Evening Star Newspaper, November 15, 1928, Page 6

SURVIVOR TELLS " OF EXPERIENCES Paints Vivid Picture of Fight to Save Own Life and That of Woman. Paul A. Dana. representative of the Radio “Corporation of America in South America and a passenger on the Vestrls, and:Mrs. Clara Ball, a stewardess on the Vestris, were called the pluckiest pair he had ever « geen by Cept. Schuyler Cummings of the American Shipper, who rescued them. They had been floating in the water for 22 hours at the time of their rescue. Dana tells his story of the foundering and the subsequent hours of terror in the following story. BY PAUL A. DANA. ©On a sick bed, as told to Lorena A. Hickok, Associated Press Staff Writer. (Copyrisht, 1928, by the Associated Press.) NEW YORK, November 15.—Our first night out, Saturday night, the Vestris began to hit rough weather. As the night progressed, the storm got worse, until, before the night was over, we were in the worst storm I ever saw on the sea. It was late that night—perhaps a little after midnight—that a thing hap- pened which I believe started the trouble that ended in ‘the tragic sinking of the ‘Vestris. Plate Thought Wrenched. ‘Two big wayes. hit her, almost simul- taneously, bow and stern. The ship quivered from end to end. You. could almest feel ‘her wrenching. The next day she developed a leak, and I believe that started the list. One of her plates must have been wrenched loose. 1t was rough Saturday night—and Sunday was rougher. Only four of the passengers besides myself were down for wreakfast. “The minute I ‘stepped out of my cabin that morning I began to feel uneasy. The Vestris was listing. I had been on steamers before that listed, but I had never seen quite such a list before. It looked bad. “In the dining salon that morning I met Capt. Frederick Sorenson, and we started to talk things over. .He did not like that list either. Inasmuch'as he was a sailor, I decided he must know what he was talking about—that he was a good man to stay with. We spent most of the day together. “Whether the other passengers were uneasy, I don’t know. Most of them were violently seasick snd spent the whole day in their bunks. As I said, there were only five down for break- fast. No more showed up for lunch or dinner. Furniture Crashes in Storm. “By the middle of the afternoon— while the storm-still continued with no apparent let-up—the list ‘become: so pronounced that al': the " furniture'] that wasn’t fastened down in the dining salon and in the smoking room had slid over to the starboard side, ‘where it was crashing around as the ship rolled. o 18 7 “After dinner,” Sorénson and;I went into the smoking r and started for the bar. We managed to find two chairs ‘wedged in on the starboard side of the smoking room, from which he could reach around into the bar. I had a couple of whiskies and sodas, felt a little better, and Went to bed about 10 a'clock. After., ing my bed into_a corner of the cabin 'sb it couldn’t slide; srotind, I got to° . £y 2N “My cabin ‘was on the top deck, star-| board side. Wheén I Woke up at & o'clock: Monday morning there was the water—right on a level with my windows. There was water sloshing around on the floor of my cabin, too. Water Level With Deck. “My steward came in, groaning, with & badly wrenched shoulder. There was apparently a leak, he said, the hold was’ filling with water, and he had heen bailing—with a bucket—all night. ‘The cargo had shifted, too, and the ship had tipped clear over until the ‘water was on a level with my windows on the top deck. “1 dressed as quickly as I could, ate the banana which was all my steward could get for my breakfast, and went up on the bow port deck. ‘The crew was throwing the cargo ovarboard—all the stuff they ‘could handle. It lopked like bales of cloth and ench stuff. Their “derricks weren't, working, 50 they:couldn't' get rid of the heavier things, lke automobiles. A little crowd of men stood up there, leaning over the railing and watching the - crew throw the stuff overboard; some of them had come out with their life preservers on. They looked badly scared. Although I had dressed myself that morning with the idea that I'd probably have to leave. the ship; before the day was over, I tried mot to take ch a dark view of the thing. Some of us did what we could to cheer the more