Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1907-08-16


As pastor aud Christian teacher l
learned many gospel lessons from this
heartrending tragedy. Heroic deeds of
self sacrifice We're revealed on every
hand. With but one or two exceptions
IL did not seem TO me as though there
was coward or mean aud con-
temptible soul among all the three
crews and passengers of the San Pc
dro, the Columbia and the George w.
Elder, who met ia such close and holy
association on that fatal day. have
heard some people declare that this is a
mean and contemplate world, but il
such cynics had only been standing
with me on the deck of that rescuing
steamer on July 20 they would have
had their faith in God aud i'm mankind
renewed or inspired with a flaming en-
thusiasm.
That noble heroism with the first cali
of danger was revealed In the conduct
of the commander of the i'll fated
steamer Columbia, Captain z. r. Do
ran, now OF blessed memory. 1t would
have been very easy matter for him
to have saved himself. But he went
TO the captains bridge and stood there.
He ordered all the Bfeboats to be low
cred. Then, while he babe others save
themselves, he himself with his own
hand rang the danger signals. While
he was ringing those signals he seemed
to be calling: MY passengers and
crew, save yourselves! Some one must
die to warn you. 1 am willing. Save
yourselves! Save yourselves" What a
glorious death he died. What bless
ed heritage he has given to his dear
ones! For all time his name will be
emblazoned upon the Honor list of
those who have given their lives In or
der that their fellow men might live.
Woman's Courage.
The captains heroism found its
counterpart i'm the life of many a hum
bic passenger and sailor-in how
many only the great honor book of
heaven shall ever record. / heard of
one woman who did not know how to
swim. She had a life preserver on
and could therefore keep afoat. While
the boat was coming to get her she
two women's skirts and clutch
right hand she reached out and caught
a sinking man. When the sailors pull
ed her into the boat she, with her wo-
mans courage, had saved three human
lives. This heroism was sometimes
found In the most unexpected places.
After all the survivors had been
brought on board the George w. Elder
a young girl came and sat by my side.
Her whole life seemed to have been
that Of frivolous social butterfly. She
and joked. said TO myself.
horror" Yet short time afterward
a gentleman told me that this young
girl, who seemed to be out of place ex-
cept as creature of fun, was so brave
that at the risk of her life she had
reached out of the boat and with her
own frail hands drawn a drowning
man over the gunwale and saved him.
Oh. do not tell me that this is mean
and selfish worldi 1t is n world filed
with heroes and heroines when a hu-
man life is standing face to face with
death. II you had been on that toss
ing, tumbling sea TO the south of Cape
Mendocino when the Columbia sank
you would have known It,
But another fact which impressed me
on that fatal day was the realization
that those who truly suffer the worst
suffer in absolute quietude. 1t Is only
the shallow brook that gurgles and
splashes and makes Il noise. The deep
waters of trouble. like great river,
roll quietly and smoothly. Oh. the
profound, the gloomy silence and vet
the overpowering sorrow OF that sad
line OF haunting faces of the ship
wrecked passengers and crews lying
in the berths Of the George w. Elder
after they reached the Iescuing ship!
Suffered In Silence.
I went to many OF these berths and
heard nearly everywhere the same
kind OF gratitude. To one / would
take clothes, for many of the sur
vivors had nothing; to others l would
carry food: with others would offer n
prayer. ''Have\you lost any one?' i
asked a gentle lady whose young eyes
haunted me. Yes; my baby" she an
swered. rs your husband safer
"No," she answered. "I>have no hus-
band; am widow" Yes, she had
lost her all. Only he who raised up
that only son OF his mother, and she Il
widow, could comfort her. Yet there
she lay, not uttering one word OF COM
plant Like wounded animal, she
was suffering in silence.
i saw a man who had set sail from
San Francisco with his wife and two
children. Just before the Columbia
sank each parent took a child. When
the awful plunge came the biggest
child was snatched out of the fathers
arms. The mother and the baby never
came up. Yet that man said hardly a
word. While he suffered, he suffered
IN silence. But to hear some people
complain about their little troubles
you would suppose that their finite
worries We're the greatest troubles in
all the world. All, my brother, when
you go around and advertise your
grief | am sure about one thing-the
trouble which you have does not
amount to much. If you had been on
the sinking Columbia and heard the
awful explosion when the cold waters
touched the hot boilers and if you had
mad your wife and children swept
away then you would have had q
grief too great to parade before your
Fellow men. Then when you suf-
Tered you would suffer in silence. in
complete silence, in sacred silence.
And l sometimes fear that If we per-
sist In complaining about our little
troubles God may soon send us a
truly great trouble in order to ston
our continual complaint.