THE SUEVIC DISASTER.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXIV, Issue 10961, 2 May 1907, Page 4

THE SUEVIC DISASTER.

! 500 LIVES IN DANGER. j i LONDON, March 22. The fuller accounts now available of the disaster to the Suevie confirm in every particular the statements originally made as to the cool and collected behavior of the captain, the discipline shown by the passengers (with few exceptions) and urow, and tho marvellous skill_ care and patience shown in the' work of rescue. In every respect tlie personal conduct of the Biitish seaman is looked upon as one for natural pride. The Suevie had made a splendid passage Home, and all went well until on Sunday night shortly before 10 o'clock she ran into a dense fog, which obscured even the powerful Lizard light, which in clear weather can be seen for 60 "miles. A farewell party had been held on board a short time before the fog was encountered, and, barring a few "late birds," most of the passengers had retired to rest, or to pacK up ia readiness for landing at Plymouth on the morrow. About half-past 10 the sleepers wer.e awakened by a harsh grating sound, followed by A lEKRIFIC CRASH, ...'-.- --which made the ship quiver like a jelly. reverberating crash followed, and a moment later the sleeping •■ ship leapt to life. People streamed on to the decks from their cabins, nightgowned mothers with their babies clasped in their eai ms, their faces blanched with fear, and men and women iii all stages of dishabille. For a few minutes confusion reigned supreme, but Captain Jones and hk officers and the crew kept their heads, and in a short space of time order was restored. Assured that they were in no immediate danger, the passengers -returned to their cabins' to don their clothing. Lifebelts were served out, and hot coffee was provided in tlie library. Meanwhile the boats were provisioned, distress signals made, and every preparation taken, for disembarking the passengers, who included no less 'than 75 children. It- was found the* steanlei\ had made straight for j the cliffs on wliicli the 'Lizard lighthouse is situated. But for the fact; that she had struck ; tlio'" jagged Star Rocks she \yould .liave crashed into the cliffs;vimme"aiately.. beiojv the light, aa did the American liner Mohigan.-.' seven- years ago, when, -vghe :.. struck the dreaded_ Manacle rocks, witli^a. s_crifice of 107 lives. '■■■ r^As soph, as it becpie clear ;that there j^asitio^ chance of getting lhe Suevie clear 1 of >the' rocks the.-first boat Was launched. ''VJTpmeh- and. chfldfeh.firct'^ wjs,'s • the captain's cry, and s6"on;the boat was filled with ladies and theirtliltle, ones. By this •time the passengers were. calm. Captain . ;;jqnes Set a good example .of. coolness, foi he' superintended- the ' operation" of loading tlie boats puffing a big cigar, as though ; shipwreck was an everyday sort Of experience.,; Yet .in his i experience of 39 years at sea, seventeen of which he ha*served as captain, it had not been his lot to meet with such a disaster. And this , was lus last voyage ! Tha work oi rescue Avas one of great difficulty^ owing to the fog, the heavy seas running arid the tocks abounding ''•'in" the .vicinity of the "stranded ship. But the sailors oh board- and ; th© gallant crews of the lifeboats from Cadgwith, Mullion, Porthleveii;, and Caverack were 'equal to the occasion, and' the whole; oi the- passengers '.-. were .lari'ded scatheles-s; save^ for one lady, who fell into one ol the boats and hurt 'her- head.' ■„.'■.' The landing of the .passengers at the Lizard; Gove was attliided Wltlic-a. great deal of . difficulty and considerable danger. One of the ship's boats having landed a complement at.-the v Lizard..was hurled by a -huge sea against' the cliffs and' smashed}..: the' crew -haying a narrow ; escape. It was impossible even to bring the lifeboats close "to the "landing-place, : and bi*ave. men. waded in. the' surf carrying the rescued from,- the i boats -to the shore. Somepf thei-landing scenes were .affecting, in the .extreme. v , Alany...of the passengers were hysterical or uuconsciouSj anc. even some of the men'.liad swooned. As: the worl^of rescue proceeded,, it w a ,f foimd^tliat'the?lanaing at the^Lizard Cov* was 'attended' by : too many perils, arid' the bulk of the people rescued were^landed 4hvtheriiore sheltered 'ctfve, of /Cadgwith, two miles away. The "difehbats*. were toWed tliither by the * ste,ani-;;tUgboats, several of. which appeared. on^ the scene iii response to the Kuevic's sighals of distress, but, were unable to get near tht steamer, owing to her position among the rocks and the heavy seas running. .'. ■ '-, The woik* of rescue went, on .without intermission all through tlie. night, ..arid ■ it was well advanced - when Captain JoneQ was'" able to telegraph to tlie White H Star Company that all' tlie passengers had been landed. Most .' of them were :. temporarily housed at the Lizard, Cadgwitlv and-'Fal-mouth, v ; ; ,/ X fU ; l lie Suevie passengers one and . all pay warm tribute to Captain Jones, his officers and crew, whose coolness and courage prevented anything approaching a panic. And the ladies say "the men were splendid," meaning, thereby the male passengers, and the men return the. compli-r mertt heartily. > Particular- praise has been bestowed, upon George Anderson and "Bill".^illiams, able seamen, wlio were particularly concerned in the saying of -the babies. Owing to the heavy seas which lashed the side of the vessel, descent into the lifeboat was only possible part of the way by rope-ladder^ -.