The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-10-05
PREY OF MAD WAVES
urpE TWELVE PERSONS ON
sTUAMER HACKLEY SATURDAY.
souALL STRUCK GREEN BAY.
r AWAY STEAMERS UPPER
WORKS AND SUNK HER.

s...D Persons Were Rescued After
uaior in Water All NiEht-CIunE
60 RitS of Wreckage Till steamer
Tank Then Aboard-StOrm Came
snddpuly and with Terrific Fury.
women Provided With PIanks
Then Men shifted for Themselves.
Captnin wouldn't Leave and Went
Down with Boat.
Narinette, Wis. Oct. 4.--The pas
sanger steamer Erie l.. Hackley of
rsh Creek, foundered in Green Bay
,sst night during hard squall, and
twelve persons were drowned and
seven rescued. The dead:
rosenh Vorous, captain of the Hack
ley
- Truchly cook of the Hackley.
Passengers:
Freeman Thorp, Fish Creek.
Edna Barringer, Fish Creek.
Lawrence Barringer, brother of Edna
Barrnger, Fish Greek.
Frances Vincent, Egg Harbor.
- Vincent, sister of Frances Vim
cent, Egg Harbor.
George LeClair, Jr.. Jacksonport.
n. Fitzsimmons, Jacksonport.
Henry Rabbitor, Fish Creek.
Carl Kelley, Fish Creek.
Nels Nelson, Sturgeon Bay.
The saved
Frank Blakefield, purser Of the
g boat Orrin Rowen. engineer; Martin
Hanson, and man named Roggen-
dorf, firemen; Martin Olsen and son,
passengers of Sister Bay; Blaine Nc
Sweeney.
The Erie L. Hackley was fifty-four-
ton screw steamer which was built at
Muskegon, Mich, in 1882. The Hack
ley was owend in Fish Creek by Capt
Vorous and other residents of that
village. The steamer made a trip ev-
cry other day between Sturgeon Bay
and Washington Island, going up one
day and back the next. The Hackley
left Menominee, Mich, late Saturday
night and was bound for Fish Creek
and Green Bay.
About to Seek Shelter.
sturgeon Bay, WIS, Oct. 4.-PurSer
Bakefeld, one of the survivors of the
Hackley who was on the steamer
81 Sheb0ygan when it reached here, gave
vivid description of the wreck He
said.
The squall struck us about o'clock
as We were just north of Green Is
land 1t came suddenly, and with ter
rifc fury l was in the pilot house
with the captain, who had just said
that the elements looked threatening,
and that he would try to run to port
When the first fierce gust hit us the
captain tried to throw the boat up into
the wind, but his efforts to do so were
unavailing. Then I joined him at the
Nhee, but our combined efforts were
not suthcinet to make her mind the
Wheel
Then Of a sudden, she lifted, and
began TO fill with water. Realizing
that the passengers and crew were be-
coming panic-stricken, 1 left the cap
tain in the pilot house, and ran aft
70 let down the life boat. BY the time
got aft the Hackley was fl ing so
rapidly that it was apparent it would
De impossible to launch any boat.
There came another free blast and
Il. Inc upper works went by the board.
men the steamer began to sink rapidly
ana was apparent that her settling
10 Inc bottom would be a question of
out few moments.
Eighteen of the nineteen people on
board were gathered on the deck,
most OF them in a state of panic. The
situation was made particularly heart
tenalng by the women who shouted
historically, imploring the men to
save them, and accompanied their ap-
peas Tor assistance with prayers.
A. AS the boat sank it was clear that
mere was only one hope of any one
.el1g saved and that was by clinging
~ the Wreckage. I gave orders for
me me men to put the women on it first.
IAey cid so and behaved well, every
.nan remaining on the sinking boat
ui'u the women had been placed on
p.eceS OF the cabin and other wreck
ese 1t was then a wild scramble on
o o9e part of the men to get such pieces
vi banking as he could secure and
Cling to it,
captain stuck TO Boat.
=, Every man found something to float
En except the captain, who remained
IN the pilot house to the last, doing his
4 S a.. 10 right the boat. He finally went
uown with her.
e.. we fioated on different pieces and
toI d rev minutes we were in sight of
IN other but soon darkness came on,
anu anu we separated. The last persons
WA, mat l saw, except for those with me,
{ Tere the two Vincent girls from Egg
TTISaIoor' who were floating together.
H. ,"eS seemed to have recovered entire
~; ~ from the first fright and were max
ing brave struggle for their lives, a
ii IN which now seems to have been
Those of us who were fortunate
enougn to escape chung to the wreck
ss s5 an night, bitten by the cold wind
t.a oenumbed by the colder water, and
o te surprise is that we did not all die
vi W. exposure. We drifted | know not
boi.e until picked up by the She