The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-05-10
BY NIGHT At SEA
Strange Happenings on the Big
Atlantic Liners.
KEPT FROM THE PASSENGERS
People Who Try to Commit Suicide
and Who Are Sometimes
Fooled.
New York Commercial Adyerti.er

dark OF night, while thousand unsus-
pecting passengers are asleep.
\ Some Of the strange experiences we
fellows have in a year Of night watches
hating abruptly in his tracks to point out
the dimly lighted companionway leading
to the staterooms of the sleeping ones be-
low. Suicides. for example, You'd
never believe how often, in the dead of
night. a figure steals up that companion
We have at least one every four trips
or SO, and II we don't. we think something
is wrong. Sometimes it's a woman, more
often it is man; but it's rare these days
that a passenger manages to kill himself
from the deck Of modern ocean liner.
did you see the fellow sitting in the
doorof the companionway as you came up?
OF course not. But know he's there be-
cause saw him follow you till YOU headed
this way for the bridge. He's the suicide
watch, put there to prevent people from
jumping overheard. He's one Of the stew
ards and his orders are to follow any one
that comes up on deck, during the night
until satisfied that all Is we'll. Il mischief
is afoot, it is the business OF the Watc
to interrupt the suspect and get him back
to his cabin without,a hint OF the attempt
reaching the ears of the other passengers
Desperate Case.
'sOnly two trips ago we lost q married
couple in desperate case Of suicide. In
the gray Of the morning they jumped
overheard locked in each others arms,
and despite the rumpus on the deck, not
a passenger ever learned of the tragedy.
81 was on the bridge at the time and
was one of=the first to see the pair climb
up the rail. I knew at once what was. up.
Standing on the top rail the man had bis
arm about the waist of the woman and
she had her head lowered into the hol-
low at his neck, as If to shut out the
dreadful sight of the black water. !
gave yell that should have aroused the
dead, but they did not hear. Half the
watch on deck made wild dash at the
pair and it seemed as II they would pc
saved after all. But just as the man got
within arms length the men gave q
dreadful cry and both plunged backward
into the sea.
INSTANTLY there was a changing OF
| gongs and ringing of bells for full speed
astern. On top of this came the shout Of
| orders and the sauealing of pulley block
as the boats were lowered from their
davits; but like SO many dead people the
| ! 100 passengers below slept through IT
all, absolutely ignorant Of the dreadful
thing that had happened over their beads
Keeps Passengers Ignorant.
| but, tueEEUy uuuS o. t4tSh. 1AoA e9AS
| engines been stopped the absence OF the
vibration throughout the ship would have
| sent every passenger scurrying to the
| deck in less than five minutes. If you
| want to keep sleeping passengers where
theK are, run your engines backward or
run them forward, but never stop them
Keep up the vibration whatever you do.
"Off the banksN Of Newfoundland we
worked that wrinkle to the limit one
night after running down a fishing sloop.
The weather was thick and we saw the
sloop Just in time to reverse our engines
| full speed before the crash cape. There
| was a shock, of course, and a grating and
| crashing and humping as our steel keel
| ground over the poor little fellow, but
not a soul of something like 1,11O aboard
heard the noise.
I'VE continued backing the engines un-
til we estimated we had reached the place
and for over an hour lowered about, al
| ternately backing and going ahead to keep
up the vibration, and when the boats re-
| turned unsuccessful not a passenger had
been frightened into coming on deck.
1T Is queer what startling Interrupt
| lions may happen without waking the
small army of passengers. One night
was getting ready for my watch when
| there was tremendous bang and trem
stern, I ran out on deck and listened
at the head Of the companionway for the
first onrush OF feet, but only four men,
| half-elad and frightened pale. ran up
the stairway afire with excitement. They
saw nothing wrong and that treasured
them. 7 helped them along in that line,
although I heard the door In the after
collision bulkhead grating into place.
told them that big hatch in the lower
hold had been dropped by some coal heav-
ers while opening a new coal bunker.
AS q matter of fact we had struck
wreckage with our port propeller, one OF
the blades was gone and a slight leak
owing to the sudden strain had developed
near the stuff1ng box. But of about ! zoe
passengers asleep that night only four
were aroused, and those went back to bed
| laughing at their fears.
| 'sAmong the funny incidents Of oul
cruise were the actions of pair OF for
eigners who came on deck In their
pajamas, with q pair of revolvers, one
| very chilly: morning and explained thai
| they had an urgent little affair to settle
The second mate was In charge, aud he
| sent them to the bow of the steamer
There the wind blows as it blows no.
where, aboard ship or elsewhere. and tbs
| cold cuts as 1t can cut through pajamas
and skins only, when backed by the force
Of a 20 or 30-knot breeze. The new con.
ditions We're that the pajama principa
who could stick 1t out longest In from
there was to be declared the winner
There was no duel that morning,
We had a hard time one night with &
big, stout woman who had suddenly gone
4 mad and who managed in some way to gel
4 into the rigging Of the foremast. Wher
4 found the poor creature was almost ready
to drop to the deck with exhaustion. Mer
1 were sent up the mast, but none couli
bring her down. Finally we had to lowel
her with block and fall She died OF ex
posure next day. but no passenger eve
heard OF the cause.
\ Madness of the stokehoIe.
4 Speaking Of madness. that is one OF tn,
things we always expect from the stoke
hole. Night Is the time when sucl
troubles break loose. Men lie awak,
4 and brood and think while the tossing o
1 the ship makes them still more uneas,
! and the prospect of the next watch In !,
temperature Of lao degrees takes tn
heart out Of them. Then 1t Is that tn
! poer chaps go out of their minds. The,
Il rush on deck and instinctively seek re
n lief from the pent-up heat in their shat
, tered bodies by plunging overheard
! might, alse, is the time when the fight
! among the crew occur. The men know
i that It means irons II caught at tn
game, so they choose the darkest time 0
the night.
| ttBut such things must be kept from tn
ocean traveller who expects In these day
! not only quick trip with all the hote
comforts thrown In, but also to be spare
annoyances Of even the most trivial KIND
R,1f if Won nour1ed this bridge during tn