Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-01-06

rail beside the lifeboat In the sharp
haste of the moment the first officer
of the Republic could not be found in
the fog ana darkness; he had gone
! forward on the Gresham, not antici-
pating that his ship would sink so
suddenly. The unofficered lifeboat
pushed out from the cutter. Johans-
sen waited until the water widened to
six feet, and then mounted the rail and
leaped, He landed in the stern of the
iitehoat spoke a quick order. and the
boat disappeared in the darkness
minute later the Republics sec
-; ond officer, who. half drowned in the
seethinS waves. had been clinging des-
perately To d floating grating. felt a.
heavy hand on his shoulder dragging
him into Il boat, and he looked up into
; the calm blue eyes OF Gunner Iohans-
son.
You hurt any?" asked the gunner.
Find Capt Sealby-don't pay atten-
| ton to me-, inplored the rescued man
| in an agony If loyalty TO his chief.
Capt. Sealby, when he felt his ship
going down under him, took to the
! fore rigging, running aloft ahead of
| the swiring waters. He reached the
/ top of the mast, and then was sucked
under by the eddies drawn by the
| sinking steamer. When he came back
| TO the surface, strangling in the icy
water. his fingers touched a hatch
cover to which he held until Johans-
son. with the aid of the searchlghts.
| found him. q
Johansson and the crew. with-.the
rescued men. were back on the Gres-
"a min "a,
| the choppy sea the chief peril was
| that the lifcboat would be stove fYfFhv Z
| floating wreckage or crushed by rfza4s;
SEES OF the ship wrenched from the huifI
and hurled upward by the pressure aof2
| the deep.
The deed for which Canada awar{1ed
| Johansson gold watch was his
of plotting the Greshams open
loaf over most perilous stretchE "a
shoal water. dashed by a bitteraY0id,s
sixty mile-an hour gale. and fEetteta
with strong tide dips. To the rel oil
the entire crew Of the schoona ~
Fownes of, New Brunswick. ad<6l1fid
on the dreaded shoals at Polleck Klps
Mass.
In The course of that day .dohantspzk
needed the courage of a lion and tl1e
physical enduranceAof mafafboIz rlilI
ner; for the Gresham acconsnfL1lled the
unique record Qf D. wing entire
crews of TIVE wrEised veAg u
ing a third Vessel safely tiS T
the same day spnd phansaan As
charge OF the 81 rfboat IN ~ on< n
~ sessn esss - N ~
o.io' ~ De'o'res u 4 4 q z Aa.sa
miii'lh i'''u peeh 7$ g tsff
selies ~ <ssy 81 = e..
no' 'oas'' SIG iAsssl pA z 8 7
ioi sesno 'ifoa ss2ks 4
a''eieu ano olAS4 1kEzz1s as e - ~
e""s. y .'t'sssAss saSs IS 8
S"uiu 'Pp'..tSn NJ He1t q 2 slstsF :
'ei ~ 'nsss y siaS NJ lst' z0'i .
WIN pens stS# zttlstt I1zz{s eil ~ q ~
ai'i','i ''oa ~ WV ~ SCI Y ss
~ he'N tsss ties-saf-
MS eieM Hs'h ''erti una ~ 10 3aiinfh
i's suilDoat. q surf boat ne ~
sasiiis sefsis s iS 81 lzs4lQ se1i
~ stie ~ "
son atie'hI,ts7a tliu 3 ssfe4
- Wa,er Was n a i13S3la eQE
Wi'ieh woaits A1taxl Is ~ &A&
~ VI st ~ sfe ~
rs s'sasss rs, III ahsIs StIssnsth
Eof Jef8hSsvH a tne rndder sawed the
pod' iioiii uisdstets aHsuoztns Tunes our
sns t'e va
hts, sr'p 10 the wreck, which
was me seiooiere Apnie u Cole or
nlaiit' heaIy iiau latai ehoing.
ne iileooa' reasoned ,he stranded YES
sei. ihree eii"i Tue crew oil SIN sue
.eHieu III u'iioeh'hs tiiei' frozen hahds
from tiis rlssiis ana dropping INTO
'onahssoii s'rohg grasp, ana IN me
Tremendous sea lhis aaaiiiohai burden
loaueo tne niue boat dangerously tuii.
'sohse'iueiitiy' 'he gunner ordered the
crew ~ 70" pach TO the cutter. In
siite VI ms shii' however he could
not aNoid one dangerous breaker.
Whieh nan iliieo the boat with water.
lt seeiiieo certain now that II would
De o.iy question OF Tune until an
other wave would swamp the over
loaded BOAT. But with Johansson's
strength 10 throw MS boat one way or
tne other, ana MS SIKH IN seeing
breakers IN TIME TO AVOID them. all got
back saiely TO the cutter.
WnPn the IlfeDoat had been hOiSted