AN OCEAN HORROR. OVER ONE HUNDRED LIVES LOST. THE STEAMER GEISER SUNK IN THE ATLANTIC.

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 300, 19 September 1888, Page 4

AN OCEAN HOR ROR. OVER ONE HUNDRED LIVES LOST. THE STEAMER GEISER SUNK IN THE ATLANTIC.

The bteam&hip Ueiser, of Die Thingvalla lino, which leifc New York early in the month of August with a laige passenger list, was run down by the steamship 'Jhingvalla, of the ferine line, on Tuesday, August 14th, oil Cape Race, and one hundred and thirty lives, aie leported lost. The Geiser had her side completely sto\e in. The Tlnng\ alia put out her boats as rapidly as possible, and made every efloit to rescue the passenger?, but in spite of the superhuman eflorts the list of the lost is frightful. The Thingvalln was badly injured. Her bow had been knocked o!l, and all her pro\ision« which weie earned in the bow compartment swept away. There was nothing to feed the rescued passengers, and when the steamer Wielanu hove in sight, she dhided the people with her, and boie away tor Halifax, No\a Scotia, to repaii. The vessel was so seriously damaged that for a bhoit time it teemed as if she would follow the (ici-er, which sank in ii\e minutes alter .-lie was struck to the bottom. Captain M oiler, of the CJeiser, was picked up neatly exhausted by one of the Thing\alla's boats, and also Mrs Hi'da Lind, the only woman who escaped from the wieck. The --cene beggais description. The boats pulled after daylight over the place wheie the (Jei-^er went down picking up all who could bo seen, guided ol An by the voices gi owing fainter and hunter each moment of those appealing for help out in ihu water and the stoim. The coll sion ocI cunetl at 3.30 in the morning. James H. Dunlcp, business manager ot the "New York Engineeiing and Mining Journal,' 1 who with his family was a passenger on boatd the Thing \ alia, gives, it as his opinion that the disaster was caused by a lack of discipline on boaid thestearnei. TheCJeiser was owned in Copenhagen and insured in Home companies.

THE CAPTAINS ACCOUNT OF THE COLLISION. Captain Moiler, of the ill-fated steamship Ucisei, i^ a phoit, thick-set man, sturdy and weather beaten, but apparently much broken by the Feaiful experiences through which he has passed within the past lew day. His story ot the accident, whi'e gi\ing in explanation of the cause of the colHmou, was a most stirring recital, lie said : - " ib was about 3.30 o'clock when the tii&fc officer called me loudly. He was excited, and shouted : ' We are going to be run down.' I iuinped from the sofa and ran out on the biidge in my nightshiib. 1 &aw immediately lights of a big steamer on tho starboaid side. I coulil also distinguish her hull. The engines of our ship were &oing at full speed, and the helm had been thrown astarbourd, I think. " 1 had not more than time to notice this much when, with a tiemendous crash, the bow of the approaching- steamer struck us haicl amidihip, nearly at right angles to our keel. The blow took us just abaft the main rigging, cut a quarter way through us and made such a tremendous hole that 1 saw at once that we could not stay afloat. "1 gave the oidcrs at once to have the boato launched, to send up signal rockets and iii c a gun. The confusion which followed, however, is beyond me. I cannot describe it. The boats on the bridge wore launched, the starboard bide one fir&b. The man at the stern dropped the line, however, and tho boat filled with water and Mas swamped. Boat 2 on the port side was also launched, and she diifted away too far from the ship to be of any assistance. The only other boat launched was No. 8 The powder-

room was flooded, so that no signals could be mcd. "The passengers now began to swarm up from below, and were completely panicstricken. The confusion was awful. Men were struggling to get into the boats, and women ar.d children were slu ioking and screaming. I sang out to tho lifeboatmon, ' Look oub for tho women and children tirsb ;' then I sung oub below for every one to bring up life-presen ers. There w ere between 600 and 700 of these on board. Tho panic was so great, however, that, they did not pay much attention to them, but rushed on deck without them. There were rive sound life buoys on the bridge where* I was, and I took these and threw them down to tho p.icsengers as I felt the ship settling. " The chief engineer, who was drowned, lushed down to the cibin for life preservers for tho passengers, and I never saw him again. 1 jumped on the rail and saw that the vessel was going down. I stayed there un'il I was swept away by the water. I we.it down with the vessel, being sucked in b} the rushingwaters. Itseomecl to me that I wad more than a minute under the water whiiled head over heels, st liking objects, living and dead. At length I feifc 1 was rising. T did nc6 lose consciousness at all and suddenly s-hot up to tho suiface. 1 at once s'r.uOK. out and grot hold of an oar, which/1 clung to swimming to support myself for about twenty-five minutes. T could see the lights of the Thing\alla, and was surrounded in tho wattr by struggling human beings and floating ban els and boxes. "At lastl wa& hauled up on the keel of a bo .t just as I was about to give up from exhaustion. The boats of tho Things alia were busy among the floating btuft' picking up the drowning. I was soon taken off tho boat keeland taken t"> the ship, where every thing that was done for my comfoit and that of the survivors. We had barely a. chance to recover ourseh es w hen w e were obliged to set to work at once to save the Thingvalia. She was almo-t in a s nking condition. Her foiefoot was crushed in and she was making water rapidly tlnough her forward bulkhead, the only thing between her and the Atlantic Ocean. To get at that bulkhead was the only clnnce of saving our lives. In ordtr to strengthen it and keep it from giving w ay, the cargo had to be taken up and shifted as rapidly as possible- At this work e\ en body was engaged who could be made use ot, passengers and crew. We gob down to it finally, and succeeded in strengthening it so that the leakage could be taken caic of by the pumps. "The Things alia cannot at present make more than two knots an hour with the big hole in her side, and if any bad weather should spring up she will have to tuin stern to avoid it. When we left she had diifted about five mi'es from the scene of the accident, which was about thirty-five miles south of Sable Island, or about 150 miles from Halifax, which pott she will try to make. Captain Laub said lie would use every means to get the vessel into port. although the boats will be kept already for I use at any moment."' ,