The coastland times. [volume] (Mnateo [i.e. Manteo], N.C.) 1947-1959, 1952-03-21


crew never showed the white
feather" but they even joked with
each other when it seemed certain
they would all perish.
When the cook came up on the
quarterback, the captain, appre-
ciating his condition, assisted him
into the yawl, which hung from the
davits over the stern. There he re-
manned until the crew, some time
later, attempted to launch this
boat, when he got out of it and
tried to take hand in the lanuch-
ing, but a sea came along and
swept both him and the boat over
board.
Some twenty minutes after the
schooner fetched up, the deck load
began to work loose, and soon the
piles stacked under the starboard
side were chatting the rigging as
they rose and fell with the seas,
tearing it asunder. Freed from
their fastenings to windward, the
masts could not withstand the ter
rible pounding and the pressure of
the piles on the leeward rigging
and three of them, the mainmast,
mizzenmast and spankemast snap
ped off simultaneously, the last
two going overheard and the main
mast swinging around against the
foremost, where it hung suspended
by the rigging.
The first man to sight the
schooner from the shore was Surf
man Andrew Scarborough, No. l
man at Paul Gamiels Hills life
saving station. He was at the time
standing the 2:3O to 600 a. m.
beach watch near the station. A
bout $50, as it was coming day
break, he saw her off to the east
southeast He watched her for a
few moments, and then set stake
in the sand near the watchhouse
and took a range to determine in
which direction she was moving.
He saw that she was falling off to-
ward the beach. Scarborough says
that he wasn't sure she would
come ashore, but that he knew she
was where she should not be in
weather such as prevailed at that
time. While he was watching the
vessel, Surfman Paul D. Beals, the
No. 8 man at the same station
came in from the south patrol, and
at Scarborough's request kept an
eye on the ship while Scarborough
went to the station some 200 yards
away to inform the keeper of his
discovery.
Keeper Thomas Harris and
crew of Paul Gamiels Hill Station
were soon on their way to the YES
sci with the beach apparatus, haul
ed by the station team, arriving a
breast of her even before she
struck. Before setting out he had
telephoned to Captain Tillet of the
Kitty Hawk Station, six miles
south, to come with his men, and to
Captain Snow of the Caffey's In
let Station, six miles north, to hold
himself and his crew in readiness
for call. Both keepers came with
their crews before the work of res
cue was concluded and rendered
valuable service.
When Keeper Harris and his
crew arrived abreast of the schoon-
err the wind was blowing strong
| from the northeast and it was
raining. The vessel lay broadside
to the beach and was pounding
heavily, with the seas almost hid
ing her from view. Within fifteeT
minutes the Lyle gun was fired
with ounces of powder, laying q
{. No. 9 line across the vessel just
forward of her spanker mast. AT
ter the sailors had taken refuge or
the quarterback, six of them, il
appears, climbed into the spankel
rigging. When the line fell they al
came down and. together with tht
master, who had remained on tol
of the cabin, got hold of it and be
gan to haul in. They hauled tht
tail block on board and secured i
to the spanker mast, but in spit
of the efforts of the life-savers T.
keep the two parts of the Will
separate the tremendous curren
| that swept down the beach twistee
the line SO that it would not run
through the block when they tried