The Hawaiian gazette., 1906-02-09

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laI pas 1iRlhti ~ lskslblt
"Ihal plIiast ~ ~ ffoufpd Lk|Ai
~ snf t~ans frem ne eatlit $50
lf Lad ~ womtn. children ana 80
nsa. burned Itself " M brain ! can
80 them even noW. thtfs m ihs DARK
water Niih ls angry sweep and crest
~ fnam. the black fllTn onis a hun.
drod yards away where me spray
dashed ~ hundred feet and zoe
wreck with its burden - suffering
humanity on. % was aWfuf
SPILLED OuT LIKE PEBBLES.
Then the order was given 10 lower
away Ekillfully the sailors started.
watching their chance and guiding tho
craft with great care. suddenly a cry
from every soul on board penetrated
the night The stern falls had broken
and she was slipping We we're frozen
with the horror OF 1t. Like a shot the
stern of tho boat fell 20 the water.
edge. leaving the bow hanging high
in the air. The occupants were spilled
out like pebbles from "A glass and fell
with shrieks and Eroans into the boil
ing surf The next wave swept them
away, and where the glare OF the
searchlight played on the water we
could see the white, terrified faces Of
the drowning people flash by with the
look OF deathly fear such as is sell
dom seen. 1t happened in an instant.
All was over before we could even
move. Thirty persons had been swept
to their doom before our startled eyes
and we stood trembling and mutely
praying.
LAUNCH a SECOND BOAT.
"The strong voice of the captain
touched with tears. broke the spell
which bound us all. Get out the amid
ships boat he ordered and the sailors
stationed there swung her over the
side
Get those women down from the
rigging and put them in that boat he
ordered again. and willing hands
sprang to do his bidding. With skill
born of practice this boat was swung
from the side and filled with the wo-
men, children and men. Watching
carefully every move, the sailors at
last cast off their falls when the crest
of great wave had raised them high
in the air.
"The searchlight was turned on them
and we could see every muscle in the
sailors great bodies stand out as they
laid to their oars and breasted the gale
and sea. 1t was a terrible struggle.
Wave after wave beat against their
boat but the sailors, bending their
backs like bows, pulled not only for
tl,nir ht,t 60 ha ,f
the women and children.
"At last they started to forge ahead.
They are saved!' was the cry from
all on board and a cheer went I'D from
the hundred souls left. Even the faces
of the terrified women in the little
boat took on a more hopeful express
sion, as they began to clear the wreck.
We all thought them saved, when sud-
denly a great breaker, larger by far
than any that ever / saw aided by a
terrible gust of wind, struck the boat,
Slowed her around in spite of all that
the man at the steering oar and the
sailors could do, and next minute she
was overturned. God! What a sight!
The searchlight showed every detail
of the terrible tragedy-the men and
women struggling in the water, the
faces CHASTITY in the glare; eyes which
gazed toward us unseeingly already
glazed with the touch of death, the
little bodies of children swept toward
the terrible rocks, all in wild chaos
of boiling water. In an instant 1t all
vanished. One man struggled desper-
ately to cling to the upturned boat, and
his set face was terrifying as he bat
tied against the hand of deah which
had clutched him. Next minute he,
too, was swept out of sight, and the
searchlight revealed only a tossing,
rolling terrifying rush of water.
ONLY TWO BOATS LEFT
I'VE had still two boats left. The
captain decided that 1t was unwise ia
attempt to launch any more that night
so we waited for the dawn. Such a
night few men have lived through.
clung part of the time to the after
cabins, which were crowded with peo-
pie. The ship was under water up to
the hurricane deck and 1t was all a
mans life was worth to loose his hold
of good solid support for single in
slant. Hour after hour passed as we
CluHBO 10 lHe ITdfneWOTk OF tHe CABIN
and waited for dawn. Purser O'Farre
had thoughtfully secured a supply OF
blankets as soon as the ship struck
These were given out to the women as
soon as 1t was possible. But they die
little good. We were up to our waists
in water almost all the time. and II
was only by hard work that we sue
ceeded in keeping hold of our sup
port. The night seemed a year long.
AT last the morning dawned. II
was a cheerless scene. The forward
part of the ship was practically all un'
der water. In the fore rigging about
forty or fifty people still clung, al
though how they managed to survive
the night is mystery to me. The shiI
| was washed by wave after wave
About hundred yards from us loom
ed the cliffs. 1t was preclpitous wal
of rock which came sheer down to tn,
waters edge. The waves went in will
rush and roar and 1o shed them