GRIM DAYS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24415, 28 September 1940, Page 10

GRIM DAYS

BOAT AT SEA DRAMATIC RESCUE SURVIVORS OF SINKING SIX CHILDREN INCLUDED (United Press Association) (By Electric Telegraph— Copyright) LONDON, Sept. 26. (Received Sept. 27, at 7 p.m.) Forty-six more survivors of th* City of Benares, the evacmtion ship which was torpedoed in the Atlantic last week, were landed at a British port to-night. They spent eight days in a lifeboat before being sighted and picked up. • ■ Six more children were among th:se saved, leaving the number of child victims of the torpedoing- at 79. . . The survivors paid a tribute to the heroism of the children during the anxious days, of exposure at sea. Two Sunderland flying boats, one of which was an Australian, found the additional survivors. A warship later picked up the survivors, who were 600 miles from land. The Australian Sunderland had'just been relieved frcm convoy duty when it found the lifeboat. The Australian captain flew to the convoy and asked the captain of the R.A.F. Sunderland, which had taken over from him, to ensure that the survivors were rescued. Preparing to Face Death The survivors said the lifeboat’* rations and water were exhausted, and they were preparing to face death wnen they heard the roar of a Sunderland flying boat’s engines. The survivors included a number of members cf the crew, all of -whom were admitted to hospital. Also among the survivors weremillionaire Polish shipping magnate, M. Bohdan Nagorski, a Roman Catholic priest, Father /O’Sullivan, and Miss Cornish. The two last-named were children’s escorts., - M. Nagorski said a ship was sighted on the sixth day. “We signalled frantically,” he said, “ but it passed on without seeing the lifeboat. The children behaved magnificently. After two days we discovered a sail in the locker, with which and with the aid of oars we made good headway.' The officer decided to steer east in the hope of reaching the coast. The next two days were like a nightmare. Heavy seas broke over time after time, and it took all of our efforts to prevent the. children from being washed overboard.” Children’s Experiences Howard Clayton, aged 11, said: “We had a terrible time. The first night we saw other floating rafts, and at daybreak we picked up a number until the boat became rather crowded. Miss Cornish took charge right away and dealt out food and water. We did not have breakfast any day. The first meal was lunch, when we were given 'half . a biscuit, and sometimes a piece of sardine and a little meat. Once daily each received one-eighth of a peach and a little .water. . .This had Jo. do , us all afternoon; . For tea we received another biscuit and water. There was also condensed milk, but we did not take it because we discovered it thickened the saliva and made us terribly thirsty. One of the boys first sighted the Sunder r land when it was a speck miles away. Miss Cornish was a wpnder. She massaged our feet to prevent them being affected by water and cold. The crew of the warship gave us clothes. We had a great time coming home.” ' . . ■ Kenneth Sparks, aged .11, said: “Rowing all night was the worst of all. The boys took turns and also turns at resting under the canyas in the bow, where there was room for three. I was the first to see the Sunderland. . Father O’Sullivah began praying it would see us, and all the boys joined in. A seaman signalled the plane. Which answered Some of us began to cry.’ Everyone was lifted on board the warship. They could not walk because they had not stood up since getting into the lifeboat.” Sole Woman’s Fine Work The fourth officer of the City of Benares, Mr R. M. Cooper, commanded the lifeboat and navigated it by means of a compass and the sun. He discovered when the rescuers arrived that the boat had travelled 200 miles. The survivors agree that the boys owe their lives to a Londoner, Miss Mary Cornish, aged 21.’ 1 The boys were crouched in a pitifully confined space for their limbs, and she improvised an exercise to' keep the children . warm. She was the only woman on board, the lifeboat.,’,.

Miss Cornish paid a high tribute to the children, who never complained, even when they could not eat the dry biscuits because they were too thirsty. Miss Cornish said: “The main problem was to keep the boys’ circulation going in the bitter cold. Our most favoured pastime was planning meals to have- ■ aftfeT our rescue. We lost all count of time after two days.” All the children were Government evacuees.