TWO MEN IN A DINGHY.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXXIII, Issue 12580, 29 September 1908, Page 7

TWO MEN IN A DINGHY.

Bailing out with a Boot

Orew's Thrilling Experience

ADELAIDE, September 19. During the wintry conditions on WedmtJday afternoon, a small dinghy, with a man and youth aboard, made its appearance at the Grange. The couple were making for the shore. As ship-wrecked mariners, they had scrambled into the dinghy on Wednesday afternoon, alter the ketch Triumph (15 tons) had sunk. The Triumph was bound for Port Adelaide with a cargo of mallee roots, and sprang a lealc halt an hour before she founiered. The spot where the vessel fies is given as about 17 miles "rom YVonga Shoal lighthouse, by west-north-west. When the leak was discovered, .recourse was had to the pump, which proved insufficient to cope with the inflow of water. * - . .

• Wilson, master of the ketch, says: "A sea-struck us and, swept the lee. deck cargo overbdara. The roots on the other side slipped across the deck, to the leeward, and the ketch went jight over on its side, and went down straight, .away, broadside on. I felt" a knock on the back and w^s carried under water elightly. When I regained the surface.' the dinghy, which we had. towing behind <he ketch,, was floating. -I swanl to it, and cut the two painters iastened to the ketch. "They were drawn tight below. . i looked for my mate, , who could ' not 6 wim. He was 20 feet away, hanging to the main gaff % of the ketch, which had not then disappeared. 1 I called out to him, 'Strike for the dinghy.'. He did so, and got within five or six feet of the boat. He then went under.' Then I next saw. one of his hands sticking out of tlie.w^ter, which I grabbed, arid pulled.* him on board. Fortunately, the paddles were in the ' boat. The ketch eauk within a few minutes. The dinghy was only 10 feet long, and we set it straight before the wind and sea, which were in our favour, and pulled with the oars, though it was impossible to reach the shore on account of the high seas. "The steamer Juno passed us within half a mile, bound for Stansbury, but our signals could not have been observed, as she did not stop. The seas appeared likely at any moment to ?wamp us. Twice the dinghy got half-full of water. We did have a time. 1 took one boot off to bale her out, and Bird was similarly engaged with his cap. We kept on a straight course, and finally lauded near Orange Jetty. We pulled the .dinghy up on 'he beach and took train to port. I'll have a look for another job- now." The Trinmph was constructed of wood, and was bnilt in 1887.