DRAMATIC RESCUE.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 16 October 1924, Page 3

DRAMATIC RESCUE.

IN MID-OCEAN. FINE SEAMANSHIP. KETCH RAMBLER. \ ' SYDNEY, Oct. 2. The events of an exciting three weeks at sea on the ketch Rambler, were unfolded) by the two survivors of the little craft who were picked up in the midst of stormy seas by the steamer Suffolk and landed in Sydney yesterday. A desire for a cruise of adventure in the islands and along, the Great Barrier Reef led the two men, J. N. Densham and E. L. Pinching, to embark on the cruise of the Rambler, leaving Botany Bay. on September 13. The Rambler was purchased in the George’s River some weeks ago and thoroughly refitted. She was fitted with a petrol engine, and Densham, who has had a somewhat varied seafaring life, had on the Rambler a collection of engineering tools, the result of 15 years collecting. Two months’ provisions were shipped, and on Saturday, September 13, all was ready. Sail was set out of Botany Bay, whence the Rambler headed north; head winds buffeted her for days on end, however, and very little progress was made, and meeting heavy weather off Barrenjoey the ■- Rambler put into Broken Bay. On Monday last Densham related yesterday, although the. barometer stood _at 29.8, he considered that there was little chance of a storm, and, having at last a southerly wind, Be decided to take advantage of ’ it. He saw no storm warning at Barrenjoey, and 1 it was not until, he was in the open ocean that he saw a storm making up. Even then, he states, he was not prepared jbo lose the opportunity of a fair wind in his voyage northward, and flying, before the indreasing wind the Rambler made 45 miles in five hours. When off Lake Macquarie the vessel jibed, and as the wind' kept gaining m force the mainsail was double Teefed and all other sails taken in. The position grew more serious, however as the southerly attained gale force,’and the Rambler was hove to. At about midnight a huge wave broke over the ketch, and Densham, who was carrying At the time a lighted lamp andl the compass, was washed off his feet, while the compass was lost. The wave had completely overwhelmcd the little vessel, and in its course found the companionway partly open. Volumes of water poured down into the mteror of the Rambler, flooding her engine room, and the force : of it earned away, the ballast bulkhead. The ballast, which was in the form of sand was washed into the bottom*of the ves&el,. and completely choked the pumps, which were immediately manned! to empty the vessel. “All through the night, ’ said Densham,. “one of us was working a pump while the other was lying- flat on his face with his arms reaching down to the pump mouth keeping the sand away. At 4 o’clock in the morning, thoroughly fatigued, we gave up, and when daylight came a distress signal was hoisted.” “It was 6 o’clock when we first saw the Suffolk. She was some distance away, and at first we thought that she was going to pass. To us she seemed a large object, but we seemed very small, and I believe that it was only through the quartermaster seeing us that we were rescued. In any case, the buoyancy of the Rambler, although she had three feet of water in her. belied the seriousness of our nosition. The Suffolk turned round and came alongside and hailed us.

“The manner in which Captain Matthews handled his ship to ‘get u? off was a magnificent piece of seamanship. ' The seas made it bv no means easy to handle the vessel, but he brought her round and broached her to windward of us, thus putting us in her lee. Slowly she bore down on the Rambler and they dropned a ladder over the side. As the Suffolk came on ton of us, we sprang for the, ladder "and clambered up her side for safety. All our clothes and effects were left on board the Rambler and were lost. “I n °t think we could have lasted: much longer if the Suffolk had not come to us. We were treated very well on hoard the Suffolk, hut we landed this morning with only what we stand up in.” The two rescued men were °iven some assistance yesterday, afternoon by the Shipwreck Relief Society to heln them replace their lost' clothing. According to Ren sham, the vessel was inkut hotli himself and pinching are heavy losers in addition to this. .

Seafaring neople along the waferfront yesterday were loud in their P i {1 i Se lie seamanship displav- . hv Captain Matthews in manoeuvring his vessel alongside the sinking