New-York tribune., 1913-12-29
Seminole Is Tossed About
Like Toy Steamer by
Big Comber.
BOAT MAKES PORT
BADLY CRIPPLED
Heavy Damage Sustained
as Hurricane Breaks
Near Hatteras.
MANY LIVES IN PERIL
Purser Hurt and Captain Carey
on Bridge Has Struggle
with Sea Death.

WIFI Ocd bCdth'
The whole Haytian army working
with sledge hammers for two hours
could not have caused us as much
damage as that cumulative wave dld
in one minute. II we had been MT
again by the same Kind Of wave no one
would have been able to relate what
happened
This was the impression OF HuGh
Wallace. the third officer Of the Clyhe
steamship Seminole. which came INTO
mort Yesterday ba 'ly battered after a .
seventeen-hour fight with West lnI-
ian hurricane on December %. when
some 80 miles southeast Of Cape Hat
teras
The vessel carried only six pas5en-
eers and these were housed on the
choice staterooms on the boat DECK
Had size carried a full complement OF
1870 passengers those occupying the
twelve demolished staterooms amid
ships, on the saloon deck, would have
Mr.. Wallace, who has been sailing IN
the Caribbean and Gulf trade for the
last thirty years. would not say that
the hurricane OF the trip just ended
had been tie worst he had ever
weathered.
Nc" he said, I've seen worse. but
don't fancy going through such an
experience again. | knew something
big in the storm line was coming up on
Thursday night. As | took the bridge
ca plain Carey requested me 20 see that
everything movable on deck was made
unusually fast.
Il gave the order and made per-
sonal inspection myself 10 see that II
had been carried out correctly. The
weather got a bit dirty gradually and
at midnight Christmas we were getting
lit hard from the south-southwcst.
Suddenly the gale swung TO north, then
10 west southwest, and kept in that di-
rection for about half hour. Later II
went to northwest and suddenly
switched to west-southwest. Captain
Carey had cut down speed and was
handling the ship splendidly. We'd
have come out all right IL it had not
been for that Cape Horn comber that
caught us.
'All this shifting wind had kicked up
big rolling sea, and often we were
awash for'rid. We never considered
such a thing as going over on our
beam ends, but that is what we did,
and stayed there for a good minute
and a half II seemed an hour.
The comber came from the north
west. We were heading due north. 1t
hit US amidships and the Seminole lay
over. She was coming back from her
urch to starboard when another wave,
: heavier and higher than the first,
slapped her just as she was righting
herself. The force Of her return met
the full force OF that wave, both forces
, exerted in opposite directions. That is
what caused all the damage. That
comber drove right over the ship, rip
ping away some fifty feet OF teak rail,
smashing in nine headlights and every
bit of woodwork in a dozen staterooms
on the port side and doing practically
as much damage 10 four staterooms on
The opposite side.
I'VE lay TO for seventeen hours after
that. steaming under about two knots
which gave her steerageway. The
weather finally moderated, and we had
no further trouble getting TO port"
The Seminole, which will have to &C
into drydock for repairs, had the APP
pearance OF merchantmen that hao
been a target for feet at battle prac-
/ tice. Twisted stanchions, splintere6
walls and dented plates served as mute
witnesses of the Seminole's encounter
with the sea.
A piece OF teak rail five inches wide
Z three inches thick and eight feet Ions
j was torn from its supports and hurled
through the dining saloon door across
the table to the starboard side, and was
y found amid the debris in one OF the de-
molished staterooms close by.
The only person injured was Charles
! w. Cutting the assistant purser who
lad lain down on a couch in his state
room.
He said his room was filed with
water, and as he struggled TO the door
leading TO the dining saloon the fiooe
forced him out where the water wa:
swirling about waist high. His face
e and head were cut by splintered debris
rantain Carey clung TO the bridge
o and only the strength of his hand:
i Kept him from being swept overheard