The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1914-05-29
szs a M sREa? SEA Horror
Boy Officer, II Days at
Sea In Boat Tells of His
Terrifying Experiences
| awful fight, but MADE MYSELF


But one by one they died I'M
til six of US rode in the boat
Each went the same way-tried
to get water and food by a secret
forage and then, getting the
dipper, started to swill that ter.
rible salt sea water that splashed
all around us. When he went
mad we would fasten him down
and when death came, heave the
body over the side.
about 8.o'clock Friday night
(this was the second Friday and
we had not seen a ship for ten
days., Belanger woke me up.
Fritz Jakob has gone crazy,
he said.
And I felt then that that
phantom of murder was surely
upon us,
"Jakob was a giant of a Rus
sian and We had been afraid In
the first of what he might do to
us in a fight at the finish. He
was big enough to murder all for
the food supply he knew could he
his at the price of our blood.
" ! am going ashore for a
drink he yelled. L will; by God,
l WILL he shrieked.
Why do you keep my money
away from me?' he Kissed as he
came at me.
but / coaxed the AK away
from him and got him to lie
down, taking away everything
else ! figured he could use as a
| weapon.
mo sooner, though, had | got
to sleep, than he got boat
stretcher. THREATENING TO
KILL US ALL and be master of
the boat. With such a giant II
was all Belanger, Kendall, Lud-
wigsen and ! could do to over
power him, but we finally sue
ceedd in TYING HIM TO THE
BOTTOM OF THE BOAT.
"He lived six hours, screaming
all that while at the top of his
voice. At the last when he be-
came exhausted we forced a little
fresh water between his lips, but
it was no use. At / O'Clock Sat
urday morning we dropped him
into the sea.
And then on the fourteenth
day, little 14-year-old Prieve died.
He was SO young and he LOVED
HIS MOTHER so, and as / saw
him die, all my Christianity came
back to me, and | said to myself
i wish ! could have died in his
place, and / felt then as though
THE DEVIL COULD NEVER
EVEN TEMPT ME AGAIN TO
TRY TO TAKE BISCUIT OR WA
TER BEYOND MY SHARE.
THEN CAME THE HORRIBLE
THOUGHT OF CANNIBALISM
There were now just four of
us in the boat.
For a week we had been eat
ing little pieces of shoe leather
cut from dead mems shoes,
pounded up with fresh water into
paste and mixed with biscuit
crumbs.
But now all the biscuit crumbs
were gone. Prieves dream, too,
was not coming true, for 1t was
the fourteenth day and he wasn't
rescued.
"There he lay dead in the bot
tom of the boat. And now came
the horrible thing of it.. Men in
our condition had fought out the
same problem before.
Should we eat the dead body?
That was the awful question we
actually discussed now.
but not little Prieve's. We
couldn't do that-he was sc
| young and SO brave.
well, whose body would 1t be
then +? That flashed upon us, too,
And IL two of us died and
there were only two left and Just
enough water for one day. what
might happen thenf
And who would the last two
be of Belanger, Kendall, Ludwig
! sen and myself
but the Seneca came in sight
and though we could not believe
1t, she headed for us.
And so what might have hap
pened there at the end, shall
never know, thank God!
"Draw up that blind, will
your" said Bobby There, first of.
ficer, as / went out. 81 want to
look at the green grass. Spring
is beautiful ON land. isn't It? Do
You think It helps take the SCARS
OUT OF A MANS SOUL?"