Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1912-04-19
The Story OF the
Last Man Saved.


Oracle. L. S. A., the last man saved.
went down with the vessel, but was
picked up. He was met, tonight. by
his daughter, who had arrived from
Washington, and his son-in-law, Paul
Fl. FabriciGs. Col. Oracle told a re-
rnarltable story of personal hardship
and denied emphatically the reports
that there was any panic on board.
He praised in the highest terms the
behavior of both passengers and crew
ard spoke especially of the heroism
Of the women passengers
Mrs. Isidor Strauss" he said, went
To her death because she would not
desert ner husband Although he
pleaded with her to take her place in
The boat she steadfastly refused; and
when the ship settled at the head the
two Were engulfed by the wave that
swept her.
Colonel Oracle described how he was
driven to the topmast deck when the
ship settled and how he was the sole
survivor after the wave that swept
her Just before her final plunge had
PASSED.
Il Jumped With the wave" said he
Just as ! often hive jumped With the
breakers at the seashore. By great
good fortune / managed to grasp the
brass railing on the deck above and
hung on by might and main. When the
ship plunged down I was forced To
let GO and ! was swirled around ana
around for what seemed to be an m
tcrmnible time. Eventually | came
TO the surface to find the sea mass
of tangible wreckage.
Luckily / was unhurt and, casting
about, managed to seize a wooden graf
ing floating. When / had recovered my
breath / discovered a large canvas ana
cork raft which had fioated up. a man
whose name l did not learn was strug-
Cling toward it from some wreekage 10
which he had chung. l east off and help
ed him to get onto the raft, and we then
began the work of rescuing those who
had jumped into the sea and were tfioun-
dering in the water. When dawn broke
there were 80 of us on the raft, standing
knee deep in the icy water and afraid 20
move lest the cranky craft be overturn-
ed. Several unfortunates, benumbed ana
half dead, besought us to save them ana
one or two made an effort to reach us,
but we had TO warn them away. Had
we made any effort to save we all might
have persisted.
1.-The hours that elapsed before We We're
picked up by the Carpathia were the
longest and most terrible that l ever
spent Practically without any SENSATION
of feeling because of the icy water, we
were almost dropping from fatigue. we
were afraid to turn around TO look to see
whether we were seen by passing craft
and when someone who was FACING
astern ra ssed the word that something
that looked like steamer was eomihS
up the men became hysterical under the
strain The rest of us, too, were nearing
the breaking point
Col. Oracle denied with emphasis
that any men were fired upon and sald
that only once was a revolver dis
charged.
This was for the purpose of in
timidating some steerage passengers,
he said, who had tumbled into a boat
before it was prepared for launching.
This shot was fired in the air and
when the foreigners were told that the
next would be directed at them, they
promptly returned to the deck. There
was no confusion and no panic.
Contrary to the general expectation
there was no Earring impact when the
vessel struck, according to the armJ
officer He was in his berth when tn
vessel dashed into the submerged por-
| ton of the berg and was aroused D.!
the Jar. He looked at his watch, ne
said, and found it was Just midnight
| The ship sank with him at 2.22 A. NJ
| for his watch stopped at that hour
Before | retired said Col. Oracle
| II had a long chat with Charles NJ
| Hays, president of the Grand Truns
| Railroad.
"One of the last things Mr. Hays
said was this:
| THE White Star, the Cunard ans
| the Hamburg American lines are de
| voting their attention and ingenuity
| in vieing one with the other to at
| tain the supremacy in luxurious ship
| and in making speed records. the
| time will soon come, when this vii
| be checked by some appalling disas-
| ter Poor fellow a few hours later ne
| was dead"
The conduct of Col John Jacob AS
tor was deserving of the highest
| praise Col. Oracle said THE mil
| lionaire New Yorker" he said. de
| NDleu All HIS tllcESits W StNiiio 49,
| young bride, formerly Miss Force o.
! New York, who was in delicate
| health"
| "Col. Aston helped us in our efforts t'
| get her in the boat" said Col. Oracle. :
| lifted her into the boat and as she tool
| her place Col. Astor requested permission
| of the second officer to go with her FOL
| her own protection.
| NO. sir replied the officer, not {
| man shall go on boat until the womei
/ are all Off
Col. Aston then inquired the number o.
| the boat which was being lowered away
| and turned to the work of clearing the
| other boats and in reassuring the fright
| ened and nervous women.
by this time the ship began to lisl
| frightfully to port. This became Sc
! dangerous that the second officer or
/ dered everyone to rush TO starboard
This we did, and we found the crew
| trying to get boat off in that quar-
| ter. Here ! saw the last of John b
| Thayer and George B. Widener, botf
| of Philadelphia.
| Colonel Oracle said that despite the
| warnings of lcebergs no diminution OF