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May I suggest that you navigate the site via the
index on page 01.
 PRIOR PAGE / NEXT PAGE
And, if you want to make a comment,
a site guestbook is here. Test.
To search for specific text on this page, just press 'CTRL +
F' & then enter your search term.
SIR ARTHUR SPURGEON
(1861 - 1938)
On page 1, I provided
basic data about the
marine disaster of Oct. 1913, the burning of the Volturno in mid Atlantic.
On this and the next page I provide the text of the definitive work on the subject, the Arthur Spurgeon
(March 31, 1861- June 9, 1938) book
The Burning of the "Volturno", published in Dec. 1913. The
many images contained in the book, twenty-one in all, are all now on site also, on a
page of their own i.e. page 29.
Availability of the Spurgeon book? Go here.
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I read that the entire profits of the book were to be distributed
by Captain Inch at
his discretion as supplementary to the Relief Fund opened at Rotterdam. Indeed, Arthur Spurgeon wrote, in Dec.
1913 in his Author's Note. 'A remittance has already been sent to Captain Inch for the purpose of assisting special cases of hardship
and suffering arising out of this great disaster of the sea.'
Arthur Spurgeon,
later (1918)
Sir Arthur Spurgeon,
would seem to have been an honourable gentleman indeed. We are in his debt today
as the Volturno passengers were also in his debt in 1913, but in a very different way.
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Chuck
Spurgeon of Langley, B.C., Canada, told me that Arthur (image at left above, a
few years before he died) was a
journalist & publisher &
learned his profession in East Anglia. He became General Manager of Cassell's in 1905, a director in 1915
& resigned in 1922.
He was living in London in 1901. We thank you,
Chuck!
The book would seem to have gone on sale on Dec. 11, 1913
as was stated in the London Times on Dec. 3, 1913, as can be read on site page
39.
I would be remiss if I did not mention that is another picture
of Arthur Spurgeon on page 05. Not the best image,
to be sure, but a
picture none the less.
Now information about Sir Arthur Spurgeon is quite limited. Which is surprising
because he must have been very well known indeed. So I was delighted to
learn that he was Chairman of 'Sun Engraving Co.' in Aug. 1919 when that 1,000
employee company set up an engraving plant on Whippendell Road in Watford,
England. Indeed a group photograph is available on line of the plant 'opening' in which Sir Arthur Spurgeon can be seen, along with Edward
W. Hunter (1876-1965), founder of the company & three other original company directors. The page through which the full image
& text can be found is
here. Click on the first
Photo available under year 1919. A history of Sun
Engraving is included on this page.
I note also that Sir Arthur, as the representative of Cassell's, was in 1914 appointed Chairman of André Sleigh & Anglo Ltd.,
another of the 'Sun' group of companies. And it would appear that he was on the
'Sun Engraving Co.' Board until a year or so before he died in 1938.
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Mr. Peter Greenhill, co-founder of the
'Sun' website, whose family history is most closely
involved with 'Sun', advises that the original, plate camera, plant
'opening' photograph exists & is stored in London, England. In the small image at right, Edward
W. Hunter, company founder, is dressed in white. And Sir Arthur
is at your right holding what looks like a 'programme' for the occasion. The
white letters are identity codes.
By clicking here, you can
now see, thanks again to the kindness of Peter Greenhill, two larger images of Sir Arthur Spurgeon
at that 1919 'opening', both sections of plate camera images. |
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The left image is
already familiar to you. Sir Arthur is seated (left) in the other image beside
Edward W. Hunter. Peter also advises me that the leftmost of the three children
in the dinner picture is Edward Hunter's daughter Eileen.
But we do now know more about him
now from his obituary which appeared in the
London Times on Jun. 10, 1938. It appeared in one long column in the newspaper.
I have rearranged it in columnar form for easy viewing on this page. And if you
click here you will see that the National Portrait Gallery would seem to have a
photographic portrait of him - by Bassano & dating from 1936. No image
available there, however.
The Jun. 1, 1918 edition of 'The Sphere' has, I have read, a
photograph of Sir Arthur Spurgeon presenting a Rolls Royce Amburland. To whom, I
wonder? Have not seen it yet. 'Amburland' was perhaps the name of a particular
model of the Rolls Royce motor car? Ted Sinclair suggests here that the vehicle
was most likely an ambulance, which would seem to be most likely, during WW1, in 1918.
