Arizona republican., 1922-03-26
SIX PERSONS
At SEA
WHEN FLYING.
WRECKS.
Sole Survivor Of Wrecked
Passenger Plane Picked
Up By Tanker 40 Miles
Off East Indian Inlet
TRepubIIcan a, p. Leased WIreI

" J
MIAMI, Fla, Mar. 25-Nursed by
a woman who he believes in his de-
iirium to be his mother. Robert
Moore, pilot and only survivor of the
six persons who left here for Bimini
last Wednesday in the Inflated fly
ing boat Miss Miami, lay in a hos
pital tonight more dead than alive.
A submarine chaser took Moore
off the tanker William Green early
today as she passed here bound for
Tampico Picked up by the tanker
late yesterday more nhan 40 miles off
the East Indian Inlet as he clung to
the wreckage of his flying. boat,
Moore was tenderly cared for all dur
ing last night by Mrs. J. Williams,
wife of an official of the Pan-Ameri-
can Petroleum Corporation who was
a passenger on the ship. This morn
ing. when the relief boat pulled
alongside the big ship, Moore refused
that she would be there. he finally
permitted himself to be transferred
to the smaller craft and be brought
to a hospital here. where another
woman took UP the task of trying to
calm his wandering mind.
Piece by piece during the night and
day, Moore has revealed the tragic
story of his experience as he clung
for two days and two nights to the
wreckage of the flying boat.
No trace had been found tonight
of the bodies of Mr.. and Mrs. August
Butte and Mr.. and Mrs. Lawrence E.
Smith, all Of Kansas City. and Mrs.
y. S. Dickson Of Memphis, Tenn, who
one by one gave UP their lives as the
struggle became too much for them.
fr,s.N - hill a q far0 ~
the tanker were re-tOld today py
CAPTAIN Charles w. Wachsmuth.
II was about Al miles off the East
Indian Inlet said Captain Wachs-
mutll. when, just about dusk, !
sighted what appeared to be a human
figure feebly waving his arms a mile
off the starboard bow. We drew
close until we could discern a man,
who appeared to be lashed to a spar.
we hove to, launched boat and
rowed out to the rescue. A heavy
sea was running and 1t was no easy
task but, after considerable difficulty,
we managed to get him aboard. He
was lashed with piece of rope about
his neck and another piece about his
waist and was totally exhausted.
Sorry He Caused Trouble
"As we cut him loose he mtr-
INJURED I'm sorry to put you Fellows
to so much trouble Then he became
unconscious.
1--WE found that he had been at
tached in some manner to an over
turned flying boat.
'sWe undressed him and placed him
in my cabin. where he was cared Tor
through the night by Mrs. ]. Williams,
ave found that his entire body was
hlistered and burned. and that his
lips were so badly swollen he could
not open his mouth. His eyes from
the salt water and blazing sun were
in such condition that at first we
thought he was blinded, but after
Mrs. williams had bathed his face ne
seemed to recover somewhat, though
he appeared to be entirely out Of his
mind.
dollar bills in which he had torn
holes in his >delirium, pair of
glasses which had been smashed,
and q womans vanity case"
Mrs. williams, who reluctantly re-
linuuished him to the physician
aboard the submarine chaser, said
that Moore had been in a constant
delirium through the night and was
under the impression that she was
his mother. He told her practically
the whole story of his experience
during the Sc hours he had been
adrift in the gulf stream.
IT developed that the Miss Miami
had broken her propeller when about
fiffeen miles from Bimini and that
She had descended in the gulf stream
during a gale. All through that
night and next day the flying boat
drifted helplessly northward, becom-
ing svamped after being in the
water a few hours.
An effort was made to pump the
wat fer. out Of the cockpit, but the
seas were running so high that the
cockpit was filled each time a wave
washed over the fragile craft.
8 Women Die In His Arms
on Thursday morning, as related
by Moore to Mrs. Williams, the pom
toon of the boat sprung leak and
soon afterward turned over. the
three men-Moore, Butte and smith
managed to drag the exhausted
women to the top OF the boat, where
! Moore tried to hold them. One by
one, the women died in his arms
and slipped into the sea, the fury of
which seemed to increase with each
passing hour.
First Mrs. ]. s. Dickson Of Mem
phis, died and fell into the ocean.
Continued on Page Two)