The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1899-11-17
Passenger Tells of Captain and
Crews Heroic Conduct.
ALL ON BOARD FRIGHTENED
officers and Men Encouraged Every
One to Keep Quiet and Cool During
Exciting Moments-Th People
at Dover Were Very Kind


passengers of the Patria spent the night
at Southampton awaiting the arrival of the
Kaiser Friedrich. Four of the passengers
were left at Dover, and one of these, Il
man named Duplac, 1T is believed will die
because of his terrible experience in the
English Channel.
Mrs. Duplac gives a thrilling story of the
rescue of her invalid husband and the Incl
dents leading up to the captains alarm of
fire. 1t seems that she was taking a turn
on the upper deck after attending her hus-
band when the ala m was sounded. Rush.
ing to their state room, she had succeeded
in about half dressing her husband, when
the steward appeared, eXclaiming ''Get out
of this!" Between them they managed to
get the i'll man on deck lighting the thick
smoke that choked them and the water
from the fire hose swishing about their
knees.
IT feared that all was lost, but going
backward through another passage, we
managed to reach the deck in safety. There
all the passengers were crowded together
Thick clouds of smoke were blowing over
the whole ship, and distress signals were
flying One passenger who had come from
the bathroom appeared with scarcely any
clothing on. Others found themselves
equally unprepared. The captain told us he
would lower the boats as a precaution.
SO we lined up. Women and children
firstr shouted the captain, who was stand
ing near me. 1 replied that l supposed |
would have to wait for the men, as 1 could
not leave my helpless husband. Captain
Frohlich answered by lifting my husband,
placing him in the bottom of one of the
boats ordering me ito follow and telling the
steward to go with us. Our boat was the
first lowered.
I'VE were all terribly frightened, but
though a few cried there was no disorder.
The officers and crew did all they could and
encouraged us to be brave and cool. While
one boat was being lowered the bottom be-
gan to give way. The women screamed and
for moment it seemed as If the bottom
would drop out, but the boat was quickly
hauled back. Another boat had no crew,
the passengers doing the rowing.
"MeanWhile some fishing smacks had
come up and several passengers boarded
them, but Captain Frohlch beloved
through the smoke that no one must leave
the Patria's boats, SO they left the smacks.
From this order we inferred that the sail
ors hoped to put out the fire. For more
than an hour we lay along side the liner
now hot and smoke-covered, with cindefs
and debris falling over our boats. Ihrougn
the fire we occasionally caught sight oil
Captain Frohlch on the bridge. He Ovid
ed his attention between giving orders to
the crew and joking with us. Once he
shouted laughingly: The fire is in my cab
in Now l can't get my pipe, and you all
know | can't do anything without my pipe.
Then the Ceres came up and her captain
sang out: Your ship adire. Shall take
YOUR passengers? Frightened as we were
we laughed. Captain Frohlich made the
toll n
then our boats put over to her and we were
taken aboard. The last 80 saw OF the dat
ria she was just mass of smoke ana solhS
toward Hamburg. Many of us had to pay
for what little we could get to eat on board
the Ceres. At Dover everybody was very
kind
..If the captain had put us ashore as soon
as the fire was discovered we would not
have lost our baggage or been exposed 10
srch danger. l have made hbteen TRIPS
across the Atlantic and seen "a Sood many
storms but | have never experienced amy :
thing so awful as being on board a SNIP ol
fire I don't know what Mr.. Duplace and
7 would hive done or could have done had
not Mrs Ivers offered to stay and try and
save my husbands life. We did not Know
her on board the Patrla; but her deed IS
quite in keeping with the generous actions
of Nle American women whom we had SO
frequently met at S1n Juan since Porto
Rico came under American control"
Swedish passenger named Earnest
Monk i'm an interview, said:
1.-THE crew acted like heroes from begin
ming to end. 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 ito be forced into the
boats the men comforting them as much as
possible We followed immediat ely. 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, VITO are work
ing theoretically, and that the captain is
confident that he will succeed in bringing
the steamer into a German port 1t was
regretted that the effects of the passengers
had not been wholly or partly saved.
The Patria's passengers left here today
apparently in good spirits, though many of
them were compelled to purchase additional
clothing. The reports of the restitution of
the passengers were oyer-darwn. The COM
pany is doing everything possible for itlelr
comfort.
Politics at Florence.