January 17, 1906
Charles Bohlin Drowned
Swept From Deck of Sch. Avalon
Last Friday
Mate of Craft and Was on His Last Trip Fishing
Sch. Avalon, Capt.
Thomas Bohlin, arrived from Bay of Islands, N. F., last night with her flag at
half mast for the loss of her mate, Charles Bohlin, a cousin of the
Captain, who was washed overboard on Friday off St. Paul's island.
Capt. Bohlin, in speaking of
the loss of his relative, said that they had been at work fixing the lashings on some of
the deck, load and he with the lost man and Leo Lucas were standing
to leeward near some of the barrels, talking. The captain held a knife in his hand
with which he had been at work.
Suddenly and without warning, a sea, which was
not very big, came over the rail and swept over them. Capt. Bohlin
did not think much about it, as it did not appear to be very heavy, and so he took hold of
the lashings with his left hand and held on. Lucas came right into
him, and had the skipper not bent his arm at the elbow, would probably have been
lost. As he shot by the skipper he clasped the rigid forearm and held on for his
life. His grasp broke, but not before he had held on long enough to save himself.
The captain said that when Lucas
grasped hold of his arm, he felt something go out over his shoulder and nearly over his
head. He himself had no difficulty in hanging on, even with the added strain of Lucas
on him, but the next thing he knew, some one shouted, "Man overboard," and he
saw Charles Bohlin in the water and nothing showing but his boots.
The vessel was jibed over as quickly as possible, but when they got back to the spot, he
had disappeared. After a long search the vessel was once more put on her course.
The lost man was a native of Sweden, but had
lived here and followed the fisheries nearly all his life. He was very well known
and a man of quite kindly disposition and good habits and had sailed many years with Capt.
Bohlin. He was 39 years of age and leaves a widow in Sweden, he
having married when he was on a visit over there a few years ago.
On this trip, in speaking of his future, he
told Capt. Bohlin that he though he should not go fishing any more, but
would go yachting this summer, and thus get a few more dollars ahead and then go back to
Sweden. |
