The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-03-15
20 LOST WITH BRITISH KING.
PART or STEAMERS. CREW SAVED
AFTER LONG STRUGGLE.
Capt. O'Hagan Dies From I~nJuries AtieF
Being Taken Aboard the Bostonlan-
Big Ship Plunged TO BOttom-Three
Days Battle with Wind and waves.

Bostonian reached port this afternoon
! with sixteen survivors of the British steam
ship British King, which foundered Sunday
night about 700 miles east Of Boston, while
on a voyage from New York to Antwerp
Reposing In a wooden box draped with
the Union Jack, on the starboard side Of
the deck, was the body Of Capt. James
O'Hagan Of the British King, who died
yesterday morning Of injuries sustained
during the storm that sent his vessel to
the bottom.
Somewhere of Cape Sable the bodies
Of twenty-eight seamen are drifting about
in a mass of wreokage. many Of them with
life belts strapped about them.
Either ten or eleven other men were
saved from the sinking craft by the German
tank steamer Mannheim, which is on its way
to New York.
The story Of the laundering of the British
King and the rescue of some Of her crew
is one of the most thrilling that has been
chronicled at this port.
The British King was a twin screw steamer
of AN ton gross tonnage, 405 feet long.
and was owned by the Phoenix Steamship
Company. She sailed from New York on
Wednesday last with a miscellaneous cargo
consisting Of hay, live cattle, oil In barrels,
&C., and carried a crew of fifty.six officers
and men. One other person was aboard
as a stowaway and he is supposed to be
Henry Parkolet, one OF those saved from
the British King.
Thu ship made good progress until last
Thursday night, when heavy gales were
encountered and the seas ran high. The
vessel was approx imately in latitude II
degrees DO minutes north and longitude
80 degrees II minutes west on Friday morp-
ing, when it was noticed that the craft was
listing slightly to port. The holds were
Immediately sounded, with the result that
water was found to be coming in rapidly
in the forward compartments.
What caused the leaks will probably
never be kno wn to a certainty. One re-
port is that a giant wave stove in some Of
the plates on the port bow. Another cause
given Is that the portfolios between decks
were left open and that the headlights not
being screwed down properly permitted
the water to enter freely. particularly when
the steamer began to list to that side.
Sppb' " IldBdh Vi IN Puuipc othi tSh
and had one OF the ships derr1cks swung
out for use in getting some of the cargo
overheard. The water poured into the
forward holds steadily and the pumps
made no Roadway against it.
Every now and then a big wave would
break aboard the craft. already low in the
water, until finally several Of the matches
were stove In or carried away, and through
49, A. $4,000. ,rate. .,x.k -. IA
dashed over the bow.
Capt. O'Hagan was on the bridge, doing
all in his power to stave off disaster. Then
a giant wave swept aboard and, picking
up the skipper, dashed him against a
deck fitting with such violence that he
sustained a compound fracture of the left
leg below the knee.
Some of his men picked him up, but 1t
was impossible to take him below to his
cabin, go he was placed in one of the star
board lifeboats, a rude effort being made
to prevent the broken leg from being further
damaged by binding pieces Of board to it
In lieu of splints.
The frs officer then took command
OF the Vi isel and for thirty-four hours
Capt. O'Hagan lay in the lifeboat, exposed
TO the cutting gale and binding spray.
All through Friday night the steamer
fought against the gale, and when day
light broke on Saturday she was still %afioat.
but had settled low in the water and three
Of her four lifeboats had been smashed.
The huge waves swept over her bow and
down the decks, making it almost impossi-
BILE to move about, but the crew manfully
worked at the cargo, getting out barrels
of oil, which were broken open on deck
arl H. n4ANnnta ahAoral D.. rt,n fhrna,nh
the souppers in hopes that it would calm
the sea-
The oil had little effect, and along about
noon the tank steamer hove in sight and
bore down as near as safety would permit
in answer to distress signals. 1
Such a terrific sea was then running
that no open boat could live upon it, 30 the
Mannheim stood by.
The gale increased in the afternoon
and continued Saturday night, but the
British King still had her engines and pumps
working and her nose was held into the
teeth of the storm.
During Sunday forenoon the water
gained in the hold, and about noon it had
forced it's way into the engine room in such
volumes that the boiler fires were extin-
guished. It was not until then that the
olilOCib NO up hNpO VI o1NhB ~ Shoib'
Without Roadway the British King fell into
the trough Of the sea and rolled about
in a waterlogged condition, every plunge
threatening to be her last.
The Bostonian had sighted the sinking
craft about o A, M. and steamed up as close
as she dared. The waves were still run
ming high and every one Of than swept
the length Of the British Kings decks.
Then the British Kings officers ave up all
hope Of saving their craft and began fig
uring on some plan to save themselves
ana crew. Signals were boosted in the
rigging, which read: Il I'm sinking. Send
assistance As soon as these were read
on boardthe Mannheim and Doetonian prep
arations were made to send boats.
One Of the Bostonian's boats was lowered
and a volunteer crew piled into 1t.
But no sooner had the little craft reached
the water than II was dashed astern upon
the propeller blades, which out through
it's side clear TO the keel. Water poured
into the boat and she drifted away from
the steamer, threatening to sink very
,Y,,ickIv. The hoat'a oreW ballad fast and