Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1898-12-09

NIGHTS OF TERRIFIC WORK IN
THE TEETH OF A GALE.
BALTIMORE, Md, December s-The
Johnston line steamer Vedamora. of I4iv
erpool, arrived this morning with IS ship
wrecked mariners picked up at sea.
Twenty-Five others went down with their
ship.
The supposed lost are: Capt. VIM. Lee;
Chief Officer Murray; Chief Engineer
Stafford; Third Engineer Slater and TWEEN
ty-one other seamen, firemen and cattle
men.
The men landed are the survivors of the
British ship Londonian. of London,
bound from Boston for London with a
large general cargo and coo cattle on
deck. She left Boston November 15 and
on November %, in violent gale, her
cargo shifted and she almost capsized
Assistance came at five o'clock on the
morning of November %. The Vedamore
hove in sight.
do you wish to abandon the ship" was
signalled from the Vedamore. Capt. Lee,
of the Londonian. signalled back that he
wanted the Vedamore to tow his ship.
Capt. Bartlett saw at a glance that this
tempt it. as it would have endangered his
own ship. Captain Lee then signalled
asking that the Vedamore stand by to
render assistance Soon afterwards he
signalled will abandon the ship" and
at noon, in the teeth of a stiff gale, Sec
ond Officer Hobbs and volunteer crew
CALAMITY launched one of the Vedamore's
boats and attempted to reach the sinking
Londonian. For three hours the sturdy
Britons battled with the wind and wave in
a vain attempt to reach her, but finally
were forced to return to their ship. Capt.
Bartlett then steamed to windward of the
doomed steamer and several other at
tempts to rescue the Londonians crew
were made fruitlessly.
AS it grew too dark to do anything more
Capt. Bartlett signalled, "Will stand by
you until morning"
The piteous signal For Gods sake
don't leave u.s." came back in reply.
During the night the wind increased and
by morning it was blowing very hard.
Then 1t was that another means of rescue
was decided upon. Four hours life buoys
with lines attached were fioated toward
the Londonian, and at last the crew sue
ceeded in getting one aboard. One of the
Vedamore's lifeboats. improvised as life
car, made a trip successfully and twenty
two half-frozen, exhausted men were
hauled up over the side of the Vedamore
and given every comfort the ship afford
ed. AS the boat was gong back to the
Londonian wreck a big sea demolished it,.
The lines were carried away and the com
munication broken.
Chief Officer Doran, of the Vedamore
volunteered to launch another life boat
to attempt the rescue. The seas were by
this time terrific and IL was only owing
to the splendid manner in which the boat
was handled that she lived il out. For
two hours the boats crew struggled at the
oars, but could not get closer than sixty
yards of the wreck. They were at last
forced to give up and return to their ship,
and in dong SO the boat was smashed
against the ships side and lost. They all
came near drowning. but were hauled
aboard with lines. Another fearful night
of peril and fear passed. The next morn
ing twenty-three of the men Of the Lon
DOMAIN succeeded in launching one of their
own boats and reached the Vedamore in
safety Their boat was also lost and all
that day was spent in trying TO again es-
tablish communication with the wreck.
The gale was constantly increasing and
all efforts to save the others were in vain.