WRECK OF THE CATTERTHUN ON SEAL ROOK.

Patea Mail, Volume VIII, Issue 96, 12 August 1895, Page 3

WRECK OF THE CATTERTHUN ON SEAL ROOK.

REPORTS OF SURVIVORS. Mr Crane says the captain, the first and second officers, and Captain Fawkes surveyed the scene from the bridge, over which the seas broke from time to time, and from there directed the operations with the boats while the men were under direction. The third officer worked to get the starboard boat out, in order to have the wemeu safely off the vessel, as she threatened to go down any minute. It was seen that the steamer must go down before many seconds elapsed, as she was settling by the stern. A sea which appeared to tower as high as the top of the mast, struck the doomed vessel, and swept her from stem to stern. When it had passed Captain Shannon had disappeared from the bridge, washed away -by the sea, and with him had gone the first and second officers and Captain Fawkes. Of the bridge itself but a remnant was left The furious sea found other victims in those who were clustering round the efforts to launch the starboard'cuttcr. The cutter was smashed to atoms, and every hope was fast being abandoned by the few whom the fury of the waves left on the sinking vessel- One desperate effort was made by those of the crew who were left all the officers having gone. They determined upon a collective attempt, and got the starboard lifeboat safely lowered. A second or two later the Cattorthun rolled over and sank. The boat contained sonm | of the Chnese crow, and they picked up several other Chinese seamen who were floating cn wreckage in the vicinity of the steamer. Mr Crane himself was drawn down by the sinking slug, but soon came to the surface again, and then swam to the boat. Captain Fawkes states : —The outlook was dirty, the weather being squally, and the gale howling and shrioftiug through the rigging with a fury which accounted for the tremendous sea running and breaking over the reef and the steamer. Boat after boat was carried away, and the poop and the after part of the,vessel were going steadily down when a mountainous sea swept the vessel from end to end and carried everything before it. The bridge on which wa were standing was smashed up, and Captain Shannon, the two officers, and myself were thrown into the boiling seg,. All this happened in a few seconds as it seemed to me. I did not learn till after what terrible effect the sea had. It swept pway the starboard cutter, which was at that moment on the point of being launched. I think this sea carried away most of t’ e passengers and crew. The men made desperate efforts to pass the passengers into boats which were lowered into the water, but the rush of water constantly carried the boats inboard. About this time the port lifeboat was smashed and carried away by a sea, one or two of the crew going with it. Neither they nor the boat were seen again. The sea seemed to rage more furiously as the officers and crew made their heroic endeavours to launch boats, and even had they succeeded in this it is doubtful if any of the smaller boats would have lived. Yet it was a very noticeable feature of this terrible scene that calmness and good discipline prevailed amongst nearly all on board. Dr Copeman says;— When work was transferred to the starboard cutter I went forward and got. into it with some others. Several attempts were made to get the cutter into the water, but the pitiless seas breaking over the vessel hampered the work terribly. Ultimately a giant wave broke on board and smashed the cutter to pieces, Those who were in it were thrown into the water, excepting myself. I managed to cling to a spar of a dayi , and hung there in a desperate condition for some time. .1 judged the time to be hours, but it could only have been a few 'minutes. The breakers were rolling over the rock with a terrible roar, and the sea was a seething chasm beneath me. How I clung to the spar I do not know, but at last I heard a boat splash into the water, and beard a hail beneath mo. I thou let go my hold, and then dropped into the water. With good fortune I sank right in front of the lifeboat. A moment later thp 'Catteytjmn disappeared entirely. Wp pia,de a careful search of the wreck before WP left, and stood by until daylight. The Catterthun had 81 on board all told, Accounts are conflicting as to the number of the saved. It is variously stated at 22 and 25, but the latter is certainly the limit. those missing are Mrs Mathias, wifp of the captain of a steamer trading in Chinese waters, who was formerly connected with Money Wigram’s Australian steamships; Dr Anderson, the ship’s surgeon; and a young Victorian doctor named Smith, who joined the ship at the last moment.

THE BOATSWAIN’S STATEMENT. The boatswain states that three boats smashed one after another while being lowered, and the people in them carried j overboard by the tremendous seas. , lifuinber one boat, containing tlie survi« i yors, got clear of the steamer as if by a > nijracle. As she was lowered the steamer ! began to heel, and the boat bumping against the side had a plank stove in, I The boat just managed to escape from the whirlpool in which the Catterthun sank, though she was almost engulfed They 1 had a continuous fear that she would swamp. The boat sailed round several times in search of survivors. 1 When the last boat was ready to lower j the captain shouted to them tp clear out 1 as th© ship was sinking. He was positive it was the captain. He could not mistake bps voice and saw the figure plainly. Th is is important as it was previously s'ated that the captain waa washed from the bridge at the same time as the officers and Captain Fawkes before the vessel sank. If the weather had been fine all would been saved, as there were sufficient boats ami were ready for lower- 1 |ng. The crew, he says, simply obeyed briers, and ney6r attempted to save themselves ipitil ordered by the captain. The ahief steward stayed in the saloon pntil the water pose breast high trying to pursuad© the ladies tq coma out. Then the s'©wards had to leave tp save themselvefo Both Lanfear (second officer), and Captain Fawkes state that they never sighted the green guiding light on the rocks, which would have warned them of the danger. It is believed that this will f< rm the defence of the former, who was in charge of the bridge when the vessel nl vnek.