-arid then by sliding - down a- single; rope. Anderson, and his mate, Bill Williams, undertook to carry 111© babies' down to the lifeboat. --"First," he said, "we carried a mother, and then her baby, so as to keep tnem together as much:- as. we could. I tell you the way some of these mothers clasped their baim s 'and 'God blessed' me made a lump come in- my throat. I felt that I could have ■ swum' ashore with the babies if need be." When lhe Jifeboats got near shore the work was equally perilous; as the boats could not get near the landing-place for fear ot being dashed to pieces. It was necessarv to throw the babies from the boat to the shore, and they were.all safely caught, in the arms of lhe sfalwart Cornisti fishermen. , About 150 of the Suevic's passengers arrived af Paddington from I'enzance ; and Falmouth shortly before 6 p.m. on Tuesday night, travelling in a special Great Western expief.6. For a considerable time before the arrival of the train a large crowd of friends of the passengers had assembled on the platform. So soon as the, train was brought to a standstill t-lw doors were flung open, and there ensued a mad scramble as the passengers rushed through the crowds to their friends. The passengers proceeded to one of the .wait-ing-rooms, where officials :of the White 'Star line were busy taking addresses tc which any luggage recovered could ibe forwarded." Some of the passengeis presented a remarkable spectacle. Many were clad in clothes which obviously had never been made for them, but which had been supplied by the kindly people on the Lizard coast. The costumes of the niajo. rity were more or less of a makeshift character. Some were without hats, others overcoats, some collars, and so on. Nearly 'all the ladies had wraps for headgear, and in place of coats wore- new' rugs round their shoulders. The huge luggage, van at the fo"e end of the train contained not a single valise. Many of the passengers liad woeful tales 1 to tell of the loss oi tlieir goods and Valuables ; some, indeed 3 having abandoned all their worldly possessions. But many insisted that- the worst feature of all was the loss of their clothin g- , it is officially reported that the chief items of the Suevic's cargo are as follows -. 9465 bares of wool, £160,000 ; 14,690 casee of butter, £36,750; 3279 bars and 3500 ingots of .copper, £80,000; 1500 casks oi tallow, £13,000; 25,000 carcases. of mutton, £175,000 ; beside a large quantity ol rabbits and skins, in all about £500,000. Ideal weather , for the salvage of the steamer ha® prevailed at .the Lizard generally since the Suevic's mishap. The whole of the passengers' baggage has been recovered, and a large quantity of avool and grain has been conveyed to Falmouth. The latest salvage news from the stranded steamer could liardly ibe more favorable, and underwriters are cheering up a little after the series- of 'blows dealt (hem during the past fortnight. Mr M. Lloyd, paying '.his first visit to tliis country from New Zealand, was aboard the Suevie. "I was in bed when the crash came," said Mr Lloyd to an Auckland Star correspondent, "and I rushed upstairs' in my pyjamas. Then I came down and finished dressing. Tlie captain came down from the bridge, and said, 'You need not be alarmed, there is no danger; just tak« things coolly.'" Then the boats were ordered out, and the stewards instructed to put life-belts on the passengers. It was three in the morning befoi'e tue gentlemen passengers began to be taken on', and tliis- work lasted till halfpast twelve. Many preferred to wait for daylight, as there was no danger in remaining on board. The lifeboats - took many people to the tugs, which then steamed direct to Falmouth, and .returned for more. At Falmouth we wore all accommodated in hotels last night." Among other New Zealandeis on the Suevie weie Mrs and Miss Bartholomew and Miss Seabright, who reached Loudon on Tuesday afternoon. Mrs Bartholomew, v ihterv.icwed. said: "We 'bad just retired to our bunks at -a quarter to eleven on Sunday night, when we felt a violent shock. One of Our party ran up ou deck to see wluit! it^was, arid cam© back saying that the engines had stopped, and we should be delayed. We thought it was all right, arid did not trouble. Then we heard some women scream, and. a gentleman came to tollus it was nothing to be alarmed al. Some hysterical ladies had rushed up on deck in their night-dresses, thinking the boat was going down. Just after this a doctor came and said : 'Ladies, take my advice and dress*, and come on deck ai once.' This we did, and then found that the ship liad struck on a rock, and the boats were ordered to be lowered. There were about 400 passengers on board, and it was eleven o'clock on Monday -wining before wc were all landed. There was no p.inic among tno passengers with the exception of the few ladies 1 referred to. The women and children wove the first' to be s;ived. and flu's mused sonic ti : iirfu^ scenes, as husbands and wives were separated, 'iiie women all climbed down the tides of the ship, and were swung by Ipges into the boats, The captain , wag

very kind. His own grief nt the loss of his shi*> was pitiful, but his first thought was for the passengers' safety. We were about the last of the ladies to leave. The first boat lliafc was launched was smash' | ed on the rocks, nnd we saw a little boy thrown >nto the sea, but he was rescued. We have lost all our luggage."