The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1904-01-24
EIGfl' LIVES i OST IN
WRECK OF SCHOONER
Brave Life Saving Crew Battles
in Vain With Angry Waves
for Lives Of Those Aboard
the Augustus lIunt-AA
Dense Fog and High
Seas Win in Unequal
struggle-only Two
Men Rescued.
nv Associated Press. J

NEW YORK, Jan. 23.-Elght lives were
lost In the wreck to-day off Quosue,l
Long Island, OF the four-masted schoon-
err. Augustus Hunt. coal laden. for Bos-
tom, from Norfolk. Va OF the crew OF
ten. only two men were saved, Second
Mate George Ebert, OF Cleveland. O.. and.
a Swede who was unconscious when
washed on the beach and whose name
could not be nscerlained. Tho vessel
was in command Of First Mate Conary,.
who took charge Of her in place of Cap
tain Robert Blair when she last left Bos-
ton. Soon after midnight, during asdense;
fog tho schooner stranded affcw hundred
feet from tho beach and about nlllc
west OF the Quogue life-snving station.
ia A llfe-saving4 patrolman heard the cries
for help OF those OH board and summon
ed the station crew. For hours the life
snvers were unable to hear the cries OF
tho men on the vessel which was near
ut hand. but buried in tho fog. They
we're absolutely unable to help the men.
Time and again they launched their boat.
only to have It hurled back to the shore
by the heavy surf. The llfe-snyers also
had RECOURSE to ITO lines, but the shots
carrying the lines either fell vide or short
OF the invisible mark. Soon after day
light masses OF wreckage began to como
ashore, indicating that tho vessel was
rapidly breaking up.
Man Dragged Ashore.
About noon u spar with a man cling
Ing to 1t was seen in tho outer line or
breakers, After n limo had been shot
across 1t and made fast by the man., he
was pulled ashore and proved to DO Sec,
ond Mate Ebert, A few minutes later
another sailor was seen on a mass OF
wreckage and half n dozen llfe-sayers,
forming human chain, dashed into the
surf and drew him ashore. He was ull-
conscious and continued IN that condition
at q late hour to- might.
The cries OF those remaining on the.
wreck continued to grow fainter ana
fainter during the afternoon and finally
ceased altogether. One body drifted ashore
but 1t was so dshgured as to he NnrecoG-
nizuble. It Ia believed that only the bow
Of the vessel remains on the bar and
from this the exhausted seamen dropped
one by one until they all were swept
away. a.s85 l,3 II t
Mate Ebert. after being taken to the
life saving station, said that the vessel
stranded In the fog. having mistaken the
Shinnecock light for tho headlight OF q
steamer, The officers believed they were
att least twenty-five miles Off shore and
In no danger when tho vessel suddenly
struck and began to pound to pieces III
In heavy sea that was running on the
bar.
Great waves swept the vessels deck,
the n,asts snapped of like pipe stems.
and with tho rigglng. We're carried away
by the tremendous seas. AS the hull
began to 20 to pieces, the members Of
the crew were drizen forward. where they
hung as best they could. Ebert was
clinglng to some wreckage on the deck,
when the whole mass weat overheard
carrying him with 1t, Ebert was unable
10 give the nemes OF any Of the crew,
moss pt whom liiaIA4 Wiped 6 l&Sarfoak.