Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1917-03-04
FIGHT WITH GALES
FOR THREE DAYS
Three American Sailors Bring
Ship Into Port After Com
panions Quit.
ARE AWARDED LARGE SUMS
Captain and Rest of Crew,
Alarmed. Are Taken Aboard
Liner Rynland.

Alarmed, Are AIKEN ABOARD
Liner Rynland.
LONDON, March Slow three Amer
lean sailors brought their ship, the Wig
liant, into port after the rest of the
three days with terrific gales and the
submarine peril. was brough, 10 light
when they arrived here.
Asked why they stuck TO the ship
after the rest OF the crew had aban-
doneI IL. Robert Ferguesom, who led
the three men. said:
We'll. I'm an American citizen. but
wasn't horn III Glasgow for nothing.
] know the British government wanted
that ship, and tina; WAS enough for
me J made up my mind we'd get her
into port somewhere. and We did"
Ferguson Was awarded $1,000 in
the Admiralty Court for his magnificent
salvage services. while each of his com
radcs received $500.
Though Ferguson served his time
on British ships. san Francisco. where
dwells his three children. has been his
home for eighteen years. The two
men-rhomas WEIGH and John Smith
who stuck 70 their leader through ii
all. arc pure Americans.
Fcreucsons story was as follows:
"'rh" Vigilant left New York on &C.
tobcr Is. bound for Bristol via Ca
madam ports. on the way to 81.
Johns VIC struck a rough patch Of
weather. w had 10 put in north OF
iiaitfa% on account Of the storm. and
when we reached -. Johns. on October
IL. ono Of the crew quit. That left
sixteen OF us.
Captain Incc. Now Yorker was
the boss. and ] WAS second officer We
started off the same day. and 1t was
Stiil blowing pretty iicrccly. We made
slow progress. but wc covered Il fair
amount Of ground. only the gale didn't
get down ut all.
CAPTAIN DECIDES TO
send OUT AN q =
About seven or eight hundred miles
Off the irish coast the captain decided
10 send out IAN : - :. This was on
FRIDAY. October -. Queenstown re-
piled with q message that a patrol
boat would hc sent out. Meanwhile.
wc put up distress signals and sighted
(" vessel about two miles to the north.
We recku,ed. help was coming
along. But II didn't come. We
watched that ship GO by without get
ting an answer to our calls. We
looked out for the patrol buat-and
II didn't come along. On the Sunday
morning-thiS was October 20. and The
gale was one Of tho tcrccst I've run
up against all the years ryc been sea-
faring-w" got Il message from tho
great Holland american liner I:ynland
that she would bc along with help
ahou, 6:3J in tho evening.
THE Nigilant was about 500 horse
power and OF zoe tonnage. She could
make about thirteen and a half knots
an hour. Al 81. Johns she had been
httcd with strong wooden 'whalcbacks'
To strengthen her against the winter
Atlantic. Her plc-eNpansion engines
were pretty powerful, but the captain
rcchoncd She was i bit heavy. lie
was AFRAID she might turn turtle. And
when that message came from the
isynIand he gave orders that the Wig
liant was to bc abandoned.
This WAS about 1870 in the after
noon. didn't believe i, when heard
what the order WAS | went down he
low and saw the crew dressed in their
best clothes, with life prescrvcrs on
They were Americans, NorwcSians and
Spanish.
Say asked. won't some of you
chaps stay on with me- They thought
! was kidding. Quit fooling' laughed
one
DECIDES 70 STAND
Bi THE VESSEL.
well. about $50 the Hynland came
stumbling along. she sent out a mes
sage. and answered with Morse code
"a els T. Ia nn I
the boat If were tho last man left.
but wanted help | went down To
the engineers to find Wclch, the oilcr
and looked at him straight in the face.
lie was all packed up ready to quit
SHOW your Yankee spirit and stay
with me ] said. That got him lie
said he would. Smith, the fireman,
agreed TO stay on as we'll and the
three of us told the captain what we
meant TO do.
You're FOOLS said the captain
what's the sense of throwing your
lives away:
We'll replied. IF ! lose my clothes
and my instruments I might as well
lose my life. Nc for the ship
"'rhc captain said he would take tho
ships papers. and with that he lef,
us. We stood there aud looked at the
waves forty feet high. and wc watched
the officer IN charge OF the Rynland's
boats take off our crew. There was
tho great liner there with it's thousand
souls aboard all cheering, and there
was the bitter wind blowing in our
faces all the while. and tho shivcring
and shaking Of the boat
The liner went Ner way and we
went ours. This was at I o'clock.
"Welch went down to look after
the cngines--a pretty tough job for
one man. Smith stripped to keep the
fires going. | stuck to the bridge.
couldn't get a drink OF water; food all
gone. kept myself going by chew
ing American tobacco most OF the time.
PATROL is SIGHTED,
HUT IS LOST AGAIN
THAT night was pretty bad. Five
o'clock came next morning. and
sighted patrol. gave my name.
But shn couldn't get near, and she
was lost again very soon in the seas.
Then the steering gear got damned.
! shouted down tho speaking tube, and
81. IL