The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-12-23
SHIPS WENT DOWN
SURVIVORS HAD TERRIBLE EXPE-
RIENCEs IN AN OPEN BOAT.
FRoST-BITTEN AND HELPLESS
THEY WE'RE FINALLY DESCRIBED
AND RESCUED.

and shortly Afterward Both Went
Down-Fifteen Members of the
/ Crew Succeeded In ClamberfnE
Into "A Boat-Saw Their ships Sink
With Six of Their Comrades-Four
More Died aud One Became Insane
and Jumped Overheard.
Boston, Dec. 22.-Almost crazed from
their ,sufferings. frost bitten and help
less, ten men in a boat were picked up
by the schooner Manhasset yesterday,
forty-five miles off Highland Light.
Then. for the first time. it was learn
ed that the schooners Frank A. Pal
mer and Louise B. Crary had been in
collision. and that they had been sunk
off Thatchers Island on Wednesday
evening The survivors were landed
here to-day.
| OF the twenty-one men that made up
the two crews. six were carried down
when the two vessels sank; four died
during the terrible three days drift in
Massachusetts Bay, and another be-
came insane and jumped overheard.
With no food or water, their clothes
being steadily driven before a bitter
gale out into the Atlantic, 1t seems re-
markable that so many survived. The
roster of dead and living follows:
The Dead and the Survivors.
Dead
Crew of the Louise b. Crary-J. p.
Smith, mate, Portland. Me-: w. II.
| Rowland, engineer; Hans, -, Ger
man, seaman; David Shanan, New
foundland; August johnson, Swede;
| Olaf Berg Norwegian; Peter Lachr,
| South American; unknown seaman.
Crew of the Palmer-Frank Banta,
| Finland; Edward Jorgensen, Norway;
| Albert Spearling, Philadelphia.
Survivors of the Crary-Capt. Will
liam H. Potter, Orient, l.. l.; Louis
Stein, engineer.
Survivors of the Palmer-Capt. ]. r.
| Rawling, South Boston; Svend Rein
hart Providence, r. L.; Alex Lund-
strom. Finland; Edward Somerville.
| Providence, r. l.; Daniel Carlson, Nor
way; c. F. Florensen. Sweden: Vim
ton. mate; Hjalmar Schoyer, New
York.
| The two schooners, both heavily
laden with coal, doubled Cape Cod in
company and ran into a strong north
wester on Wednesday night. Both
captains put their vessels over towards
the Cape Ann shore. When off Thatch-
er Island they split tacks, and finally
both came about at the same time,
and unknown to themselves, headed
i toward each other, the Crary holding
north on the port tack and the Palmer
south on the starboard tack, and,
therefore, having the right
Mate smith to Blame.
The survivors to-day were inclined
to lay the blame of the accident on
Mate Smith of the Crary, who had
charge of the deck at the time and who
went down with the ship They are of
the opinion that he thought he could
weather the Palmer, but instead the
Crary crashed into the bow of the
| Palmer.
The cut was deep. and 1t was seen
instantly that there was no hope for
/ either vessel. Most of the small boats
| were smashed and some of the men
killed by the collision, but others of
both crews, by quick work, launched
the long boat of the Palmer, into which
clambered the captains of both vessels
| and thirteen others.
There was not a moment for storing
food or water in the boat. and the
rowers had propelled ii only a short
| distance from the schooners when the
| Palmer went down. Three minutes
later the Crary disappeared.
They Suffered Terribly.
Without food and water drenched to
the skin, spray freezing to their gar
| ments because of the bitter cold the
fifteen survivors underwent sufferings
indescribable. Four men of the Crary
on Friday lay down in the bow of the
boat and that night they died. Eleven
remained up until Saturday night.
when Frank Banta went insane, and
under the delusion that his mother
beckoned to him. he walked into the
sea. The Others were powerless to
| restrain him.
Shortly after this the two captains
decided that the bodies of the four
dead men should be consigned to the
deep, and, bending over them, Capt
Pitter of the Crary repeated as much
OF the burial service as he could re-
member. Then. the strongest of the
survivors put the bodies overheard.
In the three days and half that
the men were afoat, their boat drift
ed steadily off shore, until at 3 O'Clock
Sunday morning, ii was forty-five
miles off Highland light. There the
| lookout on the fishing schooner Man.
hassett caught a glimpse of the boat.
and within half an hour the ten men
were in the cabin of the schooner
Capt. Malone at once crowded on all
sail and brought his survivors into
| Boston.
signalIed for AmbuIances,
The Manhassett came into the har-
Dor early this morning, showing sig
nails for assistance, and by the time
she arrived at a wharf, ambulances
were ready to transfer the sailors TO
the hospital. Only six of the men
could be removed. however. The other
four were IN such a critical condition
that 1t was deemed impossible that
they could survive being taken from
the vessel
Capt Potter revived later In the day
and was removed TO a HOSPITAL. He
said the Crazy was 10 blame for the
collision, Mate Smith having disobeyed
ORDERS In not reporting the nearness
| OF the Palmer. Capt. Potter said the
reason why 30 many OF the crary's
| men died was because boat in which
they had started from the schooner
was sHamDed, ana they were chilled
IN the water, before they finally reach
"a the Palmer's boat. Three men died
the FIRST night The fourth died the
/ next day.
Neither Capt. Potter nor Capt. Raw
/ ling knew ail ~ their crew. The men