Now I think that Sir Arthur Spurgeon would be glad to know
that his book is still read & appreciated today, in 2008, almost 95 years after it was written.
A copy of the volume, sold
via e-Bay in Jun. 2008, had a handwritten inscription signed by the author & addressed to Lord William Cecil.
'AUNT SARAH' - PROBABLY THE LAST SURVIVOR OF THE DISASTER
- NOW 100 - READ ON
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At
left is Cary Ginell's 'Aunt Sarah', very possibly the
last
survivor of the Volturno disaster. As a very young girl aged 7, Surke Tepper, as she then was, was aboard
Volturno in 1913.
The image
at left shows her at age 97 on Sep. 7, 2003. She had just been shown a copy of Sir Arthur Spurgeon's book
& 'was amazed at the
clarity of the photographs and the accuracy of the text'.
Aunt Sarah is on manifest page 423
Surke Tepe,
aged 8, a boy! (And also on manifest page 421 - line 26 in both cases). We wish you many more happy and healthy birthdays,
Shirley (Sarah) DeCovnick! |
Two years have passed since the above words were written,
&
on Sep. 8, 2005, Aunt Sarah
celebrated her 99th birthday. She much enjoyed her birthday party, I
understand.
Yet another year has passed (how time does fly)
& here we are in Sep. 2006. You will all be most interested in Cary Ginell's Aug. 31, 2006 following words about Aunt Sarah.
Hi Peter,
Just to let you know that we will be celebrating Aunt Sarah's 100th
birthday this Saturday, Sept. 2 at the home of her son, Stan DeCovnick. She's
still with us, but her memory is failing and she doesn't eat much at all
anymore. In April, she attended my son's bar mitzvah and got out of her
wheelchair to climb the stairs to the bimah (stage area) where we did the
symbolic "passing of the Torah through the generations" ritual. There were four
generations of us up there and it really brought a tear to everyones' eyes. At
the party, she got up and danced and thought the whole party was for her! I'll
take pictures to pass along from this Saturday's party.
Incidentally, although her official birthday is September 8, 1906, it's
actually earlier because the Gregorian calendar wasn't adopted in Russia, where
she was born, until Lenin's time. So, as a result, her 'real' birthday is 13
days earlier, or August 26, which means she's already 100 as of last
Saturday!
Cary Ginell
It is with sorrow that we must report that Aunt Sarah passed away in Los Angeles,
California on Sep. 22, 2006.
To the best of the collective knowledge of a great many people, Aunt Sarah was
the last survivor who actually experienced the Volturno fire of
1913 - as a very young girl just seven years of age. So the last personal link to the events of that
day is now gone. Her health had been slowly failing, & her passing away had
been expected. We all express our condolences to her son, Stan DeCovnick, to Cary Ginell
& to all
of her extended family.
We mentioned above that the family had held a birthday party on Sep. 2,
2006 for Aunt Sarah to celebrate her 100th birthday. Here she is, in a fine photograph
taken that day. We bid you farewell, Aunt Sarah. And safe travels.
Now it is
difficult to figure out the data re the rest of Aunt Sarah's
family, who originated from Njeilowice, Russia or maybe Mahalowitz, near Odessa in the Ukraine. It would seem that Sarah/Surke arrived via the Seydlitz with
her two sisters also
listed on the manifest as linked above. But their ages, names & even sex does
not seem to agree with Cary Ginell's article on Jan Daamen's site,
written now some years ago. I am
quite sure,
however, that Gary has his family data correctly. Aunt Sarah's mother & another sister arrived (see manifest page
497) aboard the
Campanello (ex Rotterdam) having been rescued by the eastbound Czar,
& landed at
Rotterdam. Named in the manifests as Cire and Hudel, but better, perhaps, Celia
(Sarah's mother) & Ida.
It sure gets confusing!
FIRST HALF OF ARTHUR SPURGEON'S BOOK "THE BURNING OF THE VOLTURNO"
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But first an image of the
cover (at left), thanks to Ellen Karp - a most modern looking cover for a book published so long ago.
Word has it that
the book may have had a dust cover on it when published in 1913. Can anybody confirm that?
And perhaps provide a scan.
