[21] A missionary of the Church of England, who ministered to a few poor fishermen at Terence Bay, at the imminent risk of his life put off to the wreck in a small boat and succeeded in saving the life of the first officer of the ship after all hope of further rescue had been abandoned, and when even the hardy fishermen forbade the rash attempt. Mr. Ancient had formerly been attached to the British navy, and during this heartrending scene acted the part of a hero in his efforts to save life and to relieve the sufferings of the survivors. Captain Williams was severely censured, and had his certificate suspended for two years. [22] This was written before the Hispano-American war began; since then several of these vessels have been employed by the United States Government with a change of nomenclature. [23] “U. S. A. Report on Navigation for 1896,” p. 104. [24] Last April the great _Kaiser_ surpassed her previous record, making the voyage from New York to Southampton (3,065 knots) in 5 days, 17 hours, 8 minutes, showing an average speed of 22.35 knots per hour. [25] THE “BOURGOGNE” DISASTER.—Since the sinking of the _Eutopia_ in Gibraltar Bay in 1891, no such marine disaster has occurred as that which recently befell the SS. _Bourgogne_—a, tragedy in some respects the most appalling that has ever been recorded. This vessel of 7,795 tons—one of the finest of the French line of steamers—sailed from New York for Havre on the 2nd of July, 1898, with a ship’s company, including passengers and crew, of 726 souls. Early on the morning of the 4th, when about sixty miles south of Sable Island, during a dense fog, and while running at the rate of some eighteen knots an hour, she came into collision with the British sailing ship _Cromartyshire_, of 1,554 tons, and in a very short time foundered, carrying down with her about 520 persons. Had it not been for her collision bulkhead the _Cromartyshire_ must have sunk, too. As it was, she was badly damaged, but hove to all day in the hope of picking up survivors. In the meantime the Allan SS. _Grecian_ came up to the scene of the disaster, the rescued passengers were taken on board, and the disabled ship was towed into Halifax harbour. The survivors were the purser of the steamship, three engineers, thirty of the crew, and 170 passengers—204 in all. Of the seventy-two ladies in the first cabin only one was saved. Captain Deloncle, commander of the _Bourgogne_, was a lieutenant in the navy, and a knight of the Legion of Honour, having under him a competent staff of officers who appear to have done what they could to save the lives of others. All of them went down with their ship into the sailor’s grave. The loss of life was appalling, but even more heartrending were the accounts given of the barbarous conduct of some of the steerage passengers and sailors in the terrible struggle for self-preservation. [26] Fry’s “History,” p. 309. CHAPTER V. STEAM TO INDIA AND THE EAST.