The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1899-01-17
A Portion of a ShipWrecked
Crew Travels 1000 Miles.
Terrible Experience of q Woman
and Her Babies
SHE TELLS THE STORY
Rescued From Slumber by the
Cry of Fire.
All Hands Took to Boats, but
Only IL Survived.

New York, Jan. 1.-THE remarkable
adventure which Mrs. Maud Mcdonald
tells is one which few women could en-
Mrs Mcdonald is the wife of Captain
Henry Mcdonald of Hoboken. N. J.
For twenty-five years his good luck was
a proverb, but last October his ship, the
William H. Starbuck. with its cargo, was
burned at sea- Seven of his crew of Is
were lost. and the remainder, with him
self, his wife and three children, took to
an open boat when 1000 miles from land.
They. were adrift for p days. but after
untold sufferings landed at Hookena Har-
Dor, Hawaii. Thence they journeyed to
Honolulu. and from there to San Fran
cisco, and home. Following is Mrs. Nc
Dona1d's storyI
married Captain Mcdonald, ten years
ago, I have accompanied him on all his
trips. In that time we have been all over
We began our last trip, in October. when
south hrt AREA oar cago CONSISTED Of
lumber, doors and sashes- We had a
tie girls, the eldest Z years of age and
the youngest Is months.
For the first IS days out we had good
weather and made good time. On the
18th our trouble began.
1t had been very warm, and Gladys, the
baby, was fretfuI and peevish. When
night came l was very tired and went TO
1 must have been asleep two hours when
a great knocking at the door awakened
whats wrong?' shouted my husband
as he groped around for. match.
mate as S # he didn't Want to aiarm me tins
My first thought was for the children.
shook so that I couldn't. The smoke
blinded me. I heard the fire craekling in
At last I got the children out on deck.
From there the fire didn't seem to be SER
The men thought they could put out the
flames. could
the fire gained on them.
the very sternran of the ship, my hus-
band told me to get the children and my
It. was O'Clock in the morning, pitch
dark and my little children were on
R tSa1hsg ship 1000 miles from land nd
should think SO much Of the boys and
home. but those sew We're re the f tho1ghts had
The crew behaved nobly. Every order
he onge b aad t Of fe eP 2Ggee we carried
was launched first and the children, and
went over the side into it and waited I'M
til the other boats were ready.
las we ToWed out of range, Of the , falling IN
before us. We hoped the burning hulk
w94i e attract some vessel but none cams ne
miles from the Hawaiian islands, but de-
cided to try for them We made about
Ali the first week seems like dream to
me. The motion of the little boat made
me deathly sick I was too wretched to
and all day the men helped to pass the
time by talking to each other. But
the fourth day a storm came up and
that night the second mates boat disap-
peared.
At first our allowance of water was one
pint day, but later, when we became less
hopeful of rescue, it was reduced to half
a pint After L got well enough to know
what was going on slept only few min
utes at a time. The baby was cutting its
teeth and 1t suffered a great deal.
On the 18th day came another tragedy.
A storm blew uD that threatened every
minute to swamp us Time and again
the waves washed over US and drenched
us to the skin. AT last the first mates
boat capSized-
By this time the storm was fearful We
had all we could do to keep afloat our
selves, but we rowed over to the strug-
Cling men and pulled one after another
into our boat
We saved them all but Da Costa, the
cook The night were driven from
the ship he had helped me to dress the
children.
1 shall never forget the look he gave us
as he went down alone away out there
in the sea.
My husband had leaped into the water
after him, and when for a second he dis
appeared under the wave felt like clasp
ing my baby. to my breast leaping in and
ending it all then and there. A quick
death seemed preferable to the long