ONLY FIVE MEN SURVIVE THE ORDEAL.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXI, Issue 6871, 15 July 1909, Page 7

ONLY FIVE MEN SURVIVE THE ORDEAL.

The Errol, an old iron vessel of 1-146 tons, commanded by Captain E. Andreassen, left Chimbote, in Peru, on March loth for Newcastle for orders. It was difficult to-day to get a connected account of the tragedy, but by piecing together the stories told by the several survivors the following details are available: THE FIRST BLOW. The Errol made a good run across the Pacific till reaching the vicinity of Lord Howe Island. Here boisterous weather sot in, and the ship, buffeted by severe squalls, was swept out of her course. The captain believed he was hundreds of miles from Middleton Reof. A NIGHT OF TRAGEDY SHIP BATTERED TO PIECES ON A REEF. About midnight on 'June 18th the barque struck the reef. The weather was fair, but a big sea was breaking over the reef, and, pounding against the doomed ship, began quickly to break her up. In a very short time the Errol was in pieces amidships, only the forecastle head and poop being left on the reef. The chief mate was washed overboard and drowned shortly after the -ship struck, and two more of the crew disappeared in a brief space, whili three others died from exposure on thi wreckage. PRISONERS—WITHOUT FOOD. When the midships section collapset some of tho castaways were imprisonet in tho fore part, and others, includin' Captain Androassen, his wife, and fouj children, in the after end. Two dayi later the men in the fore part man aged to get aft, but there was nt water or food on board, the storeroon being submerged. THE CAPTAIN DROWNED. Some days elapsed before the cron were able to get a raft constructed This was done only with great difficulty, and during tho building the captain and second mate were drowned. Tho captain perished within sight of his wife and children. Two days after tho captain’s death the raft was completed, and five men set out for tho reef in search of water. A MAN DRIVEN MAD. Before they had proceeded far one of the men was driven crazy through j drinking sea .water, and he jumped overboard and was drowned, ON THE REEF. When the four remaining , men on the raft reached the reef they found the remafns of the wreck of the Anna- | sona, lost there on January 19th, 1907, | but could find no food. They got a j little water, however. The men on the reef then set about | building a punt from wreckage that | had drifted ashore, living meantime on shellfish. Some rain fell, and they caught about eighty gallons of water. Fourteen days elapsed before they could board tho wreck again in their frail craft, taking water with them. ON THE WRECK ONE MAN SEES NINE GO' TO THEIR DEATH. When the four men got back to the Errol they found only a solitary man, named Lawrence, left alive. His experience during the fortnight the raft party were away was horrifying in the extreme.

Lawrence saw nine of his comrades die. The first to go were the youngest of the four children—a boy and a girl. Then Airs Andreasscn died, leaving the two eldest girls; but these did not lire long. They were followed by the sailmaker and an ordinary seaman. Lawrence kept himself alive by eating shell-fish, which he dived for. He also brought up two or three tins sf condensed milk. These had kept the children alive for a time. WHAT HUNGER WELL SUGGEST. When the younger children died

(Press Association—Copyright—Received July 11, 7.50 p.m.) SYDNEY, July 14. The Union Company’s Island steamer Tofua arrived here to-day with the survivors of the Norwegian barque Errol, which was lost at midnight on June 18th, on the dreaded Middleton Reef, which lies about 100 miles north of Lord Howe Island. Out of twenty-two persons on the ill-fated ship only five are left. These were found at the reef on Monday, in the last stages of exhaustion. Most of the others died from starvation. Captain Andreassen’s wife and four children succumbed four days before the Tofua arrived.

, ' FURTHER DETAILS I ADVENTURES OF THE RAFT PARTY. The raft used to get from the Errol ■ to thp reef consisted of planks lashed to barrels. It was two days battling 1 about in tho waves,before the four .men were able to land on the reef, where at low tide there was plenty of room. Palmer, who was in charge of the party, told of the bitter disappointment they suffered when they failed to find food, and only a scanty supply of water.' Luckily rain fell for' three days, otherwise the party must have perished. Their hopes were raised on 1 the fourth day they were on tho reef, 5 when the smoke of a steamer was seen, ' but she passed without noticing a sig- ( nal hoisted on one of the spars of the Annasona tvreck.

On returning to the Errol at tho end of fourteen days’ sojourn on the reef (having taken that time to construct a punt from wreckage), Lawrence -greeted them with agonising cries for water. In response to signals, Lawrence jumped overboard, and they picked him up. On learning that all on board but he were dead the punt party returned to the Annasona wreck. When the raft first left tho Errol Palmer tried to induce Lawrence to accompany them, but he declined, saying ho would stick to the captain’s wife and children. . LAWRENCE’S STORY.

Lawrence is a Sydney native. He told an interviewer that if he lived for a century he would be unable to erase from his memory the awful fourteen days between the departure and return of Palmer’s party to the reef. “It was pitiful,” he said, “to see the poor little children, their ages ranging from one to eight, fade away before our eyes, and know wo were powerless to do anything to save them. Before the children died one or two men who had lost their reason proposed to kill them and drink their blood. X took fine care nothing like that happened. As the little ones died we threw the bodies overboard. There was a cat on board, and one of tho children offered it a tiny drop of water. It, however, refused to drink, looking pitifully at the child’s face,' as if it knew the babe should have it. “One man picked up the cat, knocked its head against the rail, and out tho body with the intention of drinking the blood, but. I, afraid the man was going mad, snatched it and threw it overboard. " When all the others were dead I gave up hope, but at the eleventh hour Palmer returned.” A STRANGE SIGHT. Captain Holford, describing the

some of the men wanted to drink their blood, but ono (Jensen) stopped them, apd the bodies were put into tho sea. A TANTALISING SIGHT. ■ Shortly after the wreck the steamer Suva passed, but did not see them. Had she done so the woman and children w-ould have been saved and seven others. THE RESCUE CAPTAIN HOLFORD’S STATEMENT. Captain Holford, of the' Tofua, states that when he sighted the reef the sea was beautifully calm. He was surprised that what he took to be the Annasona had shifted her position, and he thought a great gale must have swept the reef. -As tho Tofua got near it was seen that tho Annasona was in her old place. Then the steamer went close up to the Errol, and saw a signal, consisting of a pair of under-pants and a piece of red flannel, flying. A boat was lowered, arid this took five starving men off the wreck. The names of these are: Oftdale, Jensen, Johansen, Palmer, and Lawrence. The passengers and crew of the Tofua raised £lO5 for. the survivors.

rescue, said that on entering the lagoon at Middleton Reef a strange sight mot the eyes of tho Tofua’s boat’s crew. In a roughly-mado punt were the five survivors—all showing signs of the terrible ordeal they had passed through. The punt was propelled by an old tarpaulin, hoisted as a sail, and two large, roughly-fashioned paddles. Tho survivors eagerly swallowed beef tea and brandy and water taken in tho Tofua’s boat, into which they wore carefully lifted. On the boat ranging alongside the steamer the passengers greeted the men with ringing cheers. So exhausted were three of the castaways that they had to bo carried up tho gangway.

Besides being badly emaciated, the survivors are badly’ cut about and covered with sores, and their feet are,badly swollen. Lawrence has a severe cut on tho head, received while diving into the hold to obtain food for those on the wreck, and ho had abscesses in his oars from the same cause. It will probably he some dpy 3 before the men are sufficiently recovered clearly to detail their experiences,