THE FIRST RESCUED PARTY. HOW THE ZEALANDIA GOT NEWS OF THE WRECK

Evening Post, Volume LXIV, Issue 120, 17 November 1902, Page 5

THE FIRST RESCUED PARTY. HOW THE ZEALANDI A GOT NEWS OF THE WRECK

Mr. C. W. MacMurran, the New York journalist, who was a passenger for Sydney by the Zealandia, told a represent tive of the Auckland Herald E the first news those on board the Zealand a got of the wreck was about 6 o'clock on Tuesday morning, ,when they w er e hailed by whaling boats which had put out from Hohoura with the intention rf intercepting them. The whaling, boate had been out all night, flying sifnalTof distress to attract tie attention of the Zealandia. They communicated to tli« captain of the Zealandia the news of the landing of the boat at Hohoura, and that the other survivors were possibly on the Three Kings. * v The Zealandia at once steered a course for the Three Kings, which, without the information suppiied by the whaleboats she would not have got near enoa»h to see the signals of distress which the°shipwrecked party had managed to put up. The steamer got off the Three Kings about half-past 3 on Tuesday afternoon, went as near as possible, and launched a boat, in which the chief officer went, with provisions. It took the boat an hour to row to a landing, and the chief officer having instructions to signal for another beat if necessary, this signal at once went up from the shore. After an anxious •wait on tie part of those on board the Zealandia, the boats came back from the island with the survivors of the Elingamite's passengers and crew in a most pitiable condition, many being badly clad and without shoes. The passengers on the Zealandia at once put everything they had at the dis*posal of the shipwrecked paople, and made them as comfortable as possible. When the survivors first saw the smoke of the Zealandia, all joined in making as big a fire with the brushwood as they could, realising that if they failed to attract the attention oi the distant steamer all hope t. as gone. Somehow the steamer got out of fcXcir sight for about half-an-hour, and they almost despaired. They hoisted some white shirts as a flag of distress on the oars, planting this on the highest pinnacle the sailors could reach. The Zealandia oame in sight again, however, and all were eventually taken on board in safety.