The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1907-01-29


mer u 1893 La BOurgogne was 4
gilded ship. md her commander was
fthe pride iof the line he was \ poet
Influenced in style b., Edgar AIlan
Poe ana by, BardelaIre. not only In
style Of verse but in demeanor, the
last no doubt Inherent. His converse.
don was brilliant but fantastic. As
raeonteur. his trend wns morbid
melancholic. his. hunor saternine-l n
other words. no ordinary man and 4
good sailor. On the evening Of the
disaster the liner ran into a dense fog.
Deloncle was on the bridge, consider
ing abstractedly no doubt new poetic
themes while watching, waiting. guild.
ing his immense vessel with her thou.
sand odd passengers through the pail.
e Suddenly ont OF the darkness. with
ont sound, rushed a tall bark. which.
dealt her deathblow. and then stole
away In the darkness toward a Cana
dian port, into which she crawled, like
the murderer she was, some days lat
er. La Bourgogne was sinking. The
crew had gone mad and, assisted by
the erazedi oeoal; passers and. aremen
thronging up from below. were stab.
bing and beating the passengers-men
and women who ran about as sense,
less cattle run. Deloncle saw all this
from the bridge. but be was poweriess
10 do anything. Some OF his officers
lad fought TO suppress the panic at
the cost no doubt OF their lives: 9TH
ers were at the boats. Lower and low!
er went La Bourgogne. Her captain
seems now to have abandoned. him
self to mood OF strange exaltatien
in the presence Of death. for he seized
the whistle rope. and while steam iast
ed his Wild. waiting. roaring salute 70
death rocked over the heads Of those
who were drowning below him. And
with this last salute Deloncle babe
farewell TO the face OF the sea. 81, /
Captain Griffith OF the Atlantic
Transport line steamship Mohegan ran
his vessel on the rocks near the Nee
dies, in the English channel, In octoi
Der, 1898, under conditions which, had
be lived, would have justified capital
punishment. II was not darker than
twilight, landfalls were unshrouded.
and yet the MohegGn.. miles out OF her
course. went on the rocks and sank
with most Of her passengers. Griffith
directed his crew from the bridge. with
out avail, however, as the work OF
lowering the boats was bungled afro
cieusly The last seen Or him lie was
still on the bridge. shaking his fist and
'cursing the waters as they rose over
The deck or the houndering crew or
both. alt5ltgaa3 or
Admiral Tryon. standing on the aft.
erdecK Of the British battleship Cam,
perdown, had no thought other than dy-
ing with his great flagship as she sank
in the Mediterranean OF TripoIi after
collision with the battleship Victoria.
Tryon had given the signal calling for
q maneuyer within dangerous distance.
and It's disastrous ending placed him In
such position that no doubt he deem ed
death far simpler solution to, the
problems that must have flashed
through bis mind.
Inspired by the ethics Of his profSs
sion. and by the dignity Of his office.
Captain Tunis Augustus Craven OF the
monitor Tecumseh died in a way that
win live as long as the history of this
country lives. His monitor was one
OF the vessels attached to Admiral Far
ragut's squadron. then collected for
the attack on Mobile. On. the morning
Of Aug, 6, 1854. the Tecumseh, in the
post Of honor at the head OF the at.
lacking squadron. engaged the de.
lenses Of the city. The orders to feet
captains were that in order to avoid
torpedoes at the entrance to the bay
vessels must pass to the eastward OF
q certain red buoy, which was directly
under the guns of Fort Morgan. The
Confederate ram Tennessee was lying
to port Of the Tecumseh and inside the
llneSof toFpedoes. Captain Craven, in
his eagerness to engage this craft, neg.
Iected the course warning and passed
TO the westward Of the buoy. The pen
atty. was Immediate. There was
mpfied explosion, the monitor listing
sharply. AS she began swiftly to sink
Captain Craven and his pilot, John
Collins, met at the foot Of the ladder
leading to the top Of the turret-a lad.
der Of iron leading to a manhole above.
to safety. The turret was nearly sub.
merged, There would be time for one
to mount the ladder perhaps, but only
one. The pilot knew this; Craven knew
It There was no hesitation. with a
smile Craven stepped away from the
ladder.
after you. pilot" he said.
Collins sprang up the ladder, and as
he gained the top round the vessel
went to the bottom and Craven, the
Sydney Of the American navy" with
her. II
In humber but wonderfully heroic
way the captain Of the oil ship Loodi.
ana, burned at sea several years ago.
saw every man jack OF his crew clear
Of the doomed ship before thinking Of
his own safety. Then 1t was too late.