STRICKEN MESSINA.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXI, Issue 6745, 17 February 1909, Page 6

STRICKEN MESSINA.

"MANY A GALLANT ACTION." FEOM OUB SPECIAL COKItE.SFOI.DENT. LONDON, January 8. It is, occasionally at any rate, ''good to bo a Britisher." The survivors of the fearful catastrophe in Italy all speak in glowing terms of the gallantry, kindness, and resource of the British sailors—navy and mercantile—who took part in the rescue work at Messina and other places affected by the earthquake. .Mr Constantine Dorcsa, the first man tc reach England with personal experience of the overthrow of Messina, was so full of praise of the British sailors, that the interviewers had the greatest difficulty in switching him off the appreciative on to the narrative vein. Oiio tale he told is worth, recounting. After ho had escaped from the ruins of the Hotel Txinacria—half a shirt and a pair of boots belonging to someone else was his. garb when he got clear of the' place—he went on board tho Cardiff steamer Afohwen, commanded by' Captain Owens, and begged his assistance for tho people who were left in the wrecked buildings. Armed with ladders and hawsers, Captain Owens with his second mate Read, and several sailors proceeded ashore, and commenced tho work of rescue. About forty yards further, down 'the street from where the Hotel Trinacria had once stood there were tho remains of a high building standing. All the intervening houses " had fallen. On tho top balcony of this building, about eighty feet from the ground, on. the fifth floor, they saw two little children standing and crying piteously for help. Tho building itself seemed ready to collapse at any moment. What was to be dono? Captain Owens did not hesitate. Ho knew a little Italian, and shouted to the children to lower a string tied to a stone. They understood, and did as they Were told. ■ '.'ln the meantime,'.'- said Mr Dorcsa, Captain Owens 'had reared one of the ladders up against the lower balcony of the building. Then he turned to one Of his able seamen, named Smith, who was standing by, and said "Now Smith!" -

"I shuddered. It seemed like sending the man to certain death. But Smith .turned his quid in his mouth, and without a word was up the ladder on to the first baloony. Then he caught the stone tied to the string which Tiad been let down by the children. To this ho attached a light line, which the children hauled Up and placed round one of the iron standards of the top balcony. By this means Smith was able to haul up a two-and-a-half inch Manila rope. Then he took off his boots, and in a trice he was shinning up the rope which hung dangling beside the crazy ruin. I held my breath. I have read of many brave deeds, but I never hoard of one braver than that performed by Smith. But that was not all. When he reached the top balcony he .leaned over and shouted, 'Why, there's a ton of 'em up here. I can't manage to got them all down by myself 1' • ■' "Captain Owens turned to his second mate, who was standing by., 'Now Read,' he said. It was enough. In a second Read was shinning up the rope hand over hand. We watched him with fear clutching at our hearts, and there was something like a sigh of relief when we saw him standing by the side of Smith on the top balof the building, which seemed to us to be rocking to a fall every second. ■ .■, ~' ... . .. "

"The men ,aloft soon got to work. The .moments were flying, for we did not know how soon the whole shell would collapse.' Read and Smith made their hawsers fast, and then, one by one, thc.y loweied tho cowering creatures who had been awaiting death from the crazy height. On 5, two, three, and then' up to ten' timjs the ropo was lowered, each time with a child resting in the slip noose which tho deft sailors had formed. Then came an old woman. She was .very stout, and we had a great deal of trouble' to get her down. But we managed it at last:

"The brave rescuers then came down tho rope themselves. They had saved twelve people from certain death. Never shall I forget the coolness they , showed. AH the timo they were in imminent danger of death, jet they I worked as calmly as if they had been on the ground. They had been in tho gratest danger of their lives, yet when they came down they quite re- [ sentod our congratulations. But wo could not. help giving them a British cheer." SAVED FROM THE FLAMES." Tho good work of tho Afonwen's 1 crew did not end here. ' Near by the 1 building from which the children were rescued was a blazing ruin, from which came shrill screams of fear. A woman was lying there half buried in rubbish and pinned' down by a big beam. The fire was creeping slowly, but surely, towards her. It was an awful scene, for the beam was too large to' be pulled bodily away, and, moreover, to disturb its entire length would probably, have brought about a further fall of masonry. Could the woman be saved? Captain Owens gave a sharp word of command, and Read rushed away. In a few minutes he was back with a saw. "Then," said Mr Doresa, "ho dashed through the raging flames, and began, with fearful energy, tto saw through the plank which held the woman fast. We waited in terrible suspense. Then, to our relief, we saw the end 'of the plank fall away, and Read came through the flames bearing the rescued woman in his arms. At this moment an Italian officer came up. He had witnessed the scene, and said: 'I shall send an account of their splendid bravery to my Government, and I hope they will recognise it in some way. In the meantime, I can only thank them for their heroic efforts.' " Having saved two other. lives from wrecked buildings, the Afonwen's gallant crew returned to their ship, cleared her of all the food stuffs on board, and returned to the shore, where they distributed food to all those in need of it.