timid opes—told them, this was just a precaution and so on. ‘The sky had cleared during the night, and now the sun was shining brightly. ‘The wind was still blowing hard—how- ever—and those waves, great, towering black waves, looked 40 feet high. “Nice Day for Wreck.” “Well, anyway, we've got a nice day ta be wrecked on,” one of the men re- marked with a grin. Officers were going about, cheery but non-committal, They never told us any- thinz. I never knew until after the Ves- tris had gone down that they had even sent out an S O S, although, when I| went into the smoking room for a little while that morning and tried to read and divert my mind, I thought I heard the radio sort of sputtering. } Once 1 went back to my cabin to try to rescue my money that I had left in a trunk. The trunk was under water and wedged in under my bunk. I got my passport, stuck a pack of cigarettes in my pocket, and left—for good. i The ship kept on tipping. It looked | to me as though she had a list of 45| degrees. You could hardly walk on the deck. “At 10:30 the women and children were brought up and were told to’put on life preservers. Still we got no definite information from the officers or crew. Women Are Praised. “The women were wonderful. Some of them were crying quietly, but there was no hysteria. One of them held in her arms a baby not more than 8 months old. All the children had been bundled up. They knew now that they would probably have to leave the ship. “~Isn't this fun?” I said to one little fellow with bright blue eyes, trying to cheer him up. He looked at his mother, who was crying, and nodded—solemnly. #“At 11:30 they started to launch the | 1ifeboats, over the.port side—the side | that was up as she listed. Then the trouble began. It took them two hours to launch those bofits, an operation that usually takes about 10 minutes. | “The difficulty was that the lifeboats | kept catching on the sides of the ship. ‘The outside of the lifeboats were cov- ered with clapboards, like a frame house, and these would catch on the overlapping steel plates of the ship's hull. They tried to hold the lifeboais out—away from the ship—by pushing with oars. It was a slow and painful process. “Boat No. 8—the lifeboat to which I was assigned—had a hole torn in hr gide as they were letting her down. They. patched it up with a piece of tin A remarkable view from the deck of the Vestris of a boatload of passengers leaving the ship. —P. & A. Photo lb?ll'd the steamship Berlin. —P. & A. Photo. before they let us in, but the tin didn't old. “When the boats were about 20 feet down the rope ladder and get in. Two boats were filled with women and chil- dren before they. filled No. 8. “In No. 8, before I got in, were 10 women and 2 children—youngsters about 6 or 8 years old. One of them was Clara Ball, with whom I subse- quently floated on the plece of wreck- age. Another was Mrs. Inoye, wife of at Buenos Aires. The ship's bartender was abgard, and our crew consisted of four negro sailors. Sees Men Leave Ship. “Three minutes after we pulled away thekvest.rh keeled over on her side and sank. “I think one of the funniest things left on board—racing madly down her side and diving off from her keel. “One boat never got away at all. It was still on deck when she sank. They had tried to launch some from her starboard side, but they had had to cut them away before they could be filled. These were rowed atound to where her keel had been when she went down, and they picked up a lot of the swimmers. “She went down silently—with just a little puff of steam. Her boilers must have been cold. The engin® room had not been functioning all morning. “Just a few minutes after we pulled away, our lifeboat began to fill with from the water, they told us to climb | the_counselor of the Japenese embassy | I saw was 40 men—apparently all those‘} | water. The tin patch tore away. She | had air compartments, however, 5o that | we could stay in her, even after she was_under water. “Still_the women tried to keep calm, although tears. streamed down their cheeks. There was no screaming. “One of the children started to whimper. His. mother—hastily drying her eyes—tried to comfort him. Lifeboat Is Capsized. {“It wasn't long before a big wave cdme along and capsized us. I got caught under the lifeboat as she turned oyer. I