And (below) an image of the title page and an image of Captain Francis
J. D. Inch,
the Captain of the Volturno (from the Spurgeon book facing page 10). The scan of
Captain Inch is courtesy of Tony Jones, then of North Wales. |
The image inset in the text below is of Francis John Reddie Gardner, 1st
Officer of Carmania, a part of a larger image in the Spurgeon book. We again thank Tony
Jones, who provided the base scan to the Webmaster.
The numbers in brackets
in the text below are the webmaster's notations &
indicate the start of a page of that number.
THE
BURNING OF THE "VOLTURNO"
ARTHUR
SPURGEON, published by CASSELL AND COMPANY, LTD
London, New York, Toronto and
Melbourne - 1913
(9)
"British steamer 'Volturno,' from Rotterdam for New York, abandoned
on fire, October 10, latitude 48.25 north, longitude 34.33 west."
How the World Heard
Such was
the message to Lloyd's which reached London on Saturday, October 11th, 1913,
recording one of the most appalling tragedies in the history of navigation. It was followed shortly afterwards by a brief aerogram from Captain Barr, of the Cunard Liner Carmania, who recounted how he received a wireless call at sea to
go to the assistance of the Volturno, on fire 78 miles away, with 657 souls on
(10) board; and in the message he reported that the following ships had rushed to the
help of the burning vessel:
| Carmania |
Rappahannock |
|
Seydlitz |
Czar |
|
Grösser
Kurfürst |
Narragansett |
|
La
Touraine |
Devonian |
|
Minneapolis
|
Kroonland |
I happened to be a passenger on the first-named vessel,
and earlier in the week I had agreed to edit the daily newspaper published on the ship. This will explain why it came
about that I wrote the first description which appeared in print of this great drama of the sea. It also gives the
reason why my fellow-passengers should have asked me to put the story into permanent form. Fortunately I have been able
to enlist the good offices of Captain Frank Inch, the heroic Commander of the Volturno,
(11) and the narrative, therefore, covers
the tragedy from the point of view both of spectator and chief actor. Never before has the spectacle been witnessed
of so many giants of the ocean assembled round a burning vessel in mid-Atlantic, yet powerless to help her, and probably
so long as ships go down into deep waters such a drama will never be witnessed again.
The Call and the Answer
On Thursday morning, October 9th, I was informed by one
of the officers that a wireless call had been received from the steamship Volturno on fire about 78 miles distant. A wild
storm was raging, and terrific beam seas were running which we thought would make the work of rescue very difficult, but
we never imagined that it would prove altogether impossible. The engineers crowded on every ounce of steam, and the
Carmania made a record for such bad (12) weather, the 78 miles being covered in just under
four hours. Long before the ship
came into view we saw clouds of smoke darkening the horizon, and when we came nearer we realised that the fire had obtained
complete mastery, the doom of the vessel being sealed beyond all question.
How the Fire Started
It was about noon, and for hours the fire had been burning furiously. When and
how it started no one knows. The Volturno belonged to the Uranium Steamship
Company, and left Rotterdam the week previously with 564 passengers and a crew
of 93 for Halifax and New York. The vessel carried a general cargo, consisting
of chemicals, oils, rags, peat moss, straw bottle covers and mats, and large
quantities of wine and spirits - all highly inflammable goods, and providing
fuel for the fire which was to occasion such a thrilling tragedy. The (13) suggestion
that the fire was started by a lighted cigarette falling into the hold on the
morning of the disaster cannot seriously be entertained, as it was evident it
had been smouldering for a long time previous to its discovery. It may have been
caused by spontaneous combustion among the rags which might have been placed on
board in a damp or oily condition. Whether this be so or not, it is a fact that
within a few minutes of its discovery the hold was blazing madly.
S O S
Captain
Inch was in his room when the Chief Officer reported that smoke was coming out
of No. 1 hatch. He ordered the Chief Officer to slow the ship down, to get all
hands to stations, but not to tell the passengers what had happened. The Chief
Officer, however, told him that the passengers knew already. The Officer then
left to carry out his instructions, and before Captain Inch (14) could dress, a
second message came that the ship was in flames forward. He at once rushed on to
the deck, and realising the danger, ordered the Marconi operator to send out the
S O S call. At the top of the companion-way he met a Quartermaster, whose face
was black and bleeding, and whose clothes were torn and begrimed.
