WRECK OF THE LA BELLA.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume XLIX, Issue 12658, 21 November 1905, Page 7

WRECK OF THE LA BELLA.

GRAPHIC ACCOUNT OF THE

CASUALTY

BRAVE RESCUE WORK

BY A -FISHERMAN IN A DINGEY

A STIRRING SCENE

MELBOURNE, Sunday. Further particulars are to hand in conmection with the disaster to the •brigantine La Bella, which wjis wrecked off the breakwaters at Warrnambool. iSeven members of the orew have perished. She struck on a reef half a mile off the breakwater at 10 o'clock on Friday night, and went to pieces early on (Saturday morning. Twice the lifeboat essayed to reaoh v the hapless vessel, to which the figures of the men could be seen clinging, but without avail. At three a.m. Pilot Roe decided to go out again, and stand by the ship till dawn. There was a heavy | sea running, and the vessel was being frequently swept :by the waves. The crewliad taken refuge in the fore-part of the La Bella.

When daylight broke the survivors could be seen clustered together near tte forecastle, over -which seas occasionally broke, completely obscuring the men from view. The sihip rolled tremendously in the trough of the billows,, and sustained such an incessant bumping on <the rocks that at soon became evident that she could not long survive tihe treatment. The lifeboat could not approach, and .after standing by till a quarter before five o'clock, slie returned to the breakwater. She reported that it was .impossible to rescue the crew in such a surf. Two attempts made afterwards to throw a line resulted in failure, owing to the distance being too great. The unfortunate men on deck were eeen to foe frantically waving their arms and 'beckoning as though conscious that their craft was about to break up. Breaker after breaker literally cubmerged the ship. Had the crew not been lashed to .the woodwork they must inevitably have been swept off. The La Bella swerved round with her bow seawards, and the breakers which previously had rolled along the full length of the vessel now struck iher broadside on, ■hastening the work of destruction. She /settled down perceptibly. It looked as though she Would go to pieces before the lifeboat reached her. A.s breaker after breaker poured in, 'a seething cataract over the hull, it cou^Q be seen from the lessened size of the group that two or three had been ©wept off. At this juncture the lifeboat swung round the breakwater and again headed for the wreck. A gigantic roller enveloped the hapless craft, and it seemed certain that the crew could no longer retain their precarious hold in _such a swirling vortex of angry waters. To the amazement and relief of the aweStrdcken spectators, the plucky fellows still held on, moving, with the greatest difficulty, to a higher portion of the vee-, sel, which had swerved right over op. her beam ends and began to gradually disappear. The lifeboat meanwhile made its way slowly but surely to the ship. FOTERMAN'S HEROISM. Young "William Ferrier, a fisherman, jumped into a dingey, and, propelling his little craft with a single oar at the stern, directed a course straight for the Le Bella. The lifeboat stopped when about 200 yards from the ship, the pilot considering it impossible for his craft to live dn such breakers, and remained standing by ready to pick up any survivors who might venture to plunge into the surf. The unfortunate men of the brigantine could be eeen from the shore piteousily imploring the lifeboat to come nearer. The scene was of a most heartrending character. Two men at last jumped overboard in the direction of the 'lifeboat while it was fully 100 yards away, and they could be distinctly seen by spectators swimming in the seething waters. At this moment William Ferrier showed great heroism. Realising that the men might not have sufficient strength to reach the lifeboat, he spurted his little dingey right ahead in the face of the raging billows, and came up with one of the two, who proved to be the captain. By a piece of skilful boatmanship, and with great presence of mind, Ferrier turned his dingey round, with the bow to the shore, before the next roller overtook the frail craft, and thus obviated having his boat sunk through being caught side on to the breakers. Cheers went up from the shore in recognition of Ferrier's selfsacrificing bravery. The cheers were renewed when, having pulled the dingey into calmer water, he was noticed to divest himself of his guernsey and place it on the roan he had rescued.

The lifeboat then picked up a swimmer, and as tlhe seas were receding, ventured a little nearer the wreck. Ferrier again turned his 'boat seawards and renewed his search for the survivors. Two men could now be seen remaining on the rapidly-vanishing hull. Taking advantage of the teniporary lull in the violence of the 'breakers, the lifeboat approached a little nearer. The men for a- wbile stood like statues, and the lifeboat -waited for them to take the plunge. One of them moved further astern, and the lifeboat moved a little nearer to encourage them to leap. It was a stirring moment. A sense of breathless anxiety pervaded the crowd on shore. At this juncture the steamer Flinders came into view from the westward, and simultaneously the dauntless 'Ferrier landed the captain at the breakwater amid deafening cheers. A few moments later one of the remaining two men on the ill-fated ship sprang into the surf, and, after swimming about 80 yards, was got aboard the lifeboat. Only one sailor now .remained to be rescued, and young Ferrier again was the man to perform the perilous duty. Immediately after landing the captain he went off once more in his dingey, and was quickly aibreasfc of the lifeboat, which 'remained almost stationary, expecting the solitary occupant of the shattered hull to also make <bis leap for life. The man, however, could not be enticed to leave iris perilous position. There was further diminution in the size of the seas that surged around the battered remains of the La- Bella, and he seemed 'hopeful that it might be possible to get a line aboard from the lifeboat. Ferrier, (however, was bent on taking advantage of the opportunity of rescuing the man. (Making a dash past the lifeboat, he sculled up to the stern of the vessel, which was by this time almost down to the water's edge, and brought th© dazed and exhausted man into safety. The venturesome and gallant act raised another ringing cheer from the assemibled crowd, and when the plucky fisherman came ashore on •his final trip he received an ovation from the spectators. Ferrier is 25 years of age, and is a married man.

The survivors state that they had an awful ordeal, lasting nearly ten ihours. During the "whole night they were continually deluged and knocked about by <the waves breaking over the ship. At times they despaired of rescue, especially when their comrades lost their lives. The survival's, who were in a very weak state, had to be carried or led from the lifeboat and dingey to vehicles. The scene on the breakwater when they landed was a memorable one. There was a great demonstration amongst ■many hundreds of spectators. The captain tried to walk along the breakwater, but after proceeding some way, had to be carried. The <ot!her survivors were also carried into vehicles. They presented a most pitiful sight, tout were well cared for.

Payne, who was the last man saved, ■was in the worst condition. After a

night's rest, however, all were doing well.

In less than ah hour after the rescue was effected the ship parted. What is supposed to be the ibow and a considerable portion of 'wreckage sank close to the reef out of sight. LAST MAN TO LEAVE THE WRECK.

An able-bodied seaman named Payne, who was the last man to 'be taken from the wreck, said, dn the course of an interview:—" I don't think the lifeboat could have come nearer <bef ore it did; it would have been smashed on the rocks. When, we were having a very bad time towards, the last I said to one fellow, " We are doomed," and he said, ' Yes, I think this is the end of us.' Rody Denham was with us then, and he sadd, " We are going to die," but he was as plucky as any of us. I shook him up a 'bit by the arms, but he afterwards laid down, and was w"ashed overboard by the first 'mate, Mr Coulson. I got hold of a life-line when it was thrown to me, but somehow, it got.entangled about my neck and shoulders, amd that was why I. didn't jump overboard." •'.■"■•'.