A RESCUE IN MID-ATLANTIC.

Colonist, Volume XVIII, Issue 2038, 19 February 1876, Page 3

A RESCUE IN MID-ATLANTIC.

TnE Surgeon of the steamship Baltio writes to the I/ondon Times:—

Shortly nfter midnight on the 18th November, as the White Slar Uniied States' mail steamship Baltic, which left New York on the 13th November, wao under steam and canvas, find going at about 14 knots an hour, the attention of the officers on watch was attracted by what appeared to them to be the masthead light of a steamer some miles off. Th" proper look-out was kept, and on passing the light, at some five miles to the starboard of the Baltic, the officers observed the absence of the regulation lights which re hoisted by steamers at night when on a voyage. They at once communicated with Captain Grleadell, the commander of their ship, who, thinking that something was wrong, gave orders that his course should be altered in the direction of t.he light. As the Baltic approached the object for which she was now making it became evident to all of U3 on board that the strange sight was caused by a blazing tarbarrel on a hull to which only one mast remained attached. Wo had 245 passengers and a crew of considerably over 100 hands on board, and I need hardly gay that great was the excitement among us. The night was fine, but a very heavy sea was running. Captain GHeadell, gave the order for Mr. Irving, the chief officer, to man one of the boats and proceed to the floating hull, for the purpose of ascertaining whether there was any one on board of it. The haifhour during which the boat was away was to us a time of the deepest anxiety and interest. Mr, Irving and his crew worked gallantly through the great Atlantic waves, and did so, it need scarcely be observedjjat imminent peril to their own lives. Happily, they returned safely with the captain and 15 of the crew of the Oriental, for this the wreck proved to be. She was a sailing vessel of some 1,800 ton 3 burden, and had sailed from London for St Johns, New Brunswick about three weeks before. On the 16th November, she sprang a leak and gradually becoming wnterlogged, she settled on her port beam-ends during the forenoon of the 17th November. On that day the captaiD got out bis four boats; one of them was swamped, though without loss of life ; and another, with ten men, by some means got parted from her companions, which remained about the wreck until it was reached by the boat of the Baltic. When brought on board the Baltic, the captain of the Oriental'had no knowledge of the position of his boat with the ten men ; bub Captain Grleadell, being of opinion that there was still a hope of rescuing these seamen, resolved to move about gently until daylight.

By between 4 and 5 a.m. the tar-barrel to which I have before referred communicated its flames to a number of others ami to all the inflammable material of the ship, and awfully grand was the sight of the hugh fire rising, as it were, from the depths of the ocean ana illuminating tho fast waves for many miles around. All through (he email hours of the morning Captain Grleadell caused blue rockets to be sent up from the deck of the Baltic. Those were seen by the crew of the missing boat, and at 7 a.m. we saw them a few miles off, and had the pleasure of taking them on board very soon after. Their boat was hoisted on board also, aod after a delay of about eight hour 3 from the time tbo Baltic had steamed towards the wreck we pursued our course to Q.ueenstown. The crew of the Oriental had suffered severly from the cold during their exposure.