The Farmville herald. [volume] (Farmville, Va.) 1890-1934, 1907-08-16
WRECKED IN OCEAN.
Rev. Or. Talmage on the Disas
ter to the Steamer Columbia.
The Famous Divine Helped Save Sur
Vivors Of the Catastrophe.
His Thrilling Description
Of the Scenes.

copyright. 1907. by Louis iSiopschl
LOS ANGELES. Cal, Aug. ILL
this sermon the preacher. who w"s an
eyewitness Of the rescue Of the suryiv
ors Of the appalling Columbia wreck
draws an eloquent and timely lesson
from the disaster. The text IS Psalm
XVI 3. Though the waters thereof roar
and be troubled"
Upon a curtain Of one Of the public
places Of amusement ia the city Of
Chicago Is a beautiful picture OF me
white City" Of the national cNposl
ton Of 1898. Underneath this won
derful vision are written these words
And should I live a thousand years
l never can forget H."
This was the sentence which sprane
10 my lips when 1 sat down TO write
the horrible experience Of the most
momentous day Of my life. But now
instead OF seeing beautiful white build
ings. with their columns and domes
and mlnarets. and hearing the sweet
notes OF the most famous musicians In
the world played in the gardens and
hearing the songs and the merrymak
lngs Of the happy parties which filed
the gondolas Of that new Venice Of
the west saw r sinking ship crowd
ed with men and women. saw life
boats filed 10 the gunwales with help
less human beings. I saw the wreck
age drifting everywhither. And above
an. In Imagination, could see the
white faces Of men, women and chill
dren coming 70 the surface Of the mer-
CHESS ocean. eagerly looking 10 see
whether their loved ones had been
saved and then disappearing into those
depths from which only the archangers
resurrection trumpet can now bring
them forth. Should l live a thousand
years can never forget it. Perhaps
even IN heaven I shall yet talk over
the horrors Of that day with some who
won the crown Of martyrdom when the
Columbia, one Of tho finest ships on
the Pacific ocean, collided with the
lumber boat San Pedro and then blew
up and added one more tragedy 10 the
long list Of marine catastrOphes
Il was on a beautiful summer after
noon, July 20, 1907. that we set sail
from that gem Of harbors and passed
through the Golden Gate Of the Pacific
at San Francisco. For weeks and
months I had been preparing and look
ing forward TO the time when, with my
boy and a couple Of dear friends, !
could drop work and camp for a few
weeks In the famous forests Of north
ern California. The sea never looked
more peaceful. the sky never more
bright. Hard grinding work for a lit
tie while was 20 be cast aslde-no
telephone, no telegraph. no callers,
no mail, no engagements 10 speak.
/ was just TO listen to the music Of the
woods and bic away 10 the secret
haunts OF the deer. For hours we
paced the deck. Then the sun sank to
the west. and the moon began 20 pave
the crystal pavements Of the deep with
nuggets Of gold. Silently, yet relent-
lessly, the dense fog banks began 20
shut out the lofty bills TO our right
Then the hoarse and reverberatlng and
irritating fog horn began TO blow.
"Well," I said to one Of my friends,
mo sleep tonight. ! have Travelled all
around the world. have been months
and months upon the sea, and yet
could never understand why the sailors
would persist In blowing that fog horn.
The sea Is so wide and the ships so
few I do not believe there Is any more
danger Of a collision than there is Of
shooting a deer in the woods II you lift
your gun at random and shut your eyes
and pull the trigger and know not
where the ball will fly" My travelling
companion said nothing lie always
has that rebuking silence when l have
made any statement which Is IN self
evident defiance Of all the laws of COM
mon sense.
went to bed IN disgust Hardly
would get 10 sleep wheh would be
awakened with the fog horns call.
Look QUIT There is danger. Look
outr At o'clock In the morning /
arose ard went on deck and ate some
fruit. Then 7 returned TO my state
room and crawled into bed with my
little boy had not been there more
than ten minutes when ! heard a rapid
patterlng of feet and the sharp com
mand Of the officers again arose.
AS looked out Of the stateroom I said,
"What IS the matterT Then the off,
Ger, pointing ahead, said. Look ] |
looked. and, o God. l saw the saddcst |
sight Of my life. There was a small |
lumber boat which seemed 70 be turn. |
ing TURTLE Its decks were simply |
swarmlng with people YOnder were |
lifeboats Here were RATS. Here |
were loose. floating life preservcrs. A
collision had clearly taken place But |
where was the other ship? With that |
the men and the women and the chill |
dren. seeing the relief coming out Of |
the fog bank, raised q cheer of thanks |
giving. But for MS on the George w. |
Elder We could raise no cheer The /
scene was too tragic.
Then the work Of rescue As our
great ship was rolling this way and
that the boats came up. Some Of the
poor victims were covered with blood.
Some were too exhausted even 10 look.
Some were rescued only with their
night garments. and some had only n
blanket around them From the time
the Columbia was struck 10 the time
she sank II took only ten minutes 10
lay her broken bones I'm the bottom Of
the sea.
"Stand back there. Stand back or
you will sink their boats" cried the
chief officer. Here. put that rope
around this woman Now lift this
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