"Where
have you come from?" asked the Captain.
"Out of the fo'c'sle. and there are four burnt to death," he
answered in a dazed manner.
This was Death's first toll. Although the alarm had been given only five minutes before, this body of fire had sprung up
and encompassed five of the men of the watch below. Of those five only the Quartermaster came out alive. The other four
were found later, just charred remnants of (15) human form, hardly recognisable as having once been men.
Within
five or six minutes after the Captain came on deck the flames were reaching back
to the bridge, and the life-rafts stowed alongside the foremast were on fire.
Life-belts were served to the
passengers, and, whilst this was being done, three explosions took place, the second blowing the compasses out of the
binnacle and disabling the steering-gear and engine-room telegraph. Had there been a fourth, there is no doubt, in
the opinion of Captain Inch, that the vessel must have foundered.
Fighting the Fire
The Officers and crew set to work at
once to grapple with the fire. They got out the hose, pumped steam into the holds, and for twenty-four hours played
upon the flames. Chemical extinguishers were available, but were not used, (16) as they could be of no assistance. When
Captain Inch saw what a mastery the fire had obtained he did not think the Volturno could last an hour. With the
hatches gone, steam, which is very effective provided the compartments can be made air-tight, was streaming out again
almost as soon as it was forced in. At one time the Captain and the Chief Engineer gravely discussed the possibility
of flooding the two forward holds as a last desperate means of extinguishing the
fire. If there had been no passengers on board they would have resorted to this
expedient, but the risk was too great. The bow was already dipping and the
flooding of the two holds might have caused the vessel to plunge bow foremost into the deep, carrying
the five hundred passengers with her, with results too awful to contemplate. That was a fateful conference between these
two officers, and one (17) can easily understand how racked they were with the tremendous responsibility thrust upon them by
the circumstances of the hour. Flooding being ruled out, the Captain decided to launch the boats, and it was at this
time that several of the emigrants jumped overboard in their terror and were drowned. When the order to lower boats
was given,
others of the emigrants, casting all ideas of discipline to the winds, attempted to get into the boats while they
were still on the chocks; and it was only by the free use of sticks that they were driven off.
The story of the sea is full of big tragedies, but I can imagine nothing so horrible to the beholder as to watch a boat
full of human beings, many of them women and children, being swung out and dropped upon the turbulent water, being
turned turtle by some giant comber as easily as a child (18) will topple over a penny craft, sliding all her
human cargo into the
sea, and then righting herself again - empty. That is what happened to No. 2 boat, which was launched in charge of
First Officer H. P. Miller. Twenty-two out of the twenty-four cabin passengers were assisted into this boat, and among
the other occupants were the Chief Steward and Stewardess. So far as I can learn, the block of the aft tackle got
caught on the gunwale of the boat, causing its bow to swing round to the sea. This led to the disaster. The Chief
Officer, the Chief Steward and the Quartermaster - who a few minutes earlier had had such a marvellous escape from
fire - and another person managed to get back into the boat. They cut the block away with a boat-axe, and the boat
drifted astern and was never seen again.
No. 6 boat was next launched in
(19) charge of Fourth Officer Langyel.
This was soon crowded with passengers and crew, and, apparently got safely away.
One can only guess what followed; in such a furious sea it must have been
speedily engulfed.
The Crushed Boat
No. 7 boat had an even more tragic fate. The Captain had doubts as to the wisdom of
launching any other boats as the sea was so rough, but the occasion seemed
desperate. Accordingly, the boat was filled and safely lowered. It made the
water and floated, but in the great heaving ocean the Volturno, drifting
where the waves carried her, rose high at the stern and came down upon the frail
craft. The ship literally sat upon her, and the occupants met with a horrible
death.
At this juncture Captain Inch received word from the Marconi operator that the
(20) Carmania was coming to their assistance. He immediately gave orders to
the Second and Third Officers, whose boats had been stove-in while they were
endeavouring to get them out, that no more boats were to be launched, and he
went forward to continue fighting the fire.
Was There Panic?
What happened at this stage
is a little difficult to determine. The Captain declares there was no panic,
but, judging from the statement made by Walter Trentepohl, the German clerk who
was picked up by the Carmania, there evidently was a great deal of confusion.
