NINE DAYS ON A RAFT.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XL, Issue 1875, 10 September 1918, Page 1

NINE DAYS ON A RAFT.

SAILOR’S ORDEAL. GERMAN BRUTALITY. This is the sory, heard from his own lips, in the naval hospital at Harwich, of Kaakon Ohlson, the sole survivor of the crew of the Norwegian barque Eglinton, which was destroyed by a German submarine in the Heligoland Bight, writes the special correspondent of the Times. The little ship’s company of nine men, four of them badly wounded, were left by the submarine adrift in the open sea on a small raft. One by one they died of wounds or exposure, and when, after nine days, the raft was found by a British patrol boat, Ohlson alone was left. We left, he said, about June 18th, with a cargo of coal for Norway. The Eglinton is only a small sailing vessel of about 700 tons, and she carried, in addition to the Norwegian skipper (Captain Ring), a crew of seven other Norwegians and one Finn. SHELLED WITHOUT WARNING. On the morning of the third day a German submarine appeared in our wake and began to overhaul us. We Mew no (lag, but our name was plainly shown on our bow and stern. The submarine was not submerged. It came quite near to us. We were making only about six or seven knots —and without any warning or signal of any sort it opened lire on us. Shells wrecked our sails and rigging. We tried to launch a lifeboat, but a shell snapped both davits, and the boat hung useless ovei; the side. There was another lifeboat on the top of the deck-house. We tried to gel that out, but when the men on the submarine saw us on the house they turned their gun on us there, and we had to abandon (he attempt. Four of us were wounded by their lire. The steward’s arms and one of his legs were blown off. The captain’s arm was shattered from the wrist to the shoulder. For 20 minutes (he submarine continued to shell the ship, putting, so far as I can tell, about 35 shots into her. She began to settle down, and as we could not use the boats we decided to abandon her for a raft. The raft was not much bigger Hum this bed —about 7ft. by sft. —only just big enough to hold the nine of us, huddled up together. We had not much clothing on, and the only food we had was a tin of biscuits and a barrel of fresh water. There was a brisk north-westerly wind, bringing occasional squalls and hailstorms, and (he sea was choppy. Our raft, lying low in the water, was continually awash. As time went by the barrels at one end began to leak, and the raft dipped on that side. The sail water go! into the tin of biscuits, and spoiled them before the end of the first day, and somebody left the water-barrel unstopped too long, so that the salt got into it as well. Not many words passed between us. It took all our time to keep on the raft. If we tried to move, too much weight would be pul on one end of the raft and it would dip. Several limes one or another of us was swept off by a wave, and had to climb or be lifted back. During (he lirst day one of the seamen died, and we put his body overboard. None of us slept that night. In the morning the steward died. He had lain desperately injured on the raft for 24 hours. A little while afterwards the second officer, who had also been wounded, died. Early the next morning the captain went. He said to me, “I am going out of this 1 shall not go to sea any more.” I cannot remember the deaths of the others, but I know that in (he afternoon of that third day the chief mate said, “There are only two of us left now. We must keep it going, and not give in.” It was a Hue afternoon, but blowing very hard. The mate and I were talking a little

later, when he suddenly said, “ I am going down to the cabin to till my pipe.” I begged him not to do that —telling him there was no cabin on the raft, and that if he tried to go below he would go overboard. Bui he tried, and I had to stop him. He lay down presently on the planks, and an hour or two afterwards I found he was dead. I myself pushed his body into the sea. FIVE DAYS ALONE. What happened during the four or five days when I was alone I cannot tell. On the morning of the ninth day I woke up and heard the sound of tiring. I got to my knees and had a look round. I could see nobody, so I lay down again. After a while I got up on my knees once more, and saw a motor-boat not far from me. I jumped up and shouted. The answer came, “You are all right. You are all right.” Then the boat came alongside (he raft, and some one asked, “Can you help yourself up?” 1 caught hold of the stem of the boat, (dimbed aboard, and was helped amidship, and here I am. I shall go to sea again.