The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1914-05-19
HOW ELEVEN MEN
MET DEATH IN AN
OPEN BOAT
Columbian Survivor Tells Of
Horrors OF the Sea
2 WEEKS OF WEARY WATCHING
Four Sailors Saved Badly Frost Bit.
ten and One May Lose His
Feet

Halifax. y. s. May i9.-The Unit
cd States revenue cutter Seneca ar
rived here yesterday with the -four
survivors OF the burned steamer Co
lumbar whom she picked up from
their small boat 40 miles south OF Sa-
BILE Island at 10 o'clock Sunday morn
ing. The condition OF the men was
pitiful but It was believed that they
would live.
Day af.er day the men made des-
perate efforts to attract the attention
Of passing shipping. In the first two
days three steamers were sighted.
and for nearly a week the boat re-
NAMED directly in the path Of trans
atlantic traffic but no one saw them. At
tho end Of the first week they had
drifted about l2O miles TO the north
from whe-e the Columbian was aban-
donced and gradually they moved
away from the winter track OF the
liners.
With hope of rescue fast vanishing.
tho men lost courage. One week
from the day they left the shin the
last OF the bread crumbs were eaten.
On that day one OF the Is men died.
Some OF the men drank salt waite
and one Of them became insane and
soon afterward died. The first TO sue
cumb was George Hull an oiler. Chief
officer Teire ordered the bodies
thrown overheard. One by one the
men gave up until only FIVE remain
ed. Petec Triel died as aid was In
sight. Engineer Margets. Firemen
Anderson. Antonio. Richman. Gustav
sen and Jakob. Cabinboy Dickman,
Cook schrimberger and Sailor Chris
tenson all persisted in the second
week.
Teire. an Englishman. and first Of
fcer Of the Columbian. yesterday
said
Il had just got on the Columbian's
bridge at midnight, May 3. with no
signs whatever of fire on board, when
there came series OF explosions.
One. | think, was a bunker explosion
which almost rent the ship In parts.
Just before that had noticed an odor
as OF something burning and was
about TO make an investigation.
There were explosions among the car
go and | think the first explosion was
I'm No. 3 hatch. There was no time
to get instruments, provisions or
clothing and the men had to tumble
into the boats in quick time. 4
strong southerly wind was blowing.
"In the early morning we saw
steamers lights, but she passed by
some distance off. We judged that il
was the Olympia. We had no d.y
matches with which to light signals,
the sea having washed over the boat
and wet everything. All hands shout
ed but of course that was useless.
We saw a couple of other steamers
whilo adrift, but evidently we, like
specks on the sea, were not seen.
DAY after day passed and the ex-
posture began to tell on the men. We
had preserved some cracker crumbs,
but the las. of this was served out
yesterday morning. For several days
we had been eating leather When
we saw the Seneca three of the men
tried 10 pull toward her while ! was
al the helm. bu. the rowers were so
weak that VIC made little headway."
Teires feet were so BADLY frozen
that it may be necessary to amputate
hem. The feet of the other three
men were badly swollen. but 1t is not
likely that they will lose them. The
survivors were removed to the Victor
in general hospital.
Capt. Johnston of the Seneca said:
Tho small boat was sighted by
Quartermaste, Olson about 1915 a.
m. yesterday, when it was about two
miles from us. | had had the Column
bans missing boat. in mind and in
fac. had been thinking of her n mo-
ment before she was reported. II
flashed through my mind that the
black spot on the sea might be the
missing lifeboat and we made for her
ranging alongside at II o'clock"