People rushed around wildly, and, according to his statement, the crew, who were
chiefly Dutch and Germans, seemed to think they ought to have first place, and
instead of quieting the passenger, they made the panic worse. The Captain was
splendid, and remained on the forward (21) deck, directing the operations for
fighting the fire. Third Officer Dusselmann, in a statement which he made in New
York, declared that the only trouble they had was when some of the stokers
became excited and tried to rush the boats, whereupon the Captain drove them
back with a pistol, telling them there was no danger if they would only stand by
him and help him to try and save the ship. Other statements have been made
declaring that the Captain had to use his revolver in order to put down the
panic, but Captain Inch himself assures me his revolver never left the drawer in
his room. It appears, however, that the Third Engineer drew his revolver on one
of the stokers, who had refused to obey his orders to leave the boat-deck, and
go below. I have no doubt this is the explanation of the revolver story. My own
opinion, after carefully considering (22) all the evidence, is that there was a panic
on the after-deck, but that as he was engaged forward Captain Inch did not see
it.
After the Captain had given the order that no more boats were to be
launched, some irresponsible persons tried to launch No. 10a boat. It was
overcrowded, and, when an attempt was made to lower it, only the aft end went
down, with the result that all the occupants were spilled into the sea.
The Toll of the Boats
It is believed about 120 people
were killed or drowned in connection with the launching of the Volturno's
boats. In the absence of official figures I cannot make any definitive
statement, but I am told that not more than one-third of those who got into the
boats were women and children. If true, this shows there was a lack of
discipline somewhere.
By good chance there was not more (23) than half the
usual number of emigrants on board the Volturno on this trip. On every voyage
during the previous eighteen months she had carried at least 1,000 passengers,
but, happily, this time her complement was only half that number. One's
imagination reels at the thought of what would have happened had there been
1,000 instead of 500 emigrants, huddled together in the after part of the ship,
with the fire gradually forcing its way from hold to hold.
Tragedies of Despair
After the awful fate of the boats a great many of the
passengers believed that the end had come, and they became very hysterical. One
woman, with a baby clasped to her breast, jumped over into the seething
waters. A still more tragic case was that of a young French married couple who
decided they could not endure the horror any longer. They placed their arms
round each other, (24) exchanged a farewell kiss, and jumped into the sea.
Fortunately this madness did not spread.
When the Carmania came in sight the Captain ordered the Chief Engineer
of the Volturno to stop the engines so as to save the coal for working the pumps
and dynamos. The ship then fell in the trough of the sea, and lay in that
position the whole time, the wind thus driving the flames to leeward.
Captain Barr, having learned by wireless
of the tragic results of the attempts to launch the Volturno's boats,
resolved to send one of the Carmania's life-boats to the burning vessel.
Naturally, this boat was placed in charge of First Officer Gardner with a crew
of picked men, whose names deserve to be recorded, as they played the part of
undoubted heroes: James Donaghue, S. Smith, W. Turton, Michael Murray, T. Titchen,
W. Donking, John Wise, H. Payne and G. O. Thompson. (25)
The ninth man jumped in at the last moment, and, as he
begged so hard to be allowed to stay, Mr. Gardner did not insist upon his going
back.
Launching the Carmania's Life-boat
The launching was a difficult operation, but it was smartly done,
and a ringing cheer sent those gallant men on their way. Two or three oars were
broken at the start, but these were replaced, and the men bent themselves to
their task. Oil had been poured on to the sea, and for a short distance the
water was fairly smooth, but soon they were lost to view, and it was only
occasionally those on board the Carmania caught a glimpse of the boat, so
terrific were the seas which it encountered. I do not believe the boat would
have lived had it not been for the wonderful effect of the little oil bag which
hung from the weather bow. This bag was (26) filled with waste and fish oil, the
latter falling drop by drop through small holes at the bottom of the bag; and
these little drops of oil prevented the seas breaking over the boat's bows. The
sea anchor was also of immense assistance, especially when seven oars out of ten
were lost.
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Heroic Failure
Unhappily the hopes the gallant crew entertained of being
able to save some of the Volturno passengers were frustrated, for Mr.
Gardner found it impossible to get anywhere near the burning ship. Huge waves
were breaking against the vessel, and an attempt to get alongside meant certain
death to his crew; so, regretfully, he had to turn back, and after two hours'
battling with the angry sea, once more was within hail of the Carmania.
