Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1904-07-13

Lifeboats Crushed by Waves and Pas
sengers Leap Into Sea in Panic-Cap-
tain BraveIy sinks with Ship, but
Comes to Surface Again and In
Rescued.
Over 700 Danish and Norwegian
emigrants bound for New York are
believed to have been drowned In the
north Atlantic. out of nearly 800
souls on board the Danish steamer
Norge, which left Copenhagen June %,
only 12S are known TO be alive and
for the rest no hope is held out.
When last seen the Norge was sink
ing where she struck on the islet of
Rockall, whose isolated peak raises IT
self from a deadly Atlantic reef some
290 miles of the west coast of Scot
land.
Early on the morning OF Tuesday
the Norge, which was out of her
| course in heavy weather, ran on to
the Rockall reef, which in the dis
lance looks like a ship under full sail.
The Norge was quickly backed off.
but the heavy seas poured in through
rent in her bows.
Lifeboats Are Capsized.
The emigrants, who were then
| awaiting breakfast below, ran on
deck. The hatchways were scarcely
built for these hundreds of souls and
became clogged.
The Norge quickly began to go
down by the head Eight boats We're
lowered, and into -hese the women
and children were hurriediy put Six
! of these boats smashed against the
side of the Norge and their helpless
inmates were caught up by the heavy
seas.
Two boat loads got safely away
from the side of the sinking ship and
many of the emigrants who were left
on board, Selling life belts, threw
themselves into the sea and were
| drowned.
The Norge founIered suddenly and
some 600 terrified eInigrants were
/ thrown into the water or drawn down
with the sinking ship. Those who
| could swim tried TO reach the boats,
but these were already too full and
| their occupants beat off the drowning
! wretches with oars.
Two Other Boats Missing.
The boats kept together for some
| hours. Practically all of their occu-
pants were passengers and were not
used to handling such craft. The boat
occupied by thessurviv0rs landed at
Grimsby was lifeboat
One account says that three boat
were successfully launched. the other
/ two holding about ten persons each.
! The lifeboat made faster progress and
fell in with the Saliva. The rescue of
| those on the Hfeboat took place at
L clock on the morning of Wednesday.
! the survivors consisting of twenty
/ zen, one of them a seaman, six WON
en- a-d a girl.
One Of the survivors said that when
! NV EVA bit AEENh iAt 4NbISC WIS lldll
submerged and was rapidly getting
lower in the water Half mad with
/ fright, the survivors all struggled for
| places in the boats. They fought their
way to the big lifeboat and an officer
slowed in the six women and the girl
and then told the men to get in.
Heroic Officer browns.
The officer then took charge and got
the boat away from the side of the
| Norge. Seeing that the boat was al
ready overloaded, the officer, with
great herolsm, jumped into the water
and trie to board another boat which
was not SO full He failed and was
drowned.
In the sea by this time was El1ss
| Of struggling men. women and chill
dren, gasping and choking from the
| effects Of the water The boat rUwed
clear of this seething Inferno. and Just
as she drew away the Norge went
down.
Survivors OF the disaster now are
known to number 12S, 100 having been
picked up by English and German YES
sells from lifeboats in which they were
adrift on the ocean. Among those
saved is Captain Gundel of the Norge,
who was carried down when the ship
sank. He rose and swan for life
boat filed with other survivors.
For more than a year the Norge has
been bringing over mixed class Of
emlgrants. She could easily carry
1890 or 200 passengers. of late her
passenger list has included Danes, Nor
weSlans and Russians.
The Norge. which had been in the
! Copcnhagen-New York service of the
Scandinavian line for number OF
years, was an iron vessel of 3,3ls tons
gross and 2.121 tons net. Her princi-
pal dimensions were: Length, $40 feet;
breadth, 40 feet. and depth, % feet
The vessel was built at Glasgow by
A, stephen & Sons III 1881, when SIZE
was chrIstened Pieter De Coniuck.
When she was purchased by the Uni
ted Steamer Company of Copenhagen
she was renamed the Norge.
TeId in a Few Lines-
Edmund Bersch. former member OF
fhe -. ,,;s f~onua1 headed guilty