The sun., 1908-05-08
STORM BEATS STRANDED SHIP
AND KEEPS RESCUERS FROM THE
100 MEN on THE RICKMERS.
ufe Savers Can't Even shoot line 10 Her
4, Waves and Wind Tear Away the
Masts and WailOp the Hull ViCousiy
Chance Of SAVING the Men To-day.

Chance Of SAVING the Men To-day.
The four masted. steel. skysail German
clppership Peter Rickmers, which grounded
in heavy blow on the bar Of Jones's Beach
near Zach's Inlet on April 80. was forced
over the bar yesterday morning BY re-
sistless breakers lashed into life by rain
perrneated easterly gale and rolled her
topmasts out. She was driven nearly
mile to the west OF her original position
and lay last night broadside to the beach
and heading east. She was frequently
smothered in the seas that rolled athWart
her, and her crew Of forty men and about
sixty beaohmen, mostly from Freeport,
employed by the Merritt-Chapman Wreck
ing Company, sought shelter In the deck
houses. Living below was impossible
az the ships hold was full Of water, her
plates having been started by the hammer
ing Of the seas
The Merritt wreclling steamers !. J.
Merritt and Rescue were forced to leave
the Rckmers when the gale began heav-
ing her shoreward. More than half OF her
cargo Of case oil had been Gghtered and
| she showed a lofty freeboard for the blast
to work on The wrecking steamers made
unsuccessful efforts before the ship pounded
| over the bar to take on some OF the men.
! Then they headed for the open, laying
! to and keeping lookout on the wreck.
When the sea was comparatively mild
the life savers Of the Zach's Inlet station
had made lines fast to the Rickmers for
use in emergency. The lines parted as the
ship worked 10 the westward. After the top
masts went by the board The men on the
Rickmers set a flag in the rigging indicat-
ing that they wanted help. The life savers
made an effort TO shoot a line over her, but
| it fell short, as she was then nearly hall
a mile from the beach,
At noon, after firing several more lines
Intellectually the surfmen decided to take
the risk Of forcing boat through the head
high turmoil Cork jacketed and with drip
ping oilskins they jumped the boat through
the first line Of breakers. The next mighty
tmbler overwhelmed them, pitching the
boat hroadside up on the shelving sand
and turning the life savers topsy turvy'
| Then they resorted TO the gun again.
Meanwhile the seriousness OF the situa-
ton had impressed Lieut. S. 7. Edmonds
! Of the revenue cutter service, who has
charge Of the Long Island life saving dis
trict, and he ordered three more life saving
crews 10 reinforce the men Of Zach's In
! let The additional force was from the
Jones's Beach, Point Lookout ION the
easterly end Of Long Beach, and Short
Beach stations.
A consultation Of captains resulted in
renewed efforts to reach the ship with a
line from a gun. About o'clock the expert
Of the four crews shot line from across
the wreck, but 1t was snapped by vicious
breaker. Twenty times in all the missile
with the slender rope arched the swirling
waters. Then the marksmen gave up tho
Job. The gale got up TO sixty miles and de-
| feoted the shot from its target
II was decided to make one more effort
TO launch boat through the mad surf at
| low water, or about o'clock last night
| but when the hour came II was seen that
there was no hope OF boat or men living In
the ferment. and the men built fires on the
| beach and waited for the sea and wind TO
| subside. There seemed 10 be only one
| hope left to reach the men aboard the
Rickmers and that was with the power life
| boat Rescue Of the Sandy Hook station.
Lieut.. Edmonds asked for the boat, and
| ba
savers we're ordered to stand by 10 take
the Rescue TO the Rickmers and make an
effort 10 rescue her imperilled ships COM
pany. The revenue cutter Mohawk was
ordered 20 tow the Rescue as near as possible
10 the wreck. She got the order by wire
less and, weighing anchor on Tomphns-
vile. headed for Sandy Hook, passing
Quarantine at $50 o'clock. An hour later
she anchored in Sandy Hook bay and waited
for the lifes AYERS to come of. The wind ct
the hook at that time was from the north
east and blowing about twenty-five miles-
The life savers, under Capt. Chester A. LIP
pencott, who succeeded Capt. Patterson,
now in the revenue cutter service, were
waiting at the Hook for the cuttSr. They
said they thought the Mohawk would not
| take them out until daylight.
The opinion Of the life savers gathered
at the Zachs Inlet station was that tie
Rickmers would hold together despite
the lambasting Of the seas, which at times
seemed 10 be making a clear breach over
her. The wind had gone down considerable
late last night, but the surf had not modeF-
ated appreciably. 1t is not likely that the
Rescue will be able TO get close enough
10 the Rickmers 10 take OF any OF her men.
but she may pass line TO her, and finally
from a hawser made fast to one OF the
Rickmers's masts and leading TO the Rescue
all hands may be got on.
Among those aboard the Riokmers are
her commander, Capt, Bachman, Capt.
Denison, chief Of the Merrit-Chapman
wreokers, and Capt. Herbert d. Oliver OF
Freeport, head Of the beach men. The
Merritt Chapman oompanys representa-
tive at Zach's Inlet said that while the
position OF the men on the Riokmers was
perilous he believed that they would be
taken OF this morning in good condition.
They had plenty 10 eat on board as the ship
was provisioned for a long trip.
The Rickmers probably will stay in the
| grin Of the sand many weeks, and even
| IL she is hauled OF 1t will be long time
before she puts TO sea again. She is owned
by the Rickmers Of Berlin and cost origi-
nally 1000. She measures 2rs25 tons and
is $40 feet long. She was under charter
| 20 ,ha Ctandar rd Oil Comnany To take Ill 900