It was an amazing feat of
skill to bring his boat back safely with only three oars. (27) Further oars were
thrown to him from the ship, but more than once it looked as if nothing could
prevent the life-boat from being smashed against the Carmania's side.
Captain Barr shouted in stentorian tones:
"Get the crew out and let the boat go."
A Modest Hero
Mr. Gardner made one
more effort, and the boat was made fast. Three or four of the crew seized hold
of the rope ladders that were in readiness for them, and they climbed aboard to
safety. The others remained in the boat, which was hauled up to the boat deck, a
number of the passengers assisting the crew in this operation.
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A great cheer greeted Mr. Gardner and his men
when the boat was raised to her davits and they jumped on to the deck. One lady
passenger, evidently hailing from Lancashire, rushed forward, grasped him (28) warmly
by the hand, and said, "God bless you, lad!" a salutation and benediction that
greatly embarrassed Mr. Gardner. He at once proceeded to the bridge to report to
the Captain, and resumed his ordinary duties as if he had just returned from a
little rowing exercise, instead of having fought grimly with death on a
tempestuous sea for over two hours.
A Daring Manoeuvre
Having failed to reach the Volturno in
this way, Captain Barr, by an act of splendid seamanship, manoeuvred the
Carmania quite close to the burning vessel. It was then seen that the
forepart of the ship was deserted, the passengers and crew having all been
driven aft by the awful heat. Signals of comfort and hope were waved to the
awestricken passengers, some of whom fluttered a few handkerchiefs in return,
but it was evident they were overwhelmed with the (29) calamity that had befallen
them. All were wearing life-belts, and hoping against hope that rescue might
come, although the tragic fate which had overtaken the launching of their boats
had undoubtedly struck terror into their souls.
It was impossible to make
communication, and the two vessels drifted apart, while those on board in each
case watched and waited with baited breath.
Coming of the Titans
Earlier in the day Captain Barr had sent out messages to all ships within
call, and these were promptly responded to by the vessels whose names I have
already given. The first to arrive after the Carmania was the Seydlitz at 3.30
in the afternoon, and later came the Grösser Kurfürst. At 6 o'clock the
Kroonland hove in sight, followed at
intervals by the Minneapolis, La Touraine, Rappahannock, Devonian,
Czar and
Narragansett, the (30) last four arriving early on Friday morning. The Asian also
arrived, but took no part in the rescue operations.
When the Seydlitz was getting close, Captain Inch suggested that the
Carmania should go to look for the two boats that had got away. Captain Barr
steamed twelve miles north-west and circled, but nothing was seen of the missing
craft.
Helpless!
Later in the afternoon, Captain Barr made another effort to get in touch with the
Volturno, as wireless messages had been received stating that the
position was becoming more desperate. The suggestion has been made that if the
Carmania had had a rocket apparatus on board communication might have been
effected and rescues achieved. I particularly asked Captain Barr his opinion on
this point. He told me he had rockets available, but if he had made (31) connection
with the Volturno it would have been futile. The strongest hawser ever
made, the stoutest chain ever forged, would have snapped like thread under such
a terrific strain. I have assisted in working the apparatus in a shipwreck on
the East Coast, and I know from experience how difficult it is to work the
cradle even when the ropes are firmly affixed at one end. Captain Inch shares
Captain Barr's opinion. "No rope," he said, "could be fixed from ship to ship,
for nothing could stand the tug of two big ships pulling against each other as
they swung upon the heaving waters."
Hopeless!
The Seydlitz tried to reach the Volturno by one of her little boats, but she
also was unsuccessful. The Carmania then dropped half a dozen life-rafts
overboard, but the Volturno could not get up sufficient steam to pick them up.
They all drifted across her bow. Further attempts (32) at communication were tried.
The Volturno put out a life-buoy and keg on a small line, but the ship was
drifting so fast that they went to windward, and the Carmania could not get
them. I have wondered a great many times what would have happened if the Carmania had picked up the life-buoy. My own view is that there was a
misunderstanding somewhere, as both Captains knew very well that even if a line
had been taken from one ship to the other it would not have been of any
practical advantage, for the reasons I have given.
