Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1903-07-29
SOME BRAVE MEN.
Deeds Of Daring Performed In Face Of
Fate.

1t was one morning In September
last that a fire broke out with terrific
suddenness in the engine house Of the
Bodringallt colliery near Rhodda- At
the moment cage with eleven men in
1t was slowly descending the shaft.
The flames spread rapidly and the heat
became almost unbearable. But Evan
Lloyd. the engine man, never dreamed
Of quitting his post. Catching up
sheet Of metal, he propped 1t In front
Of his face and grimly held on to his
winding lever until the indicator show
ed that the cage was safe at the bot
tom Of the shaft. Then. and not until
then, scorched and blackened, he stag
gered out into the open air.
A few moments later the fire rods
heat. but by that time ten Of the men
were in safety. Only one was injured
by the falling metal and he not NOR
tally.
An English railway man the other
day saved an express train full Of pas
sengers bound from Liverpool to Lon
don. A Glasgow goods train was
shunting on the L. and N. w. railway
near Tamworth, to make way for the
express to pass, but the driver Of the
goods, under some misapprehensions,
imagined that it was safe for him to
leave the siding. The points being
against him, his train was derailed.
Eight trucks left the rails and lay
about, utterly blocking the main line.
Both driver and fireman were badly
hurt, but the latter, Swansea man
by the name Of Frederick Davis, real
lied the danger Of the on-coming ex-
in terrible pain, crawled slowly toward
the nearest signal box. AS he went he
laid danger signals on the line. When
he reached the box he had just strength
enough to tell what had happened.
Then he fell unconscious and was car
ried to hospital.
In the two desperate battles Of
Rorke's Drift and Isandlwhana the gal
liant oath lost twenty-one officers and
587 men, and the survivors received no
less than eight Victoria crosses. OF
these the most magnificently won is
that which Sergt. Hook, now employed
at the British museum still wears. For
four long hours Hook and two other
men held the -hoapita.l at Rorke's Drift
against host of huge zulus. AT last
his two companions fell and the survi-
vor ran short Of ammunition. Undis-
mayed he fixed his bayonet and still
held off the rushes Of his foes. AS one
after another Of them fell he piled
their bodies up until barricide was
formed five feet high.
Then the Zulus gave up the at
tempt to rush and set the place on fire.
The sole survivor seized q pick and
broke through three successive walls
of sun-dried clay to get at the hospital
behind. There lay eight men too badly
hurt to move. And already the flames
were bursting in upon them. Hook
picked up the nearest and staggered
away with him to the other building
behind. Then Lance Corpl. Williams
came to the rescue and with his help
all the sufferers were carried Into
safety. Before rescue came Hook had
been fighting eighteen hours.
One of the heroes Of the world Is
Chinaman. His story was recently told
by Granville Sharp, Of Hong Kong.
Mr.. Sharp was on French steamer on
its way from Hong Kong to Touron,
on the Chinese coast. The steamer
ran on a rock and was beached to save
her. The captain hired two Chinese
iunks to take the crew and passen-
gers back to Hong Kong and Mr.. Sharp
went with the captain in the smaller.
A typhoon swept down upon them.
Masts, bulwarks and rudder were
swept away in an instant. The Chi
nese captain, believing all was over
went below and drugged himself with
opium.
Three Chinese fishermen, who had
been firemen on the steamer, were
aboard and these knew the coast. They
managed to repair the rudder but only
one could steer we'll enough to save II
from being again broken. He had TO
watch every wave and be ready to ease
off every sea- With no one to relieve
him this man stood at his post In tor
rents of rain, in wind and darkness
and endured the awful strain for thlr-
ty-six hours. A boy stood beside him
and put food between his lips at inter-
walls to give him strength for his all
but hopeless task. He saved the JUNK
and all on board.
What threatened to be one OF the
worst disasters in the history or snip
ping was the burning Of the ocean
Monarch. The fire was discovered IN
her fore hold an hour or two only after
she left the Mersey. There was
strong breeze and she was headed FOR
the Welsh coast.
By some unlucky accident an anchor
was dropped and the big ship was
brought up all standing head to the
wind. The flames came roaring aft'
where 500 passengers and crew were
crowded.
A Brazilian frigate, a yacht and pi-
lot boat were near, but they only at
tempted-t to pick up those who jumped
and swan. Suddenly up came an
American clipper and rounded into the
wind barely 200 yards away. In her
first boat was Frederick Jerome, only
an able seaman, but one Of the bravest
seamen that ever lived. In a flash his
boat was alongside the burning snip
and he climbed on board amid the