw the second launch that was on
board with four forms near it. They
were so indistinct that we were not
sure. They seemed to be getting into
the launch. We saw nothing of them
when daylight came.
"We improvised sail and paddles,
and after drifting 80 hours in the
launch, finally landed inside of Rugged
point kyuquot sound, on Vancouver
island, so miles from the scene of the
wreck. A fire was built on the beach,
and we made meal on roasted mus
cells. We had no food since the night
before the disaster, excepting the sack
OF prunes and turnips that we threw
into the launch. We got our drinking
water by spreading out a tarpaulin in
driving rain. An Indian who CHANGED
to come along informed US that the
village of Kyuquot was but six miles
away. We went there, and found the
sealing schooner Favorite becalmed,
and arrangements were made to carry
our party to Victoria. We reached
there this morning, in time to catch
the steamer for Seattle.
The Jane Gray was a schooner of l07
tons. She was built in Bath, Me-, In
1887. She was owned and operated by
McDougall & Southwick, of this city.
Outside OF the miners outfits, she car
rled no cargo.