The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1906-03-15
PLUNGED TO THE
BOTTOM OF SEA
Phoenix Line Steamer British King
Goes Down $50 Miles South
of Sable Island.
TWENTY-SEVEN LIVES LOST
HEROIC RESCUE OF REST OF THE
CREW.

Boston, March 14-Suffering, mental
and physical, and numerous acts of
heroism in saving life rarely equaled
in the record of tragedies of the sea
attended the loss of the Phoenix line
steamer British King, which on Sun
day last, in the raging Atlantic storm,
fOundeTed about Is miles south OF Sa-
bic island and carried to death q mem
beTs of the crew. Thirteen members
were rescued from the sinking vessel
by the Leyland liner BoStOnian, bound
from Manchester to Boston, and eleV-
en- by the tank steamer Mannheim
from Rotterdam to New York Five
others who had been drawn down in
the vortex into which the British King
was engulfed, were picked up by the
BOStOnian from d. frail bit of wreck
age which they had grasped after a
desperate struggle for life in the whirl-
pool. The Bostonian arrived here this
afternoon and the details Of the disas-
! ter became known.
Captain Died From Injuries.
/ Captain James O'Hagan of the Brit
I ish King died on board the BOstOnian
from the effects of the terrible injur-
/ les sustained in trying to save his ship.
! The rescued who We're brought here
today include James Flanagan, the
/ second officer: J. D. Crawford, the
I
/ fourth engineer, and VIM J. Curry
/ the steward
The others were coal passers and
sailors. mostly Belgians, and one stow
away from New York.
Two lifeboats from the BOstOnian
were crushed to fragments and the vol
! unteer crews which manned them were
thrown into the high-rUnning seas
while engaged in the work of rescue.
but all were safely landed aboard the
/ steamer.
Heroic Rescuers.
When the first lifebOat was lowered
/ from the BOstonian the small craft was
swept against the stern of the big ship
and destroyed. and several of the sea-
men were bruised and MANNED Yet,
despite the bOisterous condition of the
sea. the volunteers were rescued by
lines thrown out from their own
! steamer
A second attempt TO reach the sink
ing ship was successful and thirteen
men. including Captain O'Hasan, were
. taken from the British King to the
/ BOstOnian. Then again a powerful bill
I low carried the iifeboat against the
side of the ship and destroyed it, and
/ the IifesaveTs were thrown into the
/ sea, to be rescued only after an hours
work by their comrades.
Went to the Bottom.
! Volunteers from the Mannheim after
/ a heroic battle with the waves had
taken off eleven from the British King,
l but after this neither of the steamers.
/ in consequence Of the increasing gale
and grooming darkness, could make
( an attempt to reach the laundering
/ freighter. Soon afterward the British
/ King. which was then water-lOgged,
/ and helpless. plunged TO the bottom
The British King sailed from New
+ York last Wednesday for Antwerp with
/ a miscellaneous cargo and $50 cattle
( Previous to the appearance of the res
/ cuing steamers every small boat of the
+ King had been demolished and there
was no way in which the crew could
+ leave the ship
Yesterday. after terrible suffering. Cap
/ tain O-Hagan died. Fifty seamen. includ-
/ ing stowaway. were on board the Brit
/ ish King and twenty-seven of these, it
/ is deemed almost certain, persisted with
their snip
The British ship was built at New
/ castle England, in 1891. She was 404 feet
/ in length: tonnage. 3,042. She was owned
by the British ShipOwners' company Of
/ Liverpool