Evening star., 1900-10-05
SHIPWRECkED CREW SAVED.
Rescued in Midocean After Ten Days
of Suffering.


Fourteen shipwrecked seamen, the crew
of the once fine ship Ellerslie of Liverpool,
were landed at Boston Wednesday after
noon by the British tramp steamship Anna
ma, which rescued the men from their
| water-iogged and dismasted vessel in mid
ocean five days ago.
The rescue was effected after the men
had endured ten days of sufferiugs and
| privations, and when they had despaired
of ever seeing home and dear ones again.
| The names of the rescued men are Capt.
| LlewelIyn Cook. First Mate John Jackson,
| Second Mate Carl Hansen Apprentice John
Craig Mcpherson and Seamen Edward Cas-
| teilani, ]. Vincent Ferrara, Mattea Gregg,
| Frank Brown, Patrick Kelly. James ala-
| loney. Thomas Kelly, Henry LOuseth and
! Otto Natchell.
| One member of the crew, John Graham,
| aged twenty-one, a native of Glasgow, fell
| from aloft on the morning Of September IS
and was lost.
Capt. Cook Of the wrecked vessel stated
| that the EllersIie left Ship Island, Miss
On August Is with a cargo Of nearly 1.OOO-
600 feet of pitch pine lumber for Liverpool
He said:
Variable weather was encountered, but
we suffered no damage until September Is,
when a heavy gale was encountered Our
nrst misfortune was the loss of poor Gra-
nam. The weather then moderated until
the 2ith. BY noon that day 1t was blowing
a full-hedged hurricane. The sea was run
ming very high and constantly washed the
decks. 1t was blowing fully eighty miles
an hour and apparently increasing all the
time.
"At 10 O'Clock that night the vessel fell
off in the trough Of the fearful sea and
was raked by vicious combers from stem
to stern. The pump showed that she had
twenty-three inches of water in her hold
and at daylight the next morning she was
nearly full
All the while the vessel was pitching and
rolling IN terrible manner, and without
warning the miZzenmast broke in two
pieces and fell to the deck, carrying yards
and rigging with 1t, and further endanger-
ing the lives of the crew. The falling spars
demolished the lifeboats and the skids on
which they rested. This was on the night
OF September 25. Shortly after this the for
ward house was swept entirely away, and
the same sea tore the fore rigging.
"On the 26th a conference was held be-
tween the captain and the men, and it was
decided to cut away the fOremast in order
II possible, to relieve the craft. Early the
next morning the men set about construct
ing sea anchor out of pieces of the deck
load lashed together by about forty faith
oms of chain. This, attached to a long
hawser, was let over the bow, and then the
work of cutting away the foremast began
THE sufferings Of the men became In
tense through lack Of fresh water the sup
ply having become exhausted. Many Of
them, to quench their thirst, scooped UP
the raSfsh salt water in their hands al
liiouSH FilSl Mate Jackson and myself
tried to prevent them. After the masts
went by the board the vessel was relieved
somewhat. and the gale moderated soon
afterward."
Knowing that the float ting derelct was a
serious menace to navigation, Third Officer
Evans of the steamer and Mate Jackson of
the Eilerslie returned to the wreck with
quantity of parafhne. which was placed
about the water-soaked deck and a fire
started in three places. The men then re-
turned to the steamer, which resumed her
passage to this port.
Captain Cook saved the ships papers and
his chronometer, but the crew lost most Of
their possessions in the wreck.
The wrecked Ellerslie was built in New
Brunswick in 1872. She registered 1oSI
tons net and 1889 tons gross She was
valued a. $4,000 and was uninsured. The
cargo of lumber was covered BY insurance.