The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1916-03-01
Topeka Boy Describes Escape
From Sinking Ship.
All Were Calm Except Lascars
and Children.
LIFEBOATS PROVED USELESS
IN Icy Water for an Hour Be-
fore Rescued.
MalOja Went Down Quickly
After Hitting Mine.

London. March 1.-The German
submarines have been sowing mines
off Dover, was the belief expressed to-
day by Ralph Foster of Kansas. and
other survivors of the Maloja disas-
ter, including some of the officers of
the ship.
In the opinion of Mr. Foster, life
boats virtually are useless where yes
sells strike mines, as the ships almost
invariably sink quickly and because
the crews are insufficiently drilled for
quick action, and boats cannot be low
cred when a ship goes over on her
side as the Maloja did. Mr.. Foster had
a thrilling experience. He was afloat
in the icy water and on upturned boats
for an hour before he was rescued by
a trawler.
Il was promenading the deck well
forward about 1920 o'clock Sunday
morning" said Mr.. Foster today to the
Associated Press representative, when
L heard a slight report. 1 though it
was a gun firing a blank shot until
1 saw debris falling. Even then the
conclusion had been SO slight that 1
concluded an accident must have hap
pened to some other ship nearby.
81 rushed back Immediately toward
the stern of the NFaloja, but before 1
gan to list, and 1 started toward the
| lifeboat which should be allotted to
my cabin 1t was so full of people.
most CT them Lascars, that 1 saw il
was likely to be swamped, SO I went
below for a lifebelt. I put on my
overcoat and the Iifebelt and also took
my passport.
Boat Listed Quickly.
by this time-hardly three minutes
after the explosion-the passageways
below We're awash I returned 20 the
clear. Two of the white crew Of the
steamer were standing by to lower the
boat, but only steward and myself
were making any efforts to push It
off from the ships side. We could not
get the boat clear of the railing on
account of the heavy list of the
Maloja.
Everybody then piled out of the
lifeboat. Most of them slid across the
deck and into the water on the other
side. The deck was inclined to such Il
degree that we couldn't stand. 1
grabbed at an oar and clip down the
deck into the water The waves were
so strong that I found 1 could not
swim and was washed back against the
size of the ship.
Many Dead Bodies.
"F'inally I managed to reach cap
sized boat few feet away and crawled
on to it, From there 1 could see in
the water near me several bodies of
persons who were bleeding about the
| head. One Lascar was being ground
between a lifeboat and the ships side.
A big swell washed me off my inse-
cure perch. 1 knew what would hap
pen to me If l remained on the side of
the ship 1 was on, SO 1 managed to get
to the other side and chung to the rail-
ing until only the davits were project
ing out of the water. 1 then pushed
away from the steamer and swan a
few yards to g. boat that had five or
six Lascars in it. When 1 looked
around the last davits of the Maloja
had disappeared.
Victims Were Calm.
Eve had no oars and the waves kept
breaking over the boat. When it be-
gan to sink we swan to another cap
sized boat and chung there until a boat
from the destroyer took US off
The only terror or excitement
shown aboard the Maloja while they
were trying to lower the boats was on
the part of LascarS and some chill
dren who had become separated from
their mothers. One child, who was on
deck near the point of the explosion,
was blown to pieces, an officer told
me.
lone thing which made an impress
sion on my mind while 1 was clinging
to a capsized boat, was a Teddy Bear
which was floating about. The cox
swain of the boat which picked us up,
rescued the toy. saying. I must have
that for my kid"
Mr.. Foster said he was deeply i'm
pressed by the~bravery of the women
and the white crew of the MaIoja, put
not by her Lascar crew.
Ralph Foster is the son of the Rev.
Festus Foster. of 1910 College avenue,
Topeka. He was on the way from AL
dershot to Egypt, where he had been
assigned to work for the Y. NJ. &. A
Shortly after being rescued he cabled
to his parents that he was safe.
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