The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-11-17


Tells of Announcement That the
Ship Must Be Deserted, and What
FOIIOwed-Credft Given the Crew.
SOUTHAMPTON, Nov 16-The res
cued passengers of the Patria spent to-
night at Southampton, awaiting the ar
rival Of the Kaiser Friedrich. Four of
the passengers were left at Dover, and
one of these. a man named Duplace, It is
believed, will die because of his terrible
experience in the English channel
1t is now probable that the Patria will
at least be partially saved What caused
the fire Is still a mystery but 1t is as
serted that the fact that the steamer was
on fire was withheld from the passengers
for some time, Capt. Frolich apparently
wishing to take his ship to Hamburg
without causing alarm, If possible.
Mr.. Duplace has been for twenty years
German consul at San Juan de Porto
Rico. With him are his wife and Mrs.
Ivers, of New York, a fellow cabin pas
senger, who being a trained nurse, and
seeing the distress of Mr.. and Mrs Du-
place, has generously volunteered to stay
and nurse the consul, declining the OBJ
portunity to continue her journey to
Germany
The fourth survivor left at Dover is
Capt Frohlfch's steward, who went to
the help Of Mr.. Duplace when the pas
sengers were ordered on deck. Mr.. Du-
place was suffering from anaemia, and
the shock and exposure aggravated the
complaint to such an extent that the at
tending physician told the correspondent
Of the Associated Press this evening that
the consul had but little show for life.
hn Hy
Duplace saved nothing but what they
were wearing at the time. Mrs. Duplace
gives the following description of their
escape:
AS A WOMAN SAW IT.
''It was about 1890 yesterday morning,
the weather being calm and fine, and
several of us being seated In the deck
saloon, when, suddenly, Capt. Frohlich
appeared and shouted, All passengers
on deck Everybody started forward
with rush. we are afire,' said the
captain, but there is no danger. Don't
get excited Just then smoke began to
pour out through the deck near the
smokestacks My sick husband was in
his cabin and undressed. I hurried to
him and began to dress him, when in
came the steward, shouting: Get out of
this He took my husband by the feet
and I supported his head. We started to
carry him to the deck, but the smoke
choked us, and the water from the fire
he Sc swished around our knees. feared
all was lost, but going backward through
another passage we managed to reach
the deck safely. There all the passen-
gers were crowded together. Thick clouds
of smoke were blowing over the whole
ship, and distress signals were flying.
One passenger, who had hastily come
from the bath room, appeared with
oFO Others found
themselves equally unprepared. The
captain told us he would lower the boats
as a precaution. So we lined up. 'Wom-
en- and children first shouted the cap
tain, who was standing near me. re-
piled that I would have to wait for the
men to help me lift my helpless nus
band Capt. Froh1ich answered me by
lifting my husband, placing him in the
bottom of one of the boats, ordering me
to follow and telling one Of the stew
ards to go with us. That boat was the
first to leave.
TERRIBLY FRIGHTENED.
eve were all terribly frightened, and
although a few cried, there was no dis
order. The captain and crew were brave,
and did all they could to encourage US.
One of the boats got partly away from
the ship, the women started screaming,
and it seemed for a time as If the bot
hauled back to the ship. Another boat
was without a crew, the passengers doing
the rowing The sailors in the boats were
ordered to return. From this order we
inferred the sailors intended to work on,
trying to put out the fire. Ctnders and
debris fell all over our boats. Through
the smoke we occasionally caught sight
of Capt Frohlich on the bridge He d1-
yided his attention between giving orders
to the crew and joking with US. Once he
shouted, laughingiy: The fire is in my
cabin Now l can't get my pipe, and
YOU all know 1 can't do anything With
out my pipe.
''Then the Ceres came up and her cap
tain sang out: Your ships afre. Shall
I take your passengers?' Frightened as
we were, we laughed. Then Capt. Fro
Itch made the Ceres promise to take US
to Dover, and then our boats pulled over
to her and we were taken aboard. The
last we saw of the Patria she was just
a mass of smoke and going toward Ham
burg"
CREW ACTED LIKE HEROES.
DOVER, Nov ia Swedish passen-
ger named Ernest Monk, in an interview,
says:
1.-THE crew acted like heroes from the
beginning to the end. The fire origt-
mated In the grain amidships. I heard
and may have been smeldering for days.
But the crew kept the matter quiet until
a passenger German, Hans Schall, was
told by one Of the crew yesterday morn
ing, and the news soon spread, though it
was kept from the women. The smoke,
however, began to show at 11:30, and 1t
was no longer possible to conceal the fire.
The captain told US we would have to
leave the ship. The women and children
were alarmed and cried a great deal, but
there was little confusion, though most
of US only saved the clothes we were
wearing Many of the women refused to
leave their husbands and had to be forced
into the boats, the men comforting them
as much as possible. We followed i'm
mediately AS we left the vessels side
we heard the race horses in the hold
screaming with pain.
The latest accounts say the flames are
being overcome by the crew, who are
working energetieally, and that the cap
tain is confident he will succeed in bring
ing the steamer into a German port. 1t
was also said the effects of the passen-
gers had been wholly or partially saved.
The Patria's passengers left here today
apparently in good spirits, though many
of them were compelled to purchase adj
ditional clothing. The reports of the des-
titution of the passengers were over
drawn. The company is doing everything