THE WILTSHIRE'S CREW.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 17472, 5 June 1922, Page 6

THE WILTSHIRE'S CREW.

WARM WELCOME AT AUCKLAND. SURVIVORS' ACCOUNTS OF THE DISASTER. TERRIBLE JOURNEY ACROSS THE ISLAND. HEROIC WORK OF RESCUERS, J (frf.ss association telegram.) AUCKLAND, June 3. The Wiltshire's crew arrived by the Katoa this evening. They received a warm welcome from a huge crowd on the wharf. The Governor-General was the first to board the vessel and greet Captain Hay ward, whom he invited as his guest at Government House, expressing regret that he could not offer hospitality to the rest of the officers. ■ Captain Hayward thanked Lord Jellicoe, but said, "I have only these clothes," to which Lord Jellicoe replied, with a smile, "Mine will not fit you, but we have aides-de-camp of different sizes." Captain Hayward said it was impossible to go at once, as he had work to do, whereupon Lord Jellicoe said: "Ring up, and a car will be sent when you are ready." The officers of the Wiltshire and the captain of the Katoa were then presented to the Governor-General- The Mayor (Mr J. H- Gunson) also extended a welcome to the captain and crew. The men were given a grant of £2 each, and a parcel of clothes, and then conveyed to the Sailors' Home, where all possible was done for their comfort. Two cases were admitted to hospital— John Foster, an A.B. belonging to the Wiltshire, who fell on the track across the island and suffered a serious fracture of a leg; and Keogh, an A.B. of the Katoa, who was suffering from pneumonia, and is in a serious condition. Patience and Courage of Crew. The Wiltshire's surgeon (Dr. McCullough) had much to say in praise of the patience and courage of the crew. Of a total of 103, he said (including a stowaway) not one man could be justly , complained of. They displayed all the attributes of British seamen, and were cheerful all through the ordeal. It was a wonderful feat, said the doctor," to land such a/number of men without mishap under the circumstances, and it was unfortunate that one of the number met with a serious accident in the journey across the slippery track overland. John Foster, an able seaman, fell and received a severe fracture of the left shinbone. Harry Feilding, as-sistant-steward, would also have to go to hospital. He sprained an ankle on board the ship a fortnight ago, and was making good progress to recovery, but the terrible walk overland from the ocean had caused the limb to swell badly, and he was now incapacitated altogether. The general health of the crew was good; This morning the Harbour Board's tug left Tryphena for Rosalie Bay, as the rest of the party had not arrived at the former place. She sent out two boats and took on board the men, inincluding some of the shipwrecked crew and the naval men. Captain Hayward's Grief. Captain Hayward, who was among the number, was so exhausted that he had to be assisted on board. "iShe is gone now. What's the good of saying anything?" gasped the captain. "Anyhow, what's the use of asking? I am not allowed to say anything." Much against his will ho was persuaded to lie down in a bunk ol tne tug's cabin. "It's glorious weather," he said, looking upward at the blue sky. "Ah," lie added wistfully, "the right weather comes at the wrong time." They say of Captain Hayward that despite his age and. infirmity, and iiis terrible grief over the loss ot the ship he had iatnered lor so many years, he was the most cheerful man ou board. He was out to do anything tor anybody. The Pull Force of the Sea. An officer of the Wiltshire tells wie following story:— At about twenty minutes past eleven on Wednesday liigiit, 1 lelt a slight jar and then two or Uiree quick Lumps. Blie had grounded on tlie ro.Ks. '1 lie captain ordered ali han,;s oil dec.; and to awing out and provuion tiie 00.,t5, but this proved unsuccessful, (several of the boats being carried away owing to tiie high seas which loarea past us. 1 lie slap kept upright, so uotuiiig more was done until daylight, excepting o!' course,' the continuous sending out ol' ■S.O.S. messages. At daybreak we saw the full fury of the sea and realised that we were helpless tintil assistance arrived. The Moeralii with a naval creiv on board came within sigiit, but she had no chance of coming anywhere near us. At 11.30 next morning the Wiltshire broke in t>vo, immediately beneath the bridge. We had heard creakings and groannigs all night, and expected the severance. When she split in two. there were two loud snaps. Some of us were left ait, but we. managed to get forward by sliding down ropes across the gap. 'We all gathered for'ard after the break, waiting for assistance. A Wonderful Performance. Thanks to the naval crew on shore, we managed to get ;i breeches buoy and line rigged, and with the assistan e ol those on board we sent four men ashore. Ninety-nine men were sent ashore yesterday within twelve hours. It was a wonderful performance. At one o'clock yesterday about 60 of the ci cw had been landed. After that we had fewer ■workers on board and, of couree, on a breeches buoy both ends have to play. Situated as we were, it was a most difficult job. The fewer the men left on the ship, the longer it took to complete the job. Captain Hayward wished to land last, but it was the special desire of the few men who remained on board that, owing to the early darkness, ho should be landed. He went down the line with the fourth officer. Half-way over he collapsed. The fourth officer immediately threw his legs around him, thus keeping him in the breeches buoy, shouting out the warning to the shore, " Tn}'' or God's sake." pie last to leave the ship wore the chief and second officers —Goddard and j Harris. That was at seven o'clock Jast i night.

