The Newark star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1909, 1909-11-10
MANY KNOWN TO
Be DEAD IN NIGHT
CRASH OF ships
AT Least Six Perish When Bark
entine Bound from Jersey
Port Goes Down.

BLOCK ISLAND, r. l., Nov. 10
The shores of Block Island were strewn
today with wreckage from the chooner
Merrill C. Hart. which was sunk IN
collision with the British barkentine
John s. Bennett, with a loss OF at least
six lives. No bodies, however. had
been discovered up to early today,
The John S. Bennett was aden with
coal and left Gutenberg, N. j., Tor
Halifax last Saturday.
OF the Benefits crew every man ex-
cept two Fiiipinos-there were six 9TH
ers in all-perished. And of the Harris
five men not one has been heard OF.
The last heard of them was a chorus
of cries, gradually diminishing in num-
Der and strength, and then ceasing.
The Filipino boys were taken to New
York on the little schooner William
Jones, southbound from Hyannis, on
the Cape Cod coast. Captain Bullock,
her skipper, tool them, shivering and
frightened to the office of his agents In
South street.
A Filipino interpreter was found in
one of the South street stores. The
lads described themselves first as
Roberto Valerica and Dena FlllinO.
They had shipped on Saturday on a
barkentine bound that way" pointing
north. They didn't know its name;
they only knew it was clean and fast.
and the captain had his young son
aboard.
The water front experts listened to
the description, and at once recognized
the Bennett. And they remembered
that Captain James F.. Kirth had taken
his half-grown boy with him, and
when he said $50 long," had added,
Last voyage, shipmates. Me and the
youngster settle or a farm in Nova
Scotia as soon as 1 drop her anchor
again"
The roster showed that, besides
Skipper Kirth and his boy, that Ben
nett had carried Claude Hadley, first
mate; Aubrey Geldert, second, mate;
Dan Stoutley, cook, and Ross Hutte,
m She was coal laden for Hall
fax.
The Filipinos resumed their story:
On Sunday might, fine and starlit,
valerica took his trick at the wheel
at 10 o'clock. Geldert was on watch.
The Filipino lad picked out the Block
Island lights and stood off them, steer
ing nor'west. Then suddenly the four
masted schooner appeared, apparently
carrying no lights.
She tackled so as to pass the Ben
nett's stern, but h wind changed or
the helmsman lost his head, and be-
fore the dusky Ealerica could throw
his wheel over the two came together,
bows on. And instantly, as the Ben
nett veered off, the schooner began to
sink, water flooding into a great hole
in her blunt nose.
There was yelling and running from
forecastles to decks on both vessels,
and cries of "Pumpsl" But in FIVE min
utes it was all ove with the schooner.
She went down in a swirl of water.
bow first, leaving only a few sticks on
the surface. The Benefits men heard
faint shouts as the barkentine drifted
away, but soon these were stilled. All
hands on the ~barkentine fell TO the
pumps for their lives.
That's where l come in" said Cap'n
Bullock, of the William Jones. II was
at the wheel when / picked up the
lights of a barkentine and l ran pretty
close to her. She looked all right, but
when I was passing I heard somebody
yell Help! Collision! Stand by!' And
as quick as I could come about l sent
over our small boat with my brother
Bill, mate and a couple of others.
Just as the small boat struck the
water I saw the barkentine duck her
nose under and then dive DON, Bill
and his men raced like college boys
to where the drift-stuff was left, but
all they could find were these two lads.
We stood by for a couple of hours and
searched for a mile around, but the rest
of them were gone"
The John S. Bennett was 100 feet In
length, with 80 feet beam. She be-
longed to A. w. Henry, of Liverpool,
Nova Scotia.