| High white capped waves dashed and lashed over the
wreck of the ill fated yacht Idler out in the lake all day yesterday,
so that it was impossible to make any attempt to recover the bodies of
the six victims, members of the families of Capt's. James and John
Corrigan, who lost their lives by the capsizing of the vessel during
the storm Saturday afternoon.
At 3 o'clock yesterday morning the tug Ben
Campbell started for the scene of the wreck with diver Walter Metcalf
aboard, for the purpose of trying to recover the bodies. the tug took
in tow Capt. Motley and the live saving crew, who were in the lifeboat
and were prepared to assist in the search. Nearly the whole of
Saturday night was spent in getting anchor lines and other things to
readiness for the work.
The Ben Campbell plowed her way through the sea until
she came within two miles of the location of the wreck and then it was
found that the waves were so high that it would be useless to go
further. There was such a high sea on that it would have been
impossible to have anchored the tug, and without being securely
anchored the diver could have done no work. The tug turned around and
returned to the city, reaching here at 7:30 o'clock.
It was the intention to make another trip to the wreck
to attempt to recover the bodies some time during the day, but the
sea, instead of quieting down, grew heavier, if anything, during the
afternoon and the plan had to be given up.
It is the intention to go out to the wreck early this
morning with the life saving crew, a tug and the diver, provided the
lake has subsided sufficiently to do any work. Capt. Motley of the
life saving station is of the opinion that the storm is about over and
that the lake will be smooth today. According to Weather Forecaster
Kenealy, however, the strong northwest wind will continue all day
today, so that the searching expedition may be further delayed. Capt.
Motley said last night that the heavy wind yesterday might split the
sails of the Idler, but he did not think that the canvas or spars
would be washed away or that the bodies would be washed out of
the cabin. He thought that the vessel was so deeply embedded in the
mud that it would not be moved by the wind. Capt. Motley said that
several fish tugs saw the wreck of the Idler yesterday but they
saw nothing floating around in the lake in that vicinity.
The life saving officer notified Fairport to keep on the
lookout for any bodies that might drift down the lake and wash ashore.
Capt Morley examined the vessel and the position of the sails when he
went to the wreck Saturday night.
"I went into the rigging and found the mainsail, the
staysail and jib up" said Capt. Motley. "The foresail was
partly down. They were evidently trying to get that sail down when the
storm came. "
The steamer Anne Lauru, bound from Sandusky to
Cleveland, passed within three miles of the west of the Idler at 2:30
o'clock yesterday afternoon. D. O. ______ captain of the boat, said
after his arrival that a very high ????over the Idler and that he saw
something floating around the wreck which looked like sails.
A large number of people visited the docks near the
mouth of the river yesterday to try to secure some new information
regarding the wreck and to learn whether any of the bodies had been
recovered. Sailors sat along the wharves and discussed the details of
the catastrophe, and the general opinion seemed to be that the
Idler was handled in a reckless manner and that her sails should
have been furled before the storm struck her.
According to the reports the fishing tugs Smith
and Helena passed the Idler just before the storm and the captains of
the latter tug expressed great surprise that the Idler was not getting
ready for the storm by taking down her sails.
S. Lyons, a lake captain, said that the crew had
nearly an hour to lower the canvas before the storm came, but that
they evidently were unable to handle it after the wind and rain came.
C. H. Holmes, captain of the Idler, lay in bed all day
yesterday under the care of a physician at the Bethel hotel. Capt.
Holmes was partially paralyzed as a result of what he had gone
through, and was unable to stand up. He said that his affliction was
caused more by grief than by the injury he had sustained while in the
lake by taking in a quantity of water.
Capt. Holmes talked freely about the wreck and
appeared to be deeply affected by the catastrophe. He appeared to be
particularly grieved over the death of Jane Corrigan, eldest daughter
of Mr. James Corrigan, and when he told of his unsuccessful efforts to
save her his eyes filled with tears and his voice choked.
"I would just as soon have been drowned myself as
had that girl drowned," exclaimed Holmes, with sadness in his
voice. "She and I were great friends and, in fact, I was just
like one of the family."
Capt. Holmes appeared much hurt because of the
criticism that has been made of his management of the boat.
"We would have been capsized if there had been no
canvas up," said the captain. "I did the safest thing in
leaving the mainsail up. When the vessel keeled over we were trying to
bring her head to the wind. The helm was pretty much out of the water
and wouldn't turn and I went to the wheel. It was not an ordinary
squall, but in the nature of a cyclone, and the Idler could not have
stood it if her masts had been bare. The wind struck the starboard
quarter and then shifted to the port quarter.
"When the boat first careened I was sitting
alongside of Jane Corrigan giving directions to the sailors. She got
frightened and I tried to pacify her, but I think she fainted for
a time. Alaf Neilson and I pulled her up on the side of the
boat after the boat went over the second time. The stern began to sink
and we climbed towards the bow, but the water came up faster than we
climbed. We got up to the rigging and intended to climb
that. A big sea came and washed the three of us out towards the
forecastle.
"We all went under the water, Jane Corrigan had
her left arm around my neck and I had one arm around her, and with the
other hand I had hold of her hair. The suction of the sinking boat
dragged us down. I dept hold of her hair with one hand and struggled
with the other. I started to swim and took about two dozen strokes and
came up under a fender. I tried to hold the girl up and told her
to put her arms over the fender. She did so, but two or three heavy
seas came and knocked us both off.
"I grabbed her again, but didn't have strength to
hold her. She slipped from me, I don't know just how, and a moment
later they dragged me over the rail of the tug that rescued me. I was
about gone then and when they got me on the boat I became unconscious.
"Mrs. James Corrigan and Mrs. Riley and her baby were
in the cabin when the boat went over. Before the storm came I told the
mate and steward to close the deadlights, and the mate told me today
that he did close them. He said that he might have left the one
in the pantry open. This was on the upper side of the boat when
it tipped over, and its being open would have made no difference. Mrs.
John Corrigan told me, however, when we were coming in on
the rescuing tug, that the mate had opened one or two deadlights to
get air.
"I started down to the cabin during the second
squall to warn Mrs. James Corrigan and Mrs. Reiley and just then the
crew screamed that the boat was sinking. I yelled to the ladies to
come on deck, but got no response. The mate told me afterwards that he
and the steward had put life preservers on the two women. |