Baxter Springs news. [volume] (Baxter Springs, Kan.) 1882-1919, 1917-03-08
Capt John Matthias homeward
Bound After Two Years
Away From Family.
An EFFORT At RESCUE Fatal
Chief ofiloar Led Me Men Into Hold
81 Burning Vessel 20 oavS In
prlsoned otoksrs Of the
LaurOntlo.

new IOfks7A btirEiuB tuuhhhcS ~
the seq was told recently when details
Of the death Of Capt. John Matthias.
commander Of the auxiliary cruiser
I.aurentlc, reached relatives here by
mall. The Laurentlc Is q White Star
liner, taken over by the British adj
mlrnlty.
Only two days from his wife and
babies, and ON his way home after
two yenrs continuous patrolllng In the
Far East, Captain Matthias died at
tempting 10 rescue men trapped In
the blazing hold Of his ship near the
powder magazine.
Flying the homeward bound PEN
nant at the peak, the Laurentic
steamed at full speed for port From
coal passers In the stoke hole TO off,
GERS on the bridge, every man was
bent on pushing the cruiser to reach
port in time for the holidays.
In a hamlet In Yorkshire Captain
Matthias wife and two young children
heard the Laurentic had been ordered
to return to her home station. Mrs.
Matthias, with her two little girls, aged
ten and twelve years. made the trip
to Liverpool.
They Discover Fire.
On December Is. within two days
run from port, serious fire was dis
covered In hold No. 2. With the chief
ofiicer at their head squad Of men
plunged into the hold to fight the IRE.
The IRE had gained such headway
that II was sweeping toward the pow
der magazines, cutting on their e.
cape.
Signalling frantically to their com
rades on the deck, the trapped men
succeeded In getting word Of their des-
perate plight to Captain Matthias on
the bridge.
Captain Matthias ordered some Of
his crew to follow him and plunged
to the rescue in the smoke filled com
partment. The rescue squad succeed.
ed in dragging out some Of the I'm
prisoned men and then went back for
:. the, rect.
WheH Captain Matthias was enter
ing the furnacelike hold to rescue the
last Of his crew an iron beam warped
out Of place by the intense heat Of
the blaze, fell on him and his squad
Of rescuers. Captain Matthias was In
stantly killed and several Of his men
were injured. Another squad Of seq.
men removed the injured sailors and
succeeded In recovering the body Of
the captain. The Are was got under
control and the cruiser put into Liv.
erpoOl.
Forbidden 70 Wireless.
Under admiralty instructions the Of.
flcers Of the ship were not permitted
to wireless the news Of the accident
and fire. With the home-bound pen.
n0nt still at the fore the Laurentic
locked at Liverpool. Mrs. Matthias
and her two children waited for the
captain. whom they had not seen for
two years, to como of the ship. Fin
ally an officer appeared and told them
hoV the captain had sacrificed his life
for his men.
Captain Matthias was well known In
this port. The Laurentic, his last COM
mand, after she finished the Montreal
Liverpool summer service. used to snil
from New York on winter cruises to
the Mediterranean and the Caribbean
seas
The captain hrgt went to sea be-
cause Of the fitting he received at the
hands Of q little Irish girl. he was
born In York. County Cork. and at the
age Of fifteen was keeping company
with fair colleen who lived near the
Rushpool DOcks, Queenstown. One
day he declared his intentions to the
girl, Molly BY name.
"Jack," she replied. 90 the story
goes. amy time You want your socks
darned. q shirt patched or a tear in
your breeches mended. you're welcome
enough here. But you're only an up
prentice and ] could never take what
you say seriously"
"When I come back I'll be captain
Of an Atlantic liner" the youth an
swered hotly.
alN N0AfF0ANP 00Ic0Nl An0H