wasn't hurt, except for a little scrape op my neck. As I struggled out from under I saw a woman’s foot bob up. I grabbed it and hauled her with me. It was Miss Ball. “One of the women had been drown- ed when the boat tipped over. Most of the occupants came up, however, including the children. “We all got on one side, pulled and managed to right it again. The women and children climbed in. | “But the waves were pounding it to | pleces. The air compartments, stored under the ‘seats, tore loose. She was breaking up. [P Great iack waves—they looked to | be 100 feet high from where we were— | kept pounding down on us. women—all cxcept Miss Ball. | "I saw & piece of wood—wreckage— | floating in the water nearby. ‘Come on,’ I sald! We swam to it. | R e childten disappeared, and the | did so—never a whimper out of her. We then proceeded to make ourselves gs]camlorlnble as we could—to wait for elp. Says Water Is Warm. “The water was warm—warmer than you find it in an indoor swimming tank. It was so warm, in fact, that you hardly gasped when you plunged in. The fact that it was warm probably helped.to save our lives. But it was enervating, too. “Miss Ball was fully dressed, with a coat and sweater on under her life preserver. She had on gloves, which certainly saved her hands. Mine are all cut up. “Through the afternoon we clung to the spar. It wasn't so bad, except for the waves, Our life preservers held us up and having something to cling to made it easier to keep our heads out of the water, Only every now and then a great big wave would come crashing down on us, almost knm:klngl the life out of our bodies and smothering us in foam. “I think the hardest thing was to | keep from getting excited and founder~ ing about. We had to save our strength | and not move about unnecessarily. Miss Ball was wonderful. She showed iron nerve, Never a whimper out of her. “Several times during the aftcrnoon we tried to hail the lifeboats, but they couldn't hear us or se2 us becausz of th> waves, I don't think they passed us up deliberately. ““Take hold of one end,’ I to'd her, ‘and Il take the other’ Silently shz \ swimmers in waves liké those. “Toward sunset it began to cloud up. It's pretiy hard to spo. And then a thought flashed into my mind that made me feel a little sick all over. Sharks. Captain “Cussed” for Delay. “I don’t know whether Miss Ball ever thought of them or not. If she did, she kept still about it. i “During that long night of waves and wind and rain we clung to the spar— talking intermittently. She told me that she was a stewardess. When we made for the spar and for several hours after we had attached ourselves to it, I had no idea who she was. “I confess, that we spent a good deal of time cussing out Capt. Carey for not getting those radio messages out earlier. Miss Ball had heard that one went out at 8 o'clock Monday morning and had been canceled. “We agreed, though, that it was a tough break for the captain. Nobody likes to admit he’s licked until he has to. Probably he thought the Vesmsl would ride it out. “I'd like to know if it’s true, though, | that he sent out an S O 8 at 8 o'clock | and then canceled it. | | “The night wore on. Several times | | we saw the searchlights of ships. Thay | | were too far away to see us then, but | |it gave us hope. And several times | fish brushed against my body in th> water and I squirmed. Miss Ball never ! | said a word, if she noticed them. If |she was undergoing what I was, she ! never let on at all. I decided to hold on anyway and wait until a shark tually attacked me before I let go. “Al daybreak came the worst moment |ae of all for us. As the dawn broke—not a ship was in sight. And our piece of wreckage was beginning to break up. We had to hold it together while using it for a support. “At l‘boutp]lxl:‘ o'clock we sighted the Wyoming. She must have been 20 miles away. But our Spar was prac- tically gone. “‘How about it?’ I asked Miss Ball, ‘shall we swim for it?" ‘Without a word, she started off ti:;vlrd the Wyoming. I kept by her side. “We had been swimming for an hour, when I looked back and saw the Amer- ican Shipper. She was only about a mile away, and coming toward us. “I tore off the tail of my shirt and waved it wildly in the air. They saw it. A boat was lowered. “As we got up alongside, they threw out & rope. I fastened it around my body, under my arms, and grabbed Mijss Ball. I had an idea that, when she gi’:h give in, she'd go quickly. I was t. “They hauled us into the boat and then hoisted us up in one of those rope cages they use for hoisting cargo. We never could have made it climbing a ladder. We were much too weak. Sees Sharks After Rescue. “I never was treated more wonderfully in my life than I was on the American Shipper. The doctor ripped my clothes off, gave me a couple of shots n!l whisky and an alcohol rub and told me to to sleep, which I certainly did. V&en I woke up, the steward Was ready to shave me. My clothes were all dried. “I guess there's just one thing mora. About 5 minutes after we were hoisted aboard the American Shipper. & dead bodv floated alongside, and two! charks—-" i (Copyrizht, 1928.) 1 New Zealand shipped $400,000 worth of rabbit skins to other countries in a i recent month. z HORROR OF VESTRIS’ DISASTER TOLD IN PICTURES AND STORIES This survivor of the wreck was in the water 24 hours. He is about to be taken —Wide World Photo. Left: Capt. William J. Carey, who commanded the Vestris and perished with his ship. Right: Lionel Licorice, quartermaster aboard the Vestris, credited with having saved 22 passengers. He was one of the real heroes of the wreck. One of the boats picked up by the steamship Berlin, just before rescue. . & A. Photo. Girl Sobs Wildly at News Brother May Be Reéscued By the Associated Press. LONDON, November 15—A girlish voice quivering with emo- tion called the office of the Evening News on the telephone today and asked, “Have you a list of people saved from -the r answered affirma- h,” responded ould you please look through the list and see if Pat McCulloch s 'mong the sur- vivors?” The girl was informed by the News that McCulloch was one of those picked up by the American Shipper. There was a moment's silence at the other end of the wire and then a burst of wild sob- bing. “It is he. He is my brother. Thank God.” (There are two McCullochs mentioned, as among the crew of the Vestris rescued by the Ameri- can Shipper. The name of one was given as James and the initial of the second as M.) REBELS EXTERMINATED. MEXICO CITY, November 15 (#).— | A dispatch from Aguascalientes today said that the last insurgent band in Auguascaligntes had been exterminated by federal ‘troops. Insurgents, under Lucas Lopez, were deieated at Cien- guilla and dispersed and L. and a number of members of his band w killed. Two prisoners taken probab: will -be executed. Ths body of Lope was exhibited in the public sqyare. —Underwood & Underwood. WOMAN SAW LIGHT AS ROWERS SLEPT | Survivor Says Men in Life- boat Believed She Was Joking. | By the Associated Press. NEW YORK, November 15.—Mrs, | Earl F. Devore, a survivor of the | steamer Vestris, said yesterday that she sighted the searchlight of a rescue ship while the negro oarsmen of the small boat from which she was rescued slept | early Tuesday morning. ‘The men in the boat at first thoyght she was joking, she said, and believed the flash of the light was lightning. As there had been a storm during the night. Mrs. Devore and her husband, an automobile racing driver, who was listed among the disaster dead, left the Vestris in lifeboat No. 8. The boat, which pas- sengers said was patched with tin, soon filled with water and wes capsized by a huge wave. Before the boat was overturned, she had jumped into an- other small boat which came along- side and which she said contained only four persons, “men in white coats, evidently stewards.” ‘Throughout the storm, Mrs. Devore said she was not alarmed, as she had “confidence in the ship and the officer.” “Indeed I was not alarmed until 6 o'clock Monday morning when I looked out of the porthole and saw how much of a list the. boat had,” she - said. ‘There's something wrong,’ said Mr. Devore. Just then.Mr. Batten (Nor- man K. Batten, automobile racing driver) came in and sald: ‘Don't take | time to shave.’ “We went on deck. The slope was dreadful. The ship was below water on the starboard side as far as the upper deck. We had to hold on to the railings to - prevent ourselves from slipping down into the water. Reassured by Officers. » “The officers reassured us and told us that the crew were throwing the cargo overboard, and the coal, and that everything would be all . “We had no breakfast, no Joffee. Our husbands went to the pantfy and got us some fruit. “‘Passengers-were certainly worrfed by this time, but there was no sign of a was' iabout. .11 “o'clock Monday when" they ‘started to get thé lifeboats ready. At first they tried, without sye- cess, to send us off the starboard side. Finally they had to try the port siffe. That took a long time. “Mrs. Batten, myself and our hgs- bands were put in No. 8 boat. It had a hole in it. They started to lower At, but they had no hatchet to cut the ropes. It was filled with people. | “Mr. Devore called up,to the captain and, asked why:they put' many péo- ple in & ldakiAg boat, made no answer. i “We women had to crouch in the bottom of the hoat to give the nien room -to work: the" oars—it was ¥so crowgéd. I ménaged' to get my head up after a few minutes—and the ship was ‘gone. : “Our boat Jgaked badly. We sdw | &fimt th only four people in it. ien in white coats, evidently stewards. We called to them to take some of us off. The boat came alongside and I jumped, thinking the others would fol- low. But the men in the boat said: ‘We can't take any I'!,D'EE'VQ got. to 51 up -‘“g‘\'{"’ y pulled away and Picked tp* zlh ning negraes O the erew. - I¢ould hear ‘husband {and Mr. Batten calling for help. d ‘Glimpses Searchlight. “I pleaded for them to go back, but | they did not go. They even hesitated about pickipg up: another passenger; a | Mr. Davis. I was in the captain's boat 8 smaller boat than the others. They | said it would be dangerous to go into ‘la}'lelv;:gcl‘(;ze. But I"persdulded thém | at les < near we Di | Mr. Davis . - ¢ T, v | “After that I did not see boat ‘8 again. They went out of my sight. { All night I just kept staring to see if | T could catch a glimpse of them. \ | | “During the night the negroes slept - | under a tnrflnufln. They would neither | row nor bafl. | “About midnight it stormed and !‘ hailed, and there was lightning. They ’rowed a little then, .but very ineff- clently. “I was not so cold. I had not been wet like the men. They were very cold “I saw a searchlight first. I dom't know the time. They thought I was Joking and said it' was lightning. Finally at 3:20 they started to row to the searchlight. - They got to the American Shipper at 5 o'clock. One boat had been picked up before us Two or three other boats were rescupd Iater. T was able to walk up the laddet, &“b’e w}:x k]ogi some T’hme tinegroes had auled up, although they had been sleeping all night.” 4 4 Mrs. Devore saved her wire-haired fox tetrier, Speed, which had lain at ;g;;Lreet during the 16 hours in the CONFIDENCE VOICED IN CREW OF VESTRIS — Charge of Inexperience Denied by Assistant Manager of Lam- port & Holt. By the Associated Press. A LIVERPOOL, November 15.—Cal. Samuel Heywood Melly, assistant man~ ager of Lamport & Holt, last night sal “We wish to give absolute i the assertion that the crewde:)‘rnl(g feel Vestris 'was inexperienced and we the boats e. there can be no doubt. thgt were lowered at the rl‘ht time. “We have every confidence in Capt. Carey and his crew. It is absurd fo suggest that the crew was inexperienced. All officers, except the third mate, had master’s certificates and some other members of the crew had been with | the Vestris since she was first commis- sloned. We cannot believe that there was, any delay in lowering.the boats other than that absolutely’ necessary in exceptional circumstances.” . + ARSI WYOMING TO LAND "10° PATIENTS TODAY —_— Eight Belietad to Be Survivors of Vestris—Two “Taken. I’ on Battleship. By the Assoclated Press. NORFOLK, Va., November 15.—Ten | patients aboard - the battleship Wyt mlnf will be brought to the Naval Hos- | pital at Portsmouth this afternoon, it was announced today. No detalls were available, but officers |at the hospital assumed that eight of | the patients probably were survivors of | the wreck of the Vestris known to be | aboard the Wyoming, and that the | other two probably were members of | the battleship's crew, who' have' been | taken ill during the search for sur- vivors. | The battleship, which is expected to reach Hampton Ro3dS§ about 3 o'clock. will be met by an ambulance boat | which will take th> patients aboard land by a tug provided for the use of news writers and photographers. ’.