The Burning of the s.s. City of Montreal.

Evening Post, Volume XXXIV, Issue 69, 19 September 1887, Page 2

The Burning of the s.s. City of Montreal.

The burning of tho ship City of Montreal took place on the 11th August, fire days after leaving New York, with 450 passengers on board. Captain Land reports that on the 10th the wind was northwesterly. About 'J o'clock in the evening fire was discovered in the after hatch among some cotton. The fire hose was at once connected, and streams of water poured down upon the flames. Annihilators, hand grenades, and firo extinguishers were freely used. The fire, however, oveicame all the efforts to suppress It, and spread over the upper and lower decks. The ship waa doomed from the beginning of the fire, and the boats had boon actively prepared and provisioned. At 0 o'clock on the morning of the 11th tbo flames burst through the upper hatches, and the boats were lowered. There was a high sea at the time, and this caus&d much difficult} . The women and children were first pnt on board the boats, and the male passengers and crew were embarked afterwards. Lack of time prevented the manning of the boats with their respective crews, the men being compelled to continue until the last moment at the work of keeping the flames down. All the boats left the ships safely, but by an unfortunate oversight 20 peoplo were left aboard the burning vessel. No. 3 boat returned and took off six of the number. No. 5 boat, with the fourth officer, took off six more. A barque was then reported approaching, and when all the boats had pnt their peoplo aboard her, they returned and took off the rest on the burning steamer. It was then found that a boat with 13 persons in it was missing. She was seen to pnt herself before the wind when she left the ship, using her oars in support of the sails. She ran away from the vessel in direct disobedience to the captain's orders. Everybody spent the night aboard the German barque Frabant, and were then transferred to the York City, wLieh stayed by through the night, and vainly searched for the missing boat. The passengers' heads were cool, and they were obedient during the crisis, and the crew were steady. The origin of the file, Captain Land sa.ys, is unknown. He in certain it broke out in more than nne p!aco amonj: tLo cotton. The ohi]. was m latitude 43deg Joiniu north, luugituiie 4odeg >>4uiin west. The rescued passengers and crew, when landed at Queenstown by the

York City, wero in a pitiful condition Tho Inman Company's agents at once forwardod all tho passengers who wero proparod to continue their travels, and did everything possible for tho comfort of the rest. A London despatch of 21th August nays tho missing boat has been picked up, and all in it, six passengers and soven of the crow, wore safo and well. Tho rescue was made by the Gorman vcshol Mathildo, which arrived at Falmouth on the date of the despatch.