The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-03

naming were fighting like madmen for
the loose timbers and scraps of rigging
here and there in an effort to save
themselves
board a small army of cowboys in
charge of $50 horeses for the allied
| troops in China, was bound from San
Francisco for Shanghai when part of
the Kitty's deckhouse came sailing
through the air like an aeroplane on u
rampage and smashed strip of her
weather rail. Captain Knuth in the
meantime had sighted the Kitty from
the bridge of the Alesia. But he was
having troubles of his own. The Alesia
was jumping around like spirited race
horse at the post before the starting
signal. and with wind that was tear
ing up the sea a tornado spreads
destruction on land there was little
time to think of rescues
Not Same by Any Means
Il was none too comfortable myseli
on that bridge" said Captain Knuth
later AT times ] could feel myself
being completely lifted off my feet. I'm
agine my predicament with all those
cowboys and horses aboard.
Il tell you, / did a powerful lot o.
| thinking in a few minutes. In tn,
old days in a ship hove to under
goose winged tops1 mountainous seas
that would break over the weather rail
for hours and sometimes days at a
time would be accepted quite ordi-
nary. and the officer of the deck would
engage in no more exciting perform
ance than to pace the poop and smoke
his pipe as he watched the men for
ward dash back to keep from being
washed overheard by an unusually
heavy wave that happened to strike the
bow But this typhoon was something
entirely new to me. / never saw any
h fnrr . L-f1 I
never see anything like it again. Give
me an old Atlantic storm, no matter
| how violent but deliver me from the
Chinese seas during typhoon."
The Alesia must have been within
two or three ship lengths of the Kitty
when the latter sank. 1t was a re-
marxahle sight. The Kitty went down
to her gunwales and the men were
huddled on deck near what remained
of the mast. Some were lashed to it.
and those that were not were pulling
frantically at the others pigtails, at
the same time uttering the wierdest
and most forlorn cries in Chinese that
one ever heard
All the while the typhoou was in
creasns in fury. First the Kitty
would blown one way and then the
other A sudden gust would hit her
amidships and fairly stand her on end
and almost instantly she would begin
to dance and whirl around. so much so,
in fact as to hurl one after another of
the poor devils into the sea.
There was not a chance In the world
to lower a boat at the moment. In
deed the Alesia. stout as she was had
tough time keeping her nose straight
In the hold where the horses were
quartered the cowboys were at their
wits end to prevent a stampede. Stall
after stall was knocked galleywest;
there was snorting, rearing, kicking,
tearing and biting. Several of the cow
boys were laid out flat, but in the end
they proved themselves equal to the
occasion.
captin Knuth realized the risk ii
would entail to go to the aid of the Kit
tys crew, but he didn't stand by and see
the men drown like SO many rats with
out making some effort to save them
Il decided he said, ito bear down
on them At the time they were scram-
bling about in the water. some hugging
fast to bits of wreckage and others
graphing with them as a drowning
man grasps for a straw. Our engines
We're stopped and we hove out the lines
as we neared them. Three or four
were taken aboard in this manner but
there was considerable difficulty in get
ting at the others, so had one of the
boats made ready to lower as soon as
the wind changed, hoping the Alesia
sizing.
Put Out Boat
"The opportunity soon came and six
of our men put out in the small boat
For the next few minutes my heart was
in my mouth, and | don't believe you
could have pried a word out of me
with Jimmy. 1t was no childPs play
for my men, not by a jugful. They
were all good seamen, but 1t required
Gel
out to do.
Every second counted, for there was
no telling how soon the wind would
shift again. Besides we had seen sew
eral of the Kitty's crew throw up their
hands and go down. and those remain
ing with their heads above the water
would not be able to hold out more
than a few minutes longer under any
circumstances.
WELL, fortune favored us. BY the
skillful handling of line that played
between the little craft and the Ale
sia Ca precautionary measure that did
more to save the day than anything
else) seven of the Kitty's crew were
hauled out of the sea- The captain
however, and twelve others were swept
away
"They were an exhausted lot of
Chinese that came aboard our old ship
and we had to work over them for
several nOuTS De1Ore We managed to
bring them to their senses. Then
piece by piece we drew the pirate story
from them. This was after they had
counted noses and found that all of the
pirates had gone down with the Kitty.
well, we proceeded slowly to Shang-
hal. There we found more trouble
awaiting us. Six hundred and fifty
horses to disembark was no easy task
especially as they were all in state of
excitement. Only once do I remember
more difficult case, and that was a
few years later when carried 900
horses to German Southwest Africa dur
ing the Herero rebellion.
Il was in command of the Palatia /
the time. another of the stout ships of
the Hamburg American line Not only