The Cordele dispatch. (Cordele, Ga.) 19??-1971, 1918-11-27
WHO SAVED
OTRANTO VICTIMS

Associated Press There were tears
in the eyes of five American soldiers
saved from the wrecked troopship OF
ranto when they said goodby today
to the good people of the little ham,
let of Kilchoman. They had just at
tented simple sabbath service espe-
cially held for them by their friend
the padre, the Rev Donald Grant, in
the cottage of the village schoolmist-
| ress, Mrs. Isabelle MacIntyre, who
had personally cared for seven Of the
| twenty survivors who reached the
island and who with Mrs. Grant
the PADRES wife, were regarded by
the men as second mothers.
One of the five, Private Earl Gar
yer of Cincinnati, owed his life to
Mrs. Grant who worked for five hours
over him before he revive dand who
was fighting to save Private William
Cooney of Augusta, Ca, critically ill
with pneumonia. For years Mrs. Grant
F., was assistant matron of a big hos
pital in Glasgow and Dr. Hugh Nc
Intyre of Bridgend, who treated all
the Otranto survivors, regards her as
! one of the most skilful nurses in
Scotland.
Big Sergeant c. A. Mcdonald of
, Galesburg, Ill was visibly affected
over the handshaking, and he said to
i The Associated Press representative
as they drove away to Bridgend.
| 'That's almost as bad as it was to
leave home"
But neither Mcdonald nor any of
his companions realized the extent
, of the sacrifice those two women had
made for the American boys, or that
of others of the islanders including
warmhearted shepherd named Nc
Phee whose two sons, Ronald and
John, rescued five men and took four
of them to their home In order to
provide for their guests, the Grants,
Mrs. MacIntyre and the McPhee not
only gave up their own needed cloth
ing hut cheerfully used every scrape of
food they had to supply the hungry
survivors with meals and were them
selves literally starving when Ameri-
can Red Cross officers by accident
discovered the situation and rove
twenty miles to country store to
buy provisions to replenish the lard
| ers of The good samaritans.
| One of the Red Cross officers
in recounting to the correspondent
, the relief work of the islanders con-
cluded by saying: 1.-THE people of the
United States owe a debt of gratitud-
to the people of this little island that
can never be repaid" The Otranto
was sunk in collision with the steam
ship Kashmir off the Scottish coast
with a loss of 357 American soldiers
United States army officers have
been greatly impressed by the kind
ness and hospitality Of the inlanders
that they made a special request of
The Associated Press to carry list
of the names of those whose service
was particularly notable. From the
wife Lady Mary down to the funniest
peasant, the islanders have done
everything in their power to comfort
the survivors and help to recover the
dead.
In addition to those already named,
the army officers honor list includes
David MacTaggart, farmer, and wife
and son. MacTaggart, who is the
chief of the islands volunteer coast
lifeguard, led the rescue parties when
the survivors began to come ashore.
Standing up to his armpits in the
dangerous surf, he pulled out four
drowning men, three of whom were
soldiers and the other a member of
the crew. ALI of these, with four other
survivors, were taken by MacTarg-
CARTS young so INTO the family's home
at Kilchiaran, several miles distant,
where they were taken care of until