9: Captain of the Roddam

                       "The captain and fifteen men on board had almost given up

                                                           all hope when the Roddam sailed into sight three days later." 

       

       In February 1902 they left New York for Galveston, Texas where they loaded a full cargo of lumber in both holds and on deck for Hamburg, Germany. After calling in again at Norfolk to bunker they started eastbound across the Atlantic on 16th February. During this time Edward cabled Steel, Young to advise them the passage was likely to be slow because the ship’s bottom was now so fouled that her top speed was down to a meagre eight knots, and at the same time he repeated his request for the ship to be dry-docked and cleaned.

       As they laboured eastward, making for Bishop Rock and three days from landfall, they were again caught in a severe winter storm. 

       The Roddam was now in worse mechanical shape than she had been then, for her bottom was now heavy with weed, and she was burdened with deck cargo which he feared could break loose as the gale worsened. Before the storm’s onset he took the usual precautions of sending Mr Laws down to ensure the on-deck lumber was battened down with plenty of manila rope.

       On 22nd February while on the bridge and hoping the storm would soon subside they heard the lookout shout down that he had sighted a mast.

       Scanning the horizon with his binoculars in the direction indicated and, despite the turbulent irregular rise and fall of the ship, Edward managed to pick up a distant object.

       A sailing barque laden with pitch pine was in serious distress. She was bare of canvas with only the fore lower mast standing, and was floating heavily.

       As they closed they saw it was the Prinds Leopold, a Norwegian ship under the command of Captain Nilsen. She had sprung a leak at the start of the storm and soon discovered the pumps could not stop the water pouring in. The captain and fifteen men on board had almost given up all hope when the Roddam sailed into sight three days later. 

       In such circumstances at sea, despite danger, they could not just disregard a ship in distress for the roles could so easily be reversed at some future date. Ordering the launching of one of the ship’s boats Edward placed Mr Laws in charge and told him to pick his crew, and second mate Mr Lawrey in charge of the davits, lowering the boat and throwing scramble nets over the side.

       It was a perilous operation for Laws and the men but they reached the barque and returned with all the crew of the Prinds Leopold saved. The rescued men had quite a struggle to clamber up the scramble nets for they were weak from exposure and the Roddam was being thrown about in the heaving water. It was touch and go for the poor devils had not eaten for five days.

      The rescue lasted over three hours and Edward gave Laws and his men all the praise and recognition he could. His only credit, he believed, was to have signed on the bosun Hans Jenson and carpenter Larsen and the two ABs who accompanied Mr Laws.