New-York tribune., 1919-01-28
Seven of Ten :,
Die i'm Blazing !
Ship at Sea
Survivor of the Schooner
Babcock Describes Des.
perate Battle for His liz.
Two Are Terribly Burned
Captain Pitched HeadIonp
Into Flames as He Fought
Calamity TO Save Vessel

An able seaman named ST. Clair W..
son, the only man Of a crew Of ton
who escaped death or injury on N.
four masted schooner August II p.h
cock. came on from Phladelphia voc.
tcrday and told how tho vessel w..
burned to a charred hulk 500 miles
southeast OF Sandy Hook ON Jar.
uary 10.
After reporting to A. II. Bull 4
Co, agents OF tho vessel. Wilson
went to the Office Of the United sta,os
Shipping Commissioner in search Of
new job and recalled hi, adventures
on the Babcock
'I've been up against it many times
at sea- he said, "but never have
buckcd up against anything as fright
full as the burning of tho Babcock
There were ten Of ~. including .be
skipper. Captain ] f. Rawding WIN
lived in Medford. Mass. with his wifo
here arc only three Of us ally. TO-DAY
myself and two fellows who are suffer
ing tortures in hospital in Phila6el
phia- am the only ono that got ou,
of the mess without scratch
Cargo Valued at 100000
Wilson said the Babcock went into
Bayonne early in january and took on
cargo Of case oil and gasolene for
Las Palmas that was valued at $500
600 She got under way on January
) and set her course for The Canary
Islands
"We had good wind and were
making good time said Wilson. when
fire started in the forward part or
the ship. and We couldn't do a thing to
stop ii. We worked the pumps and
turned a stream into the flames, but it
did no good.
Captain Rawding had "A notion that
a pipe line might be rugged up that
would carry the water from the pumps
into the hold. and he was attending to
this when an explosion occurred just
aft Of the maiumast that blew up the
whole midship section. He WAS close
80 it and lost his footing and nitched
headlong into the flames Gnree fel-
lows who stood by him were burned 90
death right there on the deck Two
others got frightened and jumped over
board, and that was the last We saw Of
them.
Escape By Boats Baked.
"1hc boats were burned al tho start
and we had nothing IN which 10 pet
away. After about three hours onlY
three Of us were left aliVc. Ono was ,.
negro named Harry IIuyles, rom the
Dutch West Indies. and the other
johnny Becker. from Chicago The
three Of US jumped o.crhoard and
swan aft. and finally pulled ourselves
up on the stern. where we sta.cd until
the flames worked back to us
We knew We couldn't live down
there. 50 We tired for the mizzormast.
1t took US about an hour 60 get un be-
cause we were pretty much weakened.
/ managed TO get aloft and made fast
line had taken mp with me The
other two fellows climbed uu on this
but they couldn't climb as high as
did and the flames bistercd their legs.
Picked Up by Japanese
Finally the mast snapped and the
three Of us crashed into the sea- Ne
clung TO the spar for about tao hours
when Japanese steamship. the Hwah
Yish. picked us UP. She was bound
for Philadelphia and left us there
The Babcock, which was a vessel Of
,59S tons, was built n 1901 and was
valued at 100000 She was owned
by Croweii & Thurlow. of Boston.
The men lost with Captain Rawding
we're: Albert T. Black the mate. Med
ford, Mass; Joseph Francs. second
mate, Chicago; Sidney Grover. Cleve-
iand, engineer in charge OF the hoist
engine; Harry Heylegcr, Niddleiown,
n y; Antonio Leitan, of The Cape
Verde Islands, and Edward Frohmsn,
nf Rrnnl. Ii,