One will never forget the look of dire despair that settled on the faces of the
passengers, huddled together in the after part of the ship, as effort after
effort to save them resulted in failure. No longer did we wave signals of
attempted comfort, for we knew that only a miracle could save them. (33)
The Arena of Death
They must have felt as if they were
inside a ring of spectators who had come to watch them fight to the death. The
first desperation had passed. The cargo that was alight had burned so fiercely
that it had commenced to burn itself out. All the brass work in the forecastle
melted and disappeared. Even the glass in the portholes, half an inch in
thickness, melted away as easily as silver paper held in the fire. Hour after
hour those on the Volturno fought with the fire, but all the time it was
winning against their puny efforts. Two of the seamen remained for twelve hours
at a stretch at the hoses at the two hatches.
It was in the neighbourhood of the
'midship
hospital that the conflagration was worst. A great deal of the woodwork had
collapsed, and all that could be done with the hoses was futile. (34)
The heat generated by flames confined
in such a limited space was terrific. Steel girders became white hot, and Captain Inch told me how he pushed a
hose as far as it would go so that the water should pour into the burning hatch. As
he stood watching the water making but a poor fight against the fire, he saw the
flames rise and melt the nozzle of the hose from which the torrent was rushing.
When the Light Failed
The fire kept bursting out afresh at the back of the men with the hose, and it
was then that Captain Inch found in the saloon that these back fires were
started by the electric wires short-circuiting. He pulled out the fuses, and
darkness fell over the ship, save for the glare from the fire itself. That was
the most anxious time of the whole disaster, so far as the Captain himself was
concerned. Up on deck the great (35) crowd of foreigners praying and crying; down
below a raging inferno, with only a bulging steel barrier between the two.
Webmaster's Note.
The above represents about half of the entire book. This page is already quite
large. So to keep this page to a manageable
size, the text will continue here.
|
CUNARD DAILY BULLETIN
The webmaster knows nothing more about this matter than is reported on this page. It would seem that Cunard must
have published 'Daily Bulletins' in 1913 at least, because one such bulletin is available for sale via Bookseller John Blanchfield
of Leeds, U.K. It is described as being the second edition of Friday Oct. 10, 1913, a single broadsheet,
published by 'Cunard, At Sea' with what is described as being 'A
breathless account of the heroic rescue of the crew and passengers of the
Volturno. Printed to one side in three columns'. Presumably the 'breathless' account is
the effort of
Arthur Spurgeon. Available at U.S. $151.86.
I found it via the main Bookfinder.com page after entering
on that page Arthur Spurgeon as
the author.
AVAILABILITY OF THE SPURGEON BOOK
The Spurgeon book is quite scarce. And while I do not have confirmation of the fact, I have been advised that maybe
only 300 copies were initially printed in 1913. Does anybody know definitively? Copies are available for reference only, I
understand,
in the New York Public Library &
in the Toronto Public Library in Ontario, Canada. I believe a copy is available
at Kent State
University in the U.S. & that particular copy is, I understand, available for
inter-branch loan. It would seem that there is also a copy in the
Maritime
Museum in Rotterdam. There is a copy in the
Sydney Jones Library in
Liverpool, & copies also in the British Library, the National Library of Wales
& the National Library of Scotland. Those are the only publicly available copies that I today
know about. If you can add to that list, perhaps with more data from the U.K., do please
take a moment & advise me.
As I indicated above, it is believed that
the book may have had a dust cover on it when it was published in 1913. It would be good to have that fact definitively
confirmed by
finding a scan of an actual dust cover. But, Richard C. Lina of Estates Gallery Books of
Benicia, California, states that the copy
he had
for sale (was available book listed below) used to have a 'glasseine' protective cover, which he describes as being a
see through protective cover, much
like mylar today but similar in texture to tissue paper. Richard says there were no
signs of any other type of covering or dust jacket. Over the years the 'glasseine' had yellowed,
& became both clouded
and brittle. So it was discarded. But Richard's copy was, I understand, a presentation copy from the
author & may have been given 'special' treatment accordingly. Richard we thank you.
Now copies of the book
occasionally are available on e-Bay & from other sources. I will try to list
them as I know of them being available
& sold. Prices mentioned are without shipping costs & I have used
U.S. dollars as the prime currency. Arthur Spurgeon is of course, the author.
But ...
