The San Francisco call., 1904-12-30
Oil Steamship Goes Ashore
Off Cape Hatteras and for
Thifty-Six Hours Her Crew
Is Exposed to Gales Fury
RESCUED BY HEROIC
GUARDIANS OF COAST
Drumelzier Abandoned as a
Total Wreck by Captain and
Few Men Who Stuck to YES
sci in Hope of Saving Her

NORFOLK, Va, Dec. 29.-After be-
ing imprisoned on the wrecked oil
steamship Northeastern nine miles off
Captain Wilder and his crew of twen-
ty-one men were taken ashore at noon
to-day by the crews Of Kinnakeet,
Creeds Hill and Hatteras life-saving
stations. The big steamship is pound
ing on Diamond Shoals under a terrific
sea, and the crew say she will be
total loss.
the Northeastern, on her way up the
coast from Port Arthur, Tex, to New
York with cargo of crude petroleum,
showed her prov into the deadly sand
off Hatteras and was fast in the
clutches of the graveyard of shipping
before her crew realized what had hap
pened.
daylight had come the gale that had
swept over the country from the Mid
die West had struck the sea and waves
were crashing over the helpless vessel
necessarily. The force OF the wind and
tide threw her on her port beam and
the flood of water extinguished her
fires before her inhammable cargo
could become ignited. Had this not
been the case the twenty-five men
ABOARD the NOTIHodSLeTn MOulQ nave
met horrible fate.
When morning dawned the wreck
was sighted by life-savers and the
weather observers at Hatteras. She was
nine miles off shore and the water be-
tween was a seething mass of noun
tainous waves. The crews of the Creeds
Hill and Kinnakeet life-saving stations
were summoned, and this morning the
life-savers began their attempts to get
q fhrnIOh he
BATTLE WITH BREAKERS.
After a three hours struggle at 8
o'clock three lifeboats were safely
across the breakers and battling with
the outside seas on their way to the
steamer
When the surfmen reached the wreck
they were confronted with a problem of
great danger and difficulty. The sea,
although 1t had subsided to some ex-
tent, was still in an angry mood, and
the little lifeboats were being tossed
like cookie shells about the helpless
mass of steel. Lines were finally strung
between the boats and the Northeast
ern and after much trouble every man
was taken from the vessel in safety
More than six hours were consumed
before the first of the boats reached
shore again.
The Northeastern is an ocean going
steamship built of steel In CnlcaSo IN
1901, and is owned by c. Counselman OF
Cincinnati.
NEW YORK, Dec 29.-With her sig
nails of distress and her half-masted
ensign still flying. the steamship Drum
elzier was abandoned tonight as to-
tai wreck by her captain and dozen Of
the ships crew were taken off the craft
and landed on Oak Island by the crew
of the Fire Island and Oak Island life
saving stations Early in the day eight
cen men of the crew were taken off
the stranded steamship by the surfboat
of the Sandy Hook station which was
towed down to the scene.
The men were brought to this city
later on a tug.
LAST TO LEAVE SHIP.
Captain Nicholson, Chief Engineer
Wood and a number of officers and
crew decided to remain on board until
officially notified that the vessel had
been placed in the hands of the wreck
ing company. in order to obviate any
claim for salvage on the derelict.
At 4:30 o'clock in the afternoon the
captain decided that it was unwise to
remain longer on the ship which was
being terribly buffeted by the heavy
seas and asked immediate rescue from
the crews of the nearby stations, who
at once responded to his signals and
after hard struggle the men were
taken off and landed at Oak Island.
The rescue of the men on the Drum
elzier was hazardous in the extreme
and was attended by many thrilling in
cidents
HAVRE, Dec. 29.-The British steam
er Anglo Chilean, from Pensacola, via
Newport News. which arrived here yes
terday with Captain Nelson, his wife
and five members of the crew Of the
American schooner, w. r. Chester, on
board, reports having rescued them in
midocean when the Chester was sink
ing after having encountered a four
days storm. Captain Nelson set fire
to the schooner before abandoning her.
The American Consul here will send
the rescued