The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-07-02
AN OCEAN DISASTER IN WHICH WOMEN WE'RE
 NOT SAVED FIRST


 Although since overshadowed by calamity that befell the Titanic, the wreck of the Bourgogne remains one of the darkest pages of marine his- tory. Darkest, although the loss of life was not go great as in the Titanic disaster, because the records show little of that supreme heroism and re-. gard for women and children, that en- title so many Of the Titanic's crew and passengers to be remembered as heroes.
 Fourteen years ago today, July 2 1898, La Bourgogne, the big French liner. the unsuitable ship" and Hast word in marine architecture'' of it's day, and one of the finest asld most luxurious steamships then afloat, sail- ed out of New York harbbr. Provided with every device then known to make navigation safe, speedy and comfort able, manned by sailors specially se- lected from the best that French sea- manship offered, with Capt. Deloncle, a veteran commander who had learn ed his profession in the French navy, in charge, La BQurgogne seemed to provide a refuge as safe as could be found on land. But two days later it went down, and of the 163 saved there was one woman-only one!
 All went as usual with La Bour- gogne until, on the second day out, she neared the graveyard of the At lantic. the Grand Banks of Newfound- land. 1t was fog, often prevalent in that region. that was the Bourgogne's g undoing. Capt Charles A. Deloncle was on the bridge during most of the night of July and the early morning of the fourth. Then the fog lifted and he left the ship in charge of Paul Dupont, chief officer. and went be- low. Shortly after the dense blanket settled down over the doomed ves- sel, dense, impervious to sight, and with trick malice that renders even the sense of hearing not to be depend cd on. Bells ringing, whistles blow ing at frequent intervals, La Bour- gogne plunged on. At o'clock in the ing, the British iron sailing ship into the big liner. The scene of the dis aster was sixty miles south of Sable Island, which lies hundred miles off Halifax, and La Bourgogne was forty miles off her course The Cromarty- enlre's iron brow plunged into the port side of the steamer, just under the bridge, then bounded off and struck again, and still again. Then the sail- ing ship staggered off into the fog while the whistles of the Bourgogne shrieked aloud for help and rockets sent up signals of distress.
 Capt: Henderson and his crew of twenty-one men quickly discovered that, while the bow of their ship was demolished, she was not in immediate danger anu set dDOuL the launching of all the boats to go to the res- cue of La Bourgogne. Tn the mean time Capt. Deloncle changed his course toward Sable Island, in the hope of being able to beach the yes sel. For an hour the ship kept on the new course. Then the water rush. ed in and extinguished the fires, and the ship listed so heavily that the life boats on one side could not be launch ed. Next a smokestack crashed two of the remaining boats. Then began the fight for life, in which the weak were pushed aside by the strong Only one cabin passenger secured a place in .he boats. and only one woman. Many men of the crew and all the ships officers sought to do their duty and force down the madmen who scrambled for the boats, but in vain In all 562 people went down with La Bourgogne. including Capt. Deloncle, who lived up to all the best traditions of the sea and remained on the bridge of his vessel until the waters covered it. The 163 survivors were picked up by the Cromartyshire which put in to Halifax on July 6, when the world received the first news of the disas- ter