New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1903-09-18
FIVE ARE SWEPT AWAY.
Battered Fishing Fleet Barely Able
10 Make Port.


torn. boats stove in and bulwarks smashed boat
BY boat the fishing feet crept up to the piers
at Fulton Market yesterday. Tags floating at
halfrnast for comrades who had made their Iasr
port. OF the entire fleet some thirty boats were
IN yesterday while thirty-four others had been
heard from Five men had been drowned. lost
from the srnacks which reached port and the
sailors. IN hopeless tones. declared their belief
that many Of the missing craft were certain 70
have sunk There were stories that the star
light and the Csswell had foundered. and all on
board. some thirty. had been lost.
Some Of the smacks which came into port yes
terday were the Lottie Morton the Flora L.
Nickerson. the John Ericsson the BENJAMIN
VI. Wallace the G.. l. Keeny and the Sir knight.
Among the craft yet TO be heard from
are the Sunshine. which was chartered by
A H Han: the Daisy owned by Kingsand
& COmstock; the Mercedes. chartered by the
New-YOrk Fish Company and Wilson & Barry:
the William Gaffney. owned by Horace Still
man; the Emily P. Wright. chartered by Fl. NJ
Rogers & Co; the Orient chartered by H
NJ Rogers q Co. and the Lillian Fernald-
chartered by George T. Moon. II any OF these
make port they will probably anchor at South
Brooklyn or lie off Bechtel's Dock on the BAY
side OF staten Island All schooner riggsd.
and carry from dozen to sixteen men each
! Captain Olsen commands the Daisy and Cap
tain Jansen is in charge of tire Mercedes.
The dead are Captain Silas 3. Latham. OF tns
Esther and Anita; Lewis Wilcox and william
| Barr. Scandinavian sailors Of the Esther and
| Anita: Captain John @. Morgan and Edwara
Peterson. OF the NJ A Batson. Captain
Walker reported drowned but his vessel
| was not known.
| WHEN THE STORM BROKE
| The feet was az Five Fathorn Banks. or ths
| Capes OF Delaware. when the storm broke The
terrific wind drove the little smack before il
: like leaves. Some tried to make for the Capes:
/ others scudded before the wind. while a few
tried to ride IL out. One. name unknown. was
seen to sink. blown at her anchorage The
BatsOn was trying to steer clear of the sinking
smack when Captain Morgan was washed over
board.
The blow came on about O'Clock on Tuesday
night BY midnight a terrific gale was raging
Some Of the snacks at that time tried to make
the Capes: others waited until they were blown
from their anchorage. Gaining strength con-
stantly. the gale heeled the little craft over
while huge seas washed their decks. Spray
drenched and wind blinded. the men hung to
rope and bulwark. risking their lives every time
they tried 10 tend the sails All night they we're
storm tossed. and the morning light breakfn,
through clouds Of spray. gave promise OF bet
ter weather.
At o'clock Wednesday morning the Batson
Off the Capes heeled TO the bulwarks IN
der double reefsd foresan. Captain Morgan
and Petersen were at the wheel. and william
Raynor was IN the bow as lookout
TWO DROWNED FROM THE BATsoN.
Il was standing BY the forecastIe hatch saia
he. land two-master sinking dead ahead
I don't know her. but she was sure one Of tns
feet. Cap'n tried to swing round her and We
shipped a sea higher'n Brooklyn Bridge. II ms.
dumped over TIL the sail beIlied out on tho
water. and we couldn't go any further I was
pitched right into boat. full Of water r
didn't see Cap'n or Petersen after they wena
over but they say Petersen came % crying ro-
a dory. The rest Of US couldn't help him any,
Three Of the dories were mashed 10 tooth.
picks and the only boats left on deck wers
smashed. The old Batson righted herself and
we cut holes in the bulwarks TO let the wate-
out. Five minutes after the Cap'n went over WI
dropped anchor and rode her out"
Captain Morgan. who was sixty-hve years ola.
was one OF the oldtime Newt England fisher
men. He left wife and FIVE children IN Noank.
Conn
The Esther and Anita anchored near tho
Batson. When the gale struck her she went on
her beam ends. Captain Latham and the two
sailors spilled or. and the best Of swim
raers could not live in the then raging. Sew
eraI OF the crew were badly injured by being
swung against masts and bulwarks. The smack
went to Brooklyn for repairs yesterday. Cap
tain Silas Latham bore the reputation OF the
most daredevii captain in the whole feet. He
was an i1hfei. and because he feared neither
God nor man the sailors said he often took
chances TO Christian could afford to-" Re was
sixty-foUr years Old. and ne left wife and
daughter in New-London.
His b-other. Benjamin Latham owned an In
tsrest IN both the boats. the sailors said. He
was fishing for sxordhsh OF Block Island with
many others OF the fleet. Ezra Latham. another
brother was drowned of fishing boat some
years ago Most % the sailors and captains are
Scandinavians and Portuguese or "Gagoes"
There we're only FIVE American captains. and the
sailors are commenting on the fact that two OF
then, lost.
The captain OF the schooner Hereward said
the storm was the severest he had seen in sew
enreen years OF service IN the fishing feet His
ship was OF Fire Island when caught in the
hurricane and the sea ran high that he mo-
rnentarfly expected his vessel to founder she
rode out the storm in safety. however losing
one or two OF her dories and some Of her can
TOUR TO GETTYSBURG AND WASHINGTON
Pennsylvania Railroad personally conducted fall
tour. September Is 20 October SCI covers all neces-