Slowly the Hoars Crept By. Our night was spent standing in the rain on the rocky shore. You may imagine how slowly the hours crept by. AVe moved wearily off at 7 o clock this morning with our naval rescuers as guides, and got to Rosalie Bay at about 10 o'clock. We did not expect to be picked up here, however. Captain Hayward could not walk another step, judge our delight when we heard the siren of the tug Te Awhina. It is to be hoped that some of the members of the crew may be allowed to return to the wreck to salve some of their goar, as all that is left is on the forward part of the ship, which still stands good, despite a heavy list. In fine weather we may easily board her and recover some of our gear. All we have left us now are a few clothes 011 our tired bodies, which hare been saturated since we struck the rocks.

The Cheer Germ. Immediately the Wiltshire struck, all hands were summoned to the boat deck, and the officers held a consultation a-s to what was to be done. W hen it became apparent that the only thing to do was to hang to the ship, as any lifeboat launched would be matchwood before it got away from the ship's side, word was passed to the crew that they could go down to the social hall. The ship's pianist went to the instrument and rattled out a tune. This cheered things up a bit, and he went on with the good work, according to a' lad .lamed Archie Winslow, until he came to the end of his repertodre. Then Winslow produced a mandolin, and carried on the work. In spite of tho gale and the seas broaking over the wreck they managed ' 'To Keep the Home Fires Burning" on board the Wiltshire, or at least one of them. The Wilt hire's forward galley was well sheltered, and they were able to keep the fire going by tearing up the internal fittings. Provisions were short, and all they had to cook was some meat. Coffee was made while the water lasted, but as the tanks were in the stern half that broke off and disappeared, the supply did not last long. As the rain felf the men were set to catching as much as they could, and a sort of coffee was made, but in time even this gave out, and many of the men suffered terribly from thirst.

"It would Mean Certain Death." It turns out that the report that one man attempted to swim ashore with a line from tne Wiltshire was a mistake, although two of tho men aboard offered to do flic daring deed. L. Hutson, one of the messroom stewards, and Wheatley, who was the first man sent ashoro by the bosn's chair when the lifeline W9S rigged up, were both willing to make the attempt. Both of them were young, Hutson being a mere lad, and Wheatley suffers from the loss of one eye. "No lad," Baid an officer, when told that Hutson was willing to go oyer the side; "you can't go. It would simply mean certain death."

"DESERVED THE VICTORIA CROSS." SEAMAN KEHOE'S BRAVERY. WRECKAGE WASHED ASHORE. (rRESS ASSOCIATION TELEGRAM.) AUCKLAND, June 4. . The following are the names of the Wiltshire's officers:— Master, B. G. Hayward. Chief officer, W. G. Goddard. Second officer, H. Harris. Third officer, J. H. Musgrove. Fourth officer, J. G, Raven. First wireless operator, D. D. Brodie. Second wireless operator, W. Furneaux. Third wireless operator, T. J. Mutter. Surgeon, W. C. McCulloch. Carpenter, E. Stepto. Boatswain, W. McNab. Storeman, H. Tate. Quartermasters, H. G. Griggs, C. Waxton, A. McDonald, and R. Rich-, ardson.

The Wiltshire's crew generally expressed the opinion that the man who braved the elements and risked his life to secure the line drifted from the ship deserved the Victoria Cross. They were firmly convinced that Seaman J. Kehoe, of the Katoa, alone made possible their relief. In saying this they were not unmindful of the great work of the party from the Philomel, the settlers on the island, and those on board the tug Te Awhina and the steamer Katoa.

The Scone in the Engine-room. A fireman, relating his experiences, said he was on duty when the ship struck, with six other firemen, and four trimmers. Halt-speed had been rung down about twenty minutes, and the Wiltshire had slackened to seven knots. Then came the impact, and they did not require to be told what had happened. They stayed in the stokehold until tho next watch relieved them at 12 o'clock. This watch put in just enough coal to keep the dynamos going, and the engineers stood by until daybreak, when, owing to the boilers shifting and the engine-room filling witli water, they had to leave. Eight- or nine of the men in the Wiltshire were companions in the steamer Miunetoiikn, which was torpedoed in the Mediterranean during the war.

Remarkable Experience of a Fireman. A iireinau it'. Kent) was 'in three different vessels that v. ere torpedoed during the war, and ho has also been wrecked on seven 1 .1 occasions. He served in tiie Otranto, which took part a.s an auxiliary cruiser in the engagement with (..'ernian warship* at C'oronel, off the Chilian coast. "We had to work for our lives, a.s we were pursued by the Dresden," he said, "but we got away in the dark." Two or three months ago lie had another unenviable experience, being in the Cunnrder Peronia when 'die lost her rudder when about two and a half days out from Tilbury to New York. 'lhe vessel had to be steered by the engines for 29 days. The captain would not turn back, saying he was bound for New York and to New York lie would go. Kent was home barely a fortnight when he signed on the Wiltshire.

Enormous Quantity of Flotsam. It was reported yesterday morning that one of the Wiltshire's lifeboats had been washed up on the Knitoke beach intact, a few miles north of the wreck. Settlers also ' reported that hundreds of postal packages and linen bags were coming ashore. Among thp enormous quantity of flotsam were such things as n piano in a case, and other bulky goods. Among those who welcomed the crew on the Auckland wharf last evening were the chairmen of the Harbour and Hospital Boards, city councillors, Navy League members, and harbour official* Tne ruling passion was evidenced in the first query from the Katoa as she neared the wharf: "What wen the Northern Hurdles?" The second was: "What time do the pubs close?" The Shipwrecked Sailors' Society has placed £3OO at the disposal of the local Superintendent of Marine for the relief of distress among the shipwrecked. More money is available if it is needed.