The Caucasian. (Shreveport, La.) 1900-192?, 1907-08-13

| ing fact which forced itself upon me on
the fatal day of July 20, 1907. What
an awful struggle life is even under
| the best conditions 1t is not a pleas
ure day SAIL as some suppose. 1t is
not a voyage over a smooth sea, with
the winds always to the stern, and
happy friends to wave an adieu and
| kind friends to welcome us into the
coming harbor But it is battle, a
struggle 1t is tossing, tumbling sea.
| Saving the Lumber Boat.
No sooner We're the occupants of the
boats and the RATS and the half sub
merged lumber ship taken on board
| then at once the captain and other Of
! ficers of the Elder turned their atten
ton to saving the Prov split and leak
ing San Pedro. Only a year before the
vessel had been sold for 100000. The
builder of this ship was one Of our
fellow passengers, and he told me all
| about it. Now, a cargo was worth
about $4,000 That was too much
money to turn adrift, SO, after all the
human lives had been placed in safety,
| the sailors turned their attention to
saving the lumber ship. AS 1t rolled
backward and forward in the sea 1t
looked like a human creature in mortal
agony. First they attached between
the two boats a long steel rope, but
after the Elders engines had been
started little while that steel rope
snapped as one would break a spider
| thread in two. Then Il couple of ma
Mia bawsers We're strung out, and they
went the same way. Then the San
| Pedro seemed to be turning turtle"
and her own crew deserted her. But
| still the captain of the Elder would not
| give her up He sent his first officer
| and a crew to board her. They broke
one of the rudder chains and let the
| anchor drop into the sea and strung
| their chain between the two ships.
| Again and again some of the ropes
| would snap. but always another rope
| was flung over the chain, and at last
| the chain was bound to the Elder by
| steel rope.
| All this took hours The engines
| would start and stop. The vessel
would roll and pitch in the path Of the
see Many Of the people were grum-
bling. l grumbled. as did the others.
| Then it suddenly occurred to me:
Those men are making fearful fight
to save the ship because 1t means
salvage for the crew that lows the San
Pedro as we'll as for the company.
| They were fighting for that money, just
as l am struggling 20 earn bread for
| my wife and babies. That vessel in
tow means bread. 1t means clothing
1t means education. We may have to
go slower, but let us be patient for the
plucky fight these sailors are making
to provide for those who are dependent
| upon them"
Lastly, as l look upon the floating
boats and the pleading, upturned faces
Of that fatal day Of July 20 / am i'm
pressed with the rap:dity with which
death caa strike down its victims. Like
a bolt out of q clear sky the summons
may come. 1t talay come to US at any
time. In any place. 1t can come to US
as quickly as it hurled into a watery
grave the 1O5 men, women and chill
dren when the San Pedro crashed into
the Columbia, sending them to the bot
tom of the cruel and unfathOmable sea.
The marine entombment which came to
the Columbia might have come to US.
In an instant, iG the twinkling Of an
eye, the summons may come. Death
comes suddenly to our neighbors, and
death may come suddenly to us. Let
us, then, heed the warning which
Christ gave to- the rich man Of his
time, Thou fool, this night thy soul
shall be required Of thec.''
On the night of July 90 not one Of all
the passengers and crew aboard the
Elder had to be told how near death
was. We all felt his presence. We
were all saying to ourselves: How
would I have been prepared to meet
my God if my summons had come as it
did. to the passengers Of the Columbia?
Am living the right life, and will my
dear ones beyond, by Jesus side, be
able to greet me IL should now hear
the call, This night, this night thy soul
shall be required of thee|"
An Impressive Service.
In the evening hours of that day
some of the survivors of the Column
bia came to me and asked with sad
faces, ''Will you hold a service tonight
in the saloon for lisp do you want
it," l asked. Ale not the people too
high strung and dverwrought and sor-
rOwful to meet at this time?' No"
they answered; live want it, and we
want you to lead| it." well, l will"
Never was there a gathering exactly
like it. Most of hs had eaten but lit
tie that day Man y of us had not even
washed. We were unshaved and un-
kempt. But, oh, the solemnity Of it!
Some had no clothes except blanket.
Some had lost bab ies and husbands or
wives and motheIs and fathers. There
we met and prayed and sang. l read
the twenty first chapter Of Revelation
and talked about heaven and ouS dear
ones. There we were, Catholics and
PrOtestants, in that strange audience
and perhaps SOME who had never yet
spoken the name Of Christ In rever-