DEATH FOR MONEY

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 7057, 19 February 1910, Page 9

DEATH FOR MONEY

HOW TWELVE- LASCARS WERE LOST ON SINKING LINER. AYRSHIRE IN COLLISION. FBOM orjß SrECIAI COH.KESFONDENT. LONDON, January 10. Graphic stories of the collision between the Anglo-New... Zealand steamer Ayrshire and the Etlerniau liuer Arcadian, of which you have had lined news by cable, are told this week »y survivors from the sunken A"readia-n. The collision occurred early on Sunday morning in a fog off the Tuskar Light, County Wexford, and resulted in the lobs of twelve of Hue Arcadian s. Lascar crew. They staved belowUo pick up their money and other possessions anil failed to get clear of the sinking ship in time. . .. The passenger steamer Ayrshire, ol Glasgow, which had been up the Manchester Ship Canal, left Liverpool on Saturday with 200 passengers and a geiieral cargo on board for Australia. Wm 1-e she was liaising down th-e Channel a log of great density caone on. She groped her wa.v along in the fog, and was near the nmall lignthouse, when she suddenly crashed into another steamer, which was subsequently found to be the Arcadian. , , . The Arcadian was so much damaged that she rapidly filled with water, and sank ill''less than Jive minutes, carrying with her twelve of her crew. The others hud-Willi great uiniculiy succeeded in getting on board the Ayrshire. Ine tatter steamer received u severe blow forward. Ultimately the tug lioninah. Jolliffe arrived on toe scone lrom Hol}head. She got a hawser on _ board the Ayrshire, and towed her into Holyhead hairbour of refuge.

"ONE BANG AND NOTHING MORE." . After summing up tbe wiioie tragic affair in the phrase "one baJi-g and 110th'ing more," one of tbe Arcadian's Lascans gave his experiences of tbe co - lisioni! and the seuues immediately following. When he heard the "bang he was below. It was'-.followed by a rasping sound, as if t»uKu.hnig were bemg torn asunder. He made his way towards the deck as quickly as possible, but did not succeed in re.Kihiiiiig it before , the v-esael appeared to be tilted up on end in the water,: amd there was a succession of horrible noites as of explosions, which he could-not account for. \zi opinoii was expressed by the English sailors' ttiatVhadthe coloured men been more "anxious to save their lives than, their rupees, the ..Ices of hie would in all probability have been email. Most of the crew- were below, when the collision - occurred,'. and at the first shock an extraordinary scene was witnessed. The ..Lascars, fearful of losing the most trilling personal .possessions; packed aJI their l»loi:B»3igs, i>ucludiii<g their money, into parcels, wiiioh • they tied with coloured handkerchiefs. Tney then dashed up the ladders in■lrsintio haste, but on reaching the deck "'any °* were swept into the sea. The las; aigi'Jt of one of the Lascars was dramatic, in the extreme. The unfortunate man. reached the deck lust before the ship wen* down, and evidenuiy realised that all hope of escape from' death had vanished.. LOST WITH HIS -RUPEES. /

In a manner characteristic of his race he suddenly living himßelf upon his knees and,' gripping his rupees firmly in his hand, bowed nis head in prayer, and then disappeared—the coloured handkerchief with its silver: contents still he'ld firmly in his hand. . . ', A remarkably harrow escape was that ,jf one of the members of' the. engineroom staff ""Immediately, on hearing tho eound of the impaet he leaped on to tho ladder leading -to the deck, and made good his escape. The next moment water ivas pouring in a torrent into the engineroom, and had the man remairjcd he must ' have been washed among tho machinery, and so have met with' a horrible fate. As it was, the mrush partially aided him in getting above, for retaining his hold on the Bide of the ladder, the buoyancy of the water automatically,;carrie'd him up. Another of the engine-room staff was seen hanging from, the highest point of the ship, which .was at an angle of something like; 75 deg. with the surface of the soa. Escape-by way ot was impossible, as he could never have retained a foothold. Tbe only course open to him was to plunge.into - the water, and trust to being picked up by one of the boats, and this he did, h'-.-ins eventually rescued in on exhausted condition.

All the men sppke in terms of praise o. the conduct of the Ayrshire's captain, who kept his Ehip iciose to ..the other long enough to give the men a chance of saving their lives. But for this ihe ;cn.sualty list would have been,much greater.Mi Daws, of London, second officer of the Arcadian, had his wife on board, and when the collision had taken place lie went, to try to find her. Tins carded him to have a narrow escape .■lums?Ji. loitunately his wife had been got on board the Arvshire -and w saved. Mr Bel, the chief officer, in .jumping from tlife sinkimr vessel f?ll into the sea, but was rescued. The Aryshire was built by Messrs Hawthorn, Leslie, and Co., Newcastle, in IDU3. and is owned by the Kldorske Steamship Company. Glasgow, -London, and Dunedin, New Zealand. • fche has a gross register of 5C82 tonsT The Arcadian belonged to tlie,Ellerman Line, and was built at Sunderland.