The evening times., 1898-11-07
SAFE FROM AWFUL PERILS
Terrible Situation of Men on a
Waterlogged Ship.
DISMANTLED IN A STORM
Unable to Get Mt Their Provisions,
the Crew of N Schooner Subsist on
Seuweed and Raw Fish-Famishs
for Want of Water-Rescued When
Hope Was Gone.

New York, Nov IA batch OF ship
wrecked seamen, who had subsisted for
twenty-three days on seaweed and raw
fish, were brought TO this port yesterday
by the Ward Line steamship Saratoga
They are Capt. George c. Benner and his
six men of the schooner Jennie f. VIII
ley which sailed from Jacksonville on
September q, bound for Martinique, met a
hurricane, which left her a drifting hulk,
and twenty-three days after that disaster
her gaunt-faced. famished crew were
picked uD by fishing smack and landed
at Abaco. One of the crew. the cook,
was raving mad then, and was left be-
hind, a patient in the hospital.
The voyage that ended so disastrousiy
had nothing TO distinguish 1t from the
common until the night of September 81.
Then the little craft was obliged to reef
her sails To "A hurricane.
In the Grip of Hurricane.
With matches battened down and only
a bit of storm canvas showing, the vessel
rode through the riot TO find herself in the
MINDLESS storm center, plunging and lift
ing over seas and bracing herself for the
next encounter The hurricane, revolving
on it's way, brought the schooner again
within it's grip, and between the cross
seas and furious winds the vessel was
soon "a wreck her masts overheard her
deck load adrift and the crew clingng
for life to such of the half-drowned fabric
| as still showed above water.
The gale finally weakened and died. and
,Ra.aW,N
| found their vessel hopelessly waterlogged.
! their store of provisions inaccessible. so
deeply had she sank. the water casks
| washed away, the boats gone, no sail in
| sight and no apparent chance OF rescue.
Wearied to the point of exhaustion by
] the necessity of holding on to the wildly
lurch.ng fabric, the men began 10 fee
the pangs OF hunger and thirst as soon as
that peril had gone by. But there was no
way Of assuaging either
Urged on by hunger they took the pins
out Of their clothing and made hooks OF
| them. They secured line by raveling a
| piece of sail cloth, and after two days
| fishing they managed TO hook a small
FISH. This the captain ordered cut up into
| equal parts and each man received an
! equal share The fsh was devoured Al
| once For eleven days. the captain de-
| clares, they were without food OF any
klnu or Nfop OF water TO uTllk.
How we managed TO live through thai
| awful time" the captain said, lis more
| than ! can figure out. Our suffering:
were terrible but through II all We KEEP
| our senses and kept up our vigil at tbs
| fishing line. Day after day we drifted II
and out of the track of vessels ana ye
We were not sighted
Situation of Agony.
THE agony that we suffered none cal
ever know unless he has had a simila
experience. For eleven hours l sat in
drizzIing rain with my rubber coat spreat
out on my lap trying to collect wate
enough to satisfy the awful thirst tina
seemed to consume me. My lips wer
cracked and parched. and the blood wa
| running from the cracks and trcklin:
down my chin. | thought that my arm
and legs would be paralyzed from keepin
them in one position so long, and yet
waited for the rain to fill the receptacl
in my lap.
After the rain | had collected but tw
tablespoonfuls. That was divided, an
day after day whenever sprinkle woul
come. we used the rubber coat to cate
what water we could and the little W
caught by that means kept us from pei
ishing''
For twenty-three days the vessel drift
ed lifeless. her men growing weaker an
more disheartened as the days wore on
Two small sharks We're washed on boar
and eagerly devoured. and that meage
supply gone, the men were reduced I
eating seaweed. And then at last tn
vessel was washed on reef and a Spar
ish schooner took off the half perishe
r crew. The cook was mad then and III
others We're nearly dead from starvation
, The men were forwarded by the Unite
: States consul.