The Waterbury Democrat., 1939-01-23

were few and laconic. But from them and from the equally sparse messages of the commanders of three coast guard cutters--the Champlain, the Pontchartrain, and the Erie--it was possible to piece much of the story of the sufferings Of the Cavalier'se survivors and of the heroism of the Bayton's crew.
 Left at 10 A. M.
 The Cavalier took off at 10 a. m. Saturday from Port Washington with Charles Talbot, of Brookline, Mass, q Harvard student, who car- ried one arm in @ cast and 6 sling. Mrs. Watson, Mrs. George 1ngham of Hamilton, Bermuda, Miss Nel- lie Smith of Pembroke, Bermuda, MT. and Mrs. Nor kes and MT. and Mrs. Miller and her regular crew of five. At 1928 p. m, two hours and B minutes later, she reported by radio that she was running into bad weather and might have to land. Fourteen minutes later, she said the weather still was bad and at 12;57 sent the official call of distress sos. This was followed immediate ly by the fragmentary explanation that ice was forming, and at l:i3 she was on the water and her ra- dio said its last word-"Sinking."
 Upon hitting the water, the hull of the Cavalier split and the sea poured in. shepherded by Alder son, each man and woman grabbed the life belt which formed the cushion of each seat, and dropped into the ocean. There wasn't time to strap the belts on: there wasn't time to pull down the rubber rafts from the ceiling. The last person was barely out of her, when the Cavalier went to the bottom.
 Couldn't Don Lifebelts
 Once in the water. Commander Raymond T. McElligott of the cut ter Champlain reported. 1t was in- possible to put on the life belts, and the 1S men and women merely tie them together and clung to them. Steward Spence had suffered a head wound in the landing and was bleeding profusely. Noakes and Miller, both elderly men. apparently also had been hurt. Before dark, Spence had slipped away and had disappeared beneath the surface. The fragmentary messages indicat- ed that Noakes and Miller survived until after night fell.
 The water temperature was about 50 degrees as the accident occurred on the edge of the warm Gulf Stream, though the air temperature was much lower and 6 strong wind --hafbinger of yesterdays gale--was cutting up the sea into sharp, little waves which added to the difficulty og clinging, hour after hour-to the slipper canvas of the life belts. All afternoon, they were thrown about on the surface of this sea without the least trace of anything alive except themselves in the watery wastes of the Atlantic. Night closed in and still they had seen nothing to indicate that rescuers were on the way, that the Cavaliers last message had been heard. Dark AhiCd AA uAid uitAC ShilC bklC blIIlt when one woman, then another realized that her husband had lost his grip and had disappeared.
 Steamer Sails By
 An hour or so after dark, the lights of steamer showed on the horizon and bore down on them. But 1t turned off when still e mile or so away. They screamed until their throats ached. The lights were moving away from them now. They grew dinner and finally disao- peared altogether. leaving them alone again in the black ocean. All must have seemed lost then and 1t may have been that Noakes and Miller had chung to life long enough to have experienced the disappoifit- nlent.
 Soon after Q D. mat D:12 D. ii. they had been in the water eight hours-they saw lights again and