I do not check often any more. The following may be helpful re historical prices
and the places to try to find a copy,
| Actual Sales |
|
|
| April 2003 |
U.K. via
bookfinder.com |
U.S. $70.68 at the time |
| April 2004 |
e-Bay, but listing
long gone |
U.S. $83.25 at
the time (GBP 47.00) |
|
October 2006 |
e-Bay, but listing
long gone |
U.S. $62.04 at
the time (GBP 35.45) |
|
June 2008 |
e-Bay, but listing
long gone |
U.S. $47.40 at
the time (GBP 23.99). Had
an inscription signed by the author addressed to Lord William Cecil.
|
|
July 2, 2009 |
e-Bay, but listing long gone. |
GBP 49.99 (U.S. $81.62). Had
an inscription signed by the author addressed to Captain David Dow of the Mauretania.
|
|
October 2010 |
via Abebooks |
Sold for U.S.
$60.44. Described as a poor copy. |
|
Nov. 30, 2010 |
e-Bay, but listing
long gone listing |
Sold for U.S.
$53.25 |
| Available |
|
|
|
Check with |
via bookfinder.com
or Abebooks
(type in Arthur Spurgeon). They frequently have copies for sale or with e-Bay. |
|
| Previously Available |
|
|
|
Nov. 14, 2012 |
e-Bay, but listing
expired |
Did
not sell for U.S.
$150.00 |
| Was available |
via
UKBookworld
|
Was
available in fall of 2005 at GBP 16.00 through Nineteenth Century Books via UKBookworld.com. A copy that
was of modest price but had
condition issues & was missing 3 of the 20 plates. |
| Was
available |
via
bookfinder.com
or Abebooks
(type in Arthur Spurgeon) |
Was
available at U.S. $69.50, from R. D. Hooker,
bookseller, of Christchurch, U.K. But not any more! |
| Was
available |
via
bookfinder.com or Abebooks (type in Arthur Spurgeon) |
Was
available at U.S. $250. Was on e-Bay with a U.S. $199 starting bid
& 'buy
it now' at U.S. $250. Item expired with no bids. (Estates Gallery Books, Bernicia, California) |
| Was available |
via bookfinder.com
or Abebooks
(type in Arthur Spurgeon) |
Was available at U.S. $76.94 from
John Blanchfield, bookseller, of Leeds, United Kingdom, LS4 2RR. Described
as being a poor copy, but with two contemporary newspaper cuttings, one from the
Daily Post (presumably of Birmingham) dated October 14, 1913 & entitled 'A
Birmingham Mans Story' with a pen picture.
|
| Was available |
via bookfinder.com
(type in Arthur Spurgeon) |
Was available at U.S. $131.61 from
Robin Summers of Suffolk, United Kingdom. The book is described
as being very good indeed.
|
| Was available |
via bookfinder.com
(type in Arthur Spurgeon) |
Was available at U.S. $157.52
& at U.S. $162.05 from 'Books and Collectibles' & from 'Page after Page',
both of which are perhaps the same bookseller of 963 Canterbury Road, Box Hill, Victoria, Australia.
The listings referenced 'Boards are worn at the
spine ends with 1 cm of cloth worn away.' Also 'very rare in pictorial
wrapper'. |
| Was available |
via
Abebooks
and bookfinder.com
(type in Arthur Spurgeon) |
Was available at U.S. $147.49
or $168.06 from Marine & Cannon Books of the United Kingdom. |
| Was available |
via
Amazon.co.uk |
Was available at U.S. $300.39. |
The Spurgeon book that was, long ago now, for sale via Westleton Chapel Books would seem to
have been
'one of a kind' - the
very copy of the Spurgeon book that was owned by
Captain Inch himself. It is inscribed as you can see: "Francis Inch // late s/s Volturno // Burnt at Sea // Oct 9. 1913". The signature
would surely seem to be identical to the facsimile signature of the Captain opposite page 10. It does also have a pencilled
note at page 10, I read, concerning the subsequent fate of one of the rescue vessels which may
also be by him (the La Touraine: 'since burnt at sea, but managed to return to
port'.) On Mar. 15, 1915, La Touraine did burn
400 miles west of the Irish coast & indeed made it safely to Cherbourg in
France.
May I suggest that you navigate the site via the
index on page 01.
PRIOR PAGE / NEXT PAGE
To the Special Pages Index.
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