January 29, 1929
Pumped Seven Days to Keep Craft Afloat
For seven days and seven nights, each 24 hours
seemingly but a few steps nearer to eternity, Capt. Wallace Parsons and
his crew of seven men on this local schooner Thomas S. Gorton
worked with might and main to keep their craft afloat, and finally reached a point of
desperation where each donned a life preserver and was willing to take his chance with the
seas rather than remain on the nearly submerged craft, according to the latest information
reaching here from Halifax, N. S., telling of the horrors the men went through before they
were rescued.
The Gorton, with
about 1000 barrels of salt bulk herring below decks, left Bay of Islands, N. F., on
January 19, bound home. Barely had she poked her nose into the gulf, than a smashing
75 mile storm hit her fair and square, staggering the vessel and causing her to be blown
off of her course. That night, with practically no letup in the velocity of the
wind, the little craft, depending wholly n sail power to keep her on her course, was
smashed and battered until the jib and foresail were torn to shreds and the foreboom
smashed. And as though this were not damage enough, a heavy sea boarded her and
carried away both dories, the only avenue of escape from the thoroughly beaten craft. With
that courageous spirit so many times exemplified by those who go down to the sea for their
livelihood, Capt. Parsons kept his crew at their task, striving with
might and main to win an apparently losing battle with the elements.
Another wave pounded at her hull followed by a
"mountain of water" and her planks, badly weakened by the strain, gave way
allowing the water to pour in torrents, soaking into the salt of the herring, and causing
the craft to settle still deeper in the seas which washed her deck at every plunge and
kept the men busy hanging on to life lines to keep from going over the rail.
For seven days and seven nights, Capt. Parsons
and his crew pumped until they were nearly exhausted, the pumps having to be worked at a
rate of 2500 strokes an hour, the vessel running before the wind with but a reefed
foresail, itself tattered some by the force of the blow, and narrowly escaped being blown
ashore at Cape Anguille, on the Newfoundland coast.
What happened on the following days will not
be known until Capt.. Parsons and his crew arrive home, but early
yesterday morning, while H. M. S. Dauntless was patrolling off
Halifax, she came upon the Gorton, rail deep in the water,
flying a signal of distress with the American flag Union down in the rigging.
Steaming close to the Gloucesterman, the ships' crew found the fishermen with life
preservers around their body, and as the British destroyer hove alongside, and the men
realized that rescue was at hand, they broke down completely.
The Dauntless
radioed ashore for assistance and stood by the Gorton until the
Canadian government steamer Margaret came out from Halifax, and
took the Gorton in tow. It was a happy gang of fishermen
who went up Halifax harbor, where they knew there was food and sleep awaiting them after
their struggle. Capt. Parsons, in an interview said, "It was
the happiest moment in my life when the rescue ship hove in sight, for without her we
would have all been lost."
The Gorton will haul
out on the marine slip at Dartmouth today, and all details of repairs have been left in
Capt. Parsons' hands by the Gorton-Pew Fisheries Company, owner of the
vessel, who stated today that the craft would be repaired and her journey homeward
resumed. |
