Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-09-02

| indian mail boat Egypt OF the
| p. g. o. line en- route to Bombay.
Down in the ships strongroom, locked
| behind massive bulkheads. lay fortune
consigned to an English bank in
| India. Gold bars, $4,000 pounds ster-
| ling; gold coin, 1865 900 pounds sterling.
a total of l,054,000 pounds, or s5l25,-
| 600
The Egypt was 80 miles off Brest
/ running at very low speed. The fog
| was thick enough to cut with knife
| and darkness was falling.
Capt. Collier a veteran mariner,
stood on the bridge with his eyes strain
| ing into the gloom and his hands play
| ing nervously over the reverse signal.
| He could see only 100 yards ahead.
| less than a ships length. Every half
minute he sounded the siren, He would
have liked to lay to, but that was as
/ dangerous as moving
! The bell had just sounded for dinner,
| and the a. passengerS-the men in
dinner Jackets and the women wearing
| evening gowns and ieWels--were taking
| their seats in the dining room when
| there was a terrible crash. which sent
/ the dishes and silverware rafting TO
! the floor
we are sinking" woman with a
baby screamed. The cry echoed all
through the ship.
a small French cargo boat called the
Seine had suddenly doomed out Of
the fog, struck the Indian mail boat
directly amidships, and given 1t a
death blow
AS the Frenchman went careening
out OF sight in the darkness pande-
monium broke out on the Egypt.
rTtL,y f4H q
remained perfectly cool but a crew Of
more than $50 Lascars became insane
with fear. and pouring up from the
lower decks. with knives and iron bars
IN their hands, they fought their way
past The officers and rushed TO the life
boats
Allah preserve us!' they screamed
IN their heather tongues.
In the panic they Knocked over the
passengers and upset most Of the boats
causing one of the worst scenes in the
history Of the British merchant marine
The Egypt sank almost immediately
and when the French boat CROPPED TO
the scene, 20 minutes later, the crack
Indian mail liner with It's $4,000 600 III
eold and silver, was a black, broken
wreck, under $50 feet Of water. and the
survivors we're clinging to Wreckage
and life belts.
And 81. on the night Of May 20, 1922
Is passcngcrs and 97 Of the crew 81
tine Inflated ship we're dragged down
10 their doom IN the tWinkling of ar
. eye.
+ II was one Of The biggest treasures
lost at aeu since the days OF Inc
, Spanish Armada.
a few days later Il0yds paid the fui
insurance on the cargo and marked
1t "a dead loss
HAIRY L. BOWdoiu Of l49 Nineteenth
J avenue, WhitcRtOne, Queens New YORK
who has been "A driver. hydraulic engi'
+. uecf and contractor at various times
bul always stFeaked with a stfoiit
3 Imagination, has a new. l,4D0~pSnnf
diving stlit. and hopes 10 salvage tht
= $4,000 900 out oi the liner Egypt, +;
= When ne was a boy he found a POI
. Of gold pieces worth $4,000 which mac
+ been buried since the Civil War, 1iea'
e. lls home at Wilmington, n G. ana ~
has been interested IN treasure huhtisiL
} ever since.
! WAY back IN 1909 Mr. Bowdoir
. organized The Old Gold Salvage; ant
[ Wrecking CO IN an effort 10 f!nf
i $4,000 900 IN gold doubloon6 suppose
4 30 have been buried on Oak Island, OF
( Tie coast Of Nova Scotia by Capt Kidf
{ and other pirates 900 years ago. Iheft
% | was no treasure ct least he ann al
, company didn't find any but tina