McQUARTERS'S CORRECTED STATEMENT.

Te Aroha News, Volume III, Issue 151, 24 April 1886, Page 4

McQUARTERS'S CORRECTED STATEMENT.

I have had another long interview with McQuarters here this moraine, He seems almost completely recovered, and talka more coherently than on any previous occasion since the accident. At the risk therefore of repeating partly what has been already said, I think it well to give his latest statement, which, it will be found, does not entirely agree with what has gone before The man's exhausted condition, of course, accounts for the variance of his statements. McQuartei's says : — "When the vessel struck ho heard the telegraph signal " stop " to the engine, but did not hear any subsequent signal. No distress signals were given at any time, and the whi3tle was not even blown. The passengers and crew were ordered to the boats immediately. In the boat in which McQuarters found, himself there were about 25 souls, including all the ladies. The Capt. asked how many were aboard, and he replied 25. The captain said he thought they should take 30, that being the big life-boat. All the boats pushed away to the stern of tho vossel, and made fast to a line over the stern of the boat. He went over to see if he could effect a landing, but came back and reported that there was no chance of landing a boat. They then hung on till about 11 o'clock, when a sea struck the boats, and the two after boats were separated from the others. These were the gig and the pinnace, The life-boat remained in the same position. The pinnace returned about an hour afterwards, but he did nofc see the gig with the Captain again, Just as the pinnace was made fast to the stem line a heavy sea struck her, and she capsized, the passengers making for the life-boat in which McQuarters was. This boat was in time struck by the sea, and capsized, and all were struggling in. the water. McQuarters found himself swimming for sea and turned for the shore when he saw a boat drifting astern of the steamer. He kept up and swam for her, and passed the four women in the water. Two attempts were made to seize hold oi him, He never saw the

women again. All hands clung to the boat. It was some time before they could make room for him. When they commenced to clamber, the boat righted, but when all got in she was a few inches under water through being overloaded and full of water. They tried to bail her out, but the seaa were constantly breaking over her, and kept her full of water. She turned over again, but righted herself almost immediately. The wreck was out of sight. At that time the chief mate aeked how many were in the boat, and it was found there were only twelve of the fifteen she started with. Nearly as he could guess it was now about half -past 1. They tried to cheer each other up by saying daylight would soon break. Soon after this a passenger died, and floated out of the boat. £11 were sitting in water up to their waist. The passenger nextlo go was the third engineer, who fell underneath the thwarts of the boat. He had a lifebelt on, and when he died one of the men took it off and put it on himself. Two or three died very suddenly soon after this, an officer being one of them, Daylight at last broke, when there were only five left. Several ladies were floating about the boat, and cutting themselves about by beating and knocking against the seats and sides of the boat. The survivor threw as many bodies as possible overboard to ease the boat, which was still at the water's edge. The chief officer's body was lying against McQuarters, who was working with a broken piece of oar trying to keep the boat broadside on, so that she might drift bettor. The body impeded his movements, and ho sung out to his companion to put the body overboard, which ho tried to do, but the mate's clothes caught by a nail or something at the bottom of the boat, and he could not get it away. Soon after this they sighted the Sheds at Kekerangu Station, and two sailors then died. Only three were now left in the boat, viz., McQuarters, a tall man with dark hair (which may have been Mr Vallance, from McQuartors's description), and a man in an oilskin coat, whom he cannot describe, but thinks waa a sailor. The tall man in the bows died, but the body was not washed out of the boat. The only other man now leftdrewMcQuarters's attention to the rocks ahead, and urged him to keep the boat further out, if possible. His companion growingexhausted, McQuarters tried to cheer him up by telling him he saw people on shore. He stood in the boat to look round, and as hi3 back was turned he heard a groan, and looking round, he saw his companion dying, but cannot say if his body was washed out. The boat was now close to the shore— about one hundred yards away perhaps— and big waves coming in sent her along very quickly. He passed over the two bodies in the boat, and watched an opportunity of getting ashore. He laid himself down in the boafc, and when about ten yards off the shore allowed the waves to wash him out. The boat evidently reached the shore. He thought it better to do this than siick to the boat any longer, as if she capsized ho might get a blow or get buried beneath her. He was exhausted, but managed to crawl up, and after a short reat struggled up to within a short distance of the station, and waa found by Mr McLaughlan, manager.