The 'Sirio' Disaster

New Zealand Tablet, 20 September 1906, Page 22

The ' Sirio' Disaster

I Some day a -gloom-pampered man may - .arise ;to "narrow people's souls with a history of famous ship- - wrecks. ' That of the ' Sirio ' will then find its place among the woful tales of the ' Pomona y the ♦ Lay-ee-moon', the ' Wairarapa ', and the rest of the_first- -. class disasters that sometimes befall those who -go down, to, "the sea in ships. There were on board the •Sirio' (an Italian emigrant ship bound for* South -^ America) eight hundred and eighty-two souls» She ran 'on , the rocks off Cape Palos, in Spain. Through her gored sides the seas came surging in, and she sank

stern-foremost', carrying with her three hundred and forty-five of her living freight. There were scenes of wild panic and a mad scramble for life when it became clear that the - vessel t was • about to founder. The newspapers to hand tell stories of- primitive savagery in the struggle for life. -It was as on the fateful day when the * Bourgogne ' was sunk ofi Nova Scotia.

Happily, the story of ' the loss of : the . « Sirio ' is lighted up by scenes of splendid heroism, too.. Among the drowned were the Catholic Archbishop of -Para (Brazil) and the Catholic Bishop of Sari Pablo. Both (as stated by the cables at the time) were drowned. But the cable-messages did not- tell .how the two devoted prelates gave -to others the life-belts that were pressed upon them, and -how "(as the correspondent of the London ' Daily Telegraph ' wrote) « the Bishop of San Pablo displayed stoic calmness,; standing; on the deck of the doomed vessel and giving absolution "in articulo mortis ". The worthy prelate ', adds the correspondent, 'continued his ministrations until -he,, was swept into the waves. His^ last act before meeting death with Christian fortitude was to give up his lifebelt to another person in the water.' Reuter's Agency "also tells a pathetic story of a young monk who hung on to the rigging, up to his neck in the water, blessing the people and praying for them, and refusing' to make .any attempt to look after his own safety.

Somewhat similar scenes were witnessed when- the • Bourgogne ' went down in 1898. There were on board five priests— four French and one German. They went about among their terrified shipmates, absolving them .and consoling them on the -brink of their liquid grave— making no effort to save their own lives, but busying themselves to the last that others might die happily. Here is a description from a New York daily paper that will bear requoting :— ' The priests on board the ' Bourgogne ' exhibited sublime courage. When all hope was gone they passed among the stricken "passengers on the deck, quieting them, and warning them to prepare for their- end. Large groups gathered around the priests, kneeling and praying, and, as the ship sagged down deeper and deeper, received absolution. In this posture, the priests with hands uplifted, the people kneeling in a swaying circle around them, they sank beneath the water '. On the ' Sirio ', as on the * Bourgogne ', the Catholic pastors died with sublime heroism, performing their sacred duties to the last.