New-York tribune., 1909-01-26
SENECA ARRIVES HERE
CARRIES BR1VE MASTER
OF THE REPUBLIC.
Derelict Destroyer's Captain Tells
Of Efforts to Saue the
Doomed Tessel.

Not single Yankee English tradition was
violated when the Republic went down Sun
day evening. for the master went down with the
vessel. He rescued, but he had stuck to
his post. The brave skipper Of the Republic, his
third officer who stuck at his side through all
the trying times and the plucky wireless opera
tor, Jack" Binns. with thirty-three OF the crew.
were brought into port last night by the derelict
destroyer Seneca, Captain Reynolds command
ing. All the officers and men were asleep when
the revenue service boat was boarded by the
newspaper men. and no one was allowed to see
the from the Republic Every man was
absolutely exhausted.
According to Captain Reynolds the first mes
sage of the plight of the Republic reached him
while he was off Cape Henry at 80 O'Clock on
Saturday afternoon The message only said
that steamship named the Republic was in
peril off Nantucket. Captain Reynolds swung
north at once. and began the longest and fastest
trip that the dereict destroyer has undertaken
since she was put in commission three four
months ago.
Nantucket was three hundred and more miles
away Captain Reynolds held to the northern
path until he WAS off Cape Henlopen Then he
asked Washington TO repeat the message The
wireless from Washington gave him more def
mite news and he kept for Nantucket Light
at thirteen and a half knots. On her official
trial trip hhe Seneca made only twelve knots
At S:1J the Seneca reached the wreck She
found that the revenue cutter Gresham had al
ready put nearly three hundred fathoms of
hawser on the Republic and had begun TO tow
her. To assist her the Seneca passed 100 faith
oms to the Gresham, and they began to tow the
Republic tandem fashion Two hours later she
went down.
MASTER IN THE RIGGING
AT the time we began to tow" said Captain
Reynolds. the Republic was pretty low in the
water and We did not have any too high hopes
of getting her well up into the Sound where she
could be salved- But we did the best we could.
She began to settle more and more soon after
we began to tow. until the Gresham signalled to
slow up and took aboard all but two of the men,
These were Captain Sealby and his third of
icer. Richard Williams. They stuck to the yes
sel-but being royal naval reserve officers what
else could they do? Wen. we kept on for a little
while and all of a sudden there was a blue flare
from the bridge of the Republic. This showed
her decks under astern. and with her nose stick
ing almost straight up in the air.
"Mr. Williams threw himself overheard from
her starbOard bow and struck out strongly to get
away from the suction as the Republic plunged
under. We did not have time to get our search
light on the Republic, but in the CHASTITY flare of
the Coston light could see Captain Sealby
making his way from the bridge to the forward
a
of minutes for her to disappearing climbed to
the topmast.
Then, just as We brought the searchlight to
bear, second light fiared out The captain had
broken holes in a box the bridge which had
let in the water to light that needs only water
to make 1t blaze up. Just as the Republic
plunged below. this illuminated her bow and the
figure of the master as he clung to the forward
rigging.
RESCUE OF BRAVE OFFICERS
The searchlights from the Gresham shot !
through the fog and kept playing over the |
whirlpool where the Republic had plunged be-
low. By their light the master and his third
officer were picked up. Nr. Williams had been |
swimming ever since he went overheard After |
swimming for a while. and lighting hard against
the terrible pull of the suction. Captain Sealby |
got to a ships grating and rested that until /
picked up
Both men were absolutely exhausted when |
taken aboard. After hours of continuous duty |
they had been subjected to considerable ex- ]
posure in water barely above the freezing point |
conditions that only first class sailor man /
could stand and nve