Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-10-05 00:00:00

AMERICA.

LOSS OF UPWARDS OF FOUR HUNDRED
LIVAS.

By the Europa we have revelved full details and parti-
culars of the wreck of this magnificeni steamer, and the
loss of upwards of 400 lives. She foundered in a hurri-
cane off Cape Hatteras sn the l2th Sept. In addition to
the melanch.ly less of life, vessel, and cargo, fully
2 003,000 dollars worth of gold dust went down with her.
The account of the disaster is very disjointed, as it

contains narratives by many of the passengers saved.
The vessel left Havannah on Ties 'ay the 'th of September, and
pr ceeded with a fair wnd all that day. In the n ght, however. the
wind increas d, and con jelled doing se until the 10. h, whyn i. bh w
a complete harri'a te, yet no fear of danger was emertalae I by th:
crew or passengers. Th s was on the Thursday. During that night
the st r,n still increased in fury, but ev rythinr. as tar as the pas-
se ,gets were aware, was wed with the ship. In the naming, about
11 u', lock, every one was startl d i.y the captain C4:li g upon the
passengers to come on de k. as their assiAanee wa• neces-
sary. At this time the ship lurched over on her side.
but none of the passengers k ,ew the cause of this change in the ship's
veto-. Tire captain then ordered all the p ssenge s to stand on
that side of the ship which was h ghcst out of the water, in order th .t
they might thereby contrib.' e their weight to r ght her, and thi.
orde• being ca-red out, the object was effected which th 3 c ptain
desired. About an hour of er t al hands even pulled up nto bate
out the water. and were told at the same t me tlt t every possible
rate; tion on their part was n-cessary, as the ship had sprung a leak,
and the tires of the engine were already extlagnishitt by th 3 water
which had rushed in throu;th the leak faster than it could be pumped
out. Buckets were nos an 'plied to two hundred roes, who set ai
work at bailing the water r ut after they had formed fines by waich
they passed the buckets along from the hold of the vessel to the b 11-
warks, where it was emptiei into th sea. So hear sly and of is
was this work ca^ried out that it was soon found th t they ware gain-
ing on the leak, and in he course of the afterno n they were enabled
to re ight the fires, but not sufficiarrly ro enable them to get no steam
and the ship was c seseque -sty as mu. .h at the mercy of the waves now
as the had b?.e t sit C 3 the tires wire eat inguished. 1 his work of bailing
was c mtihned all th o the night between Friday and Searles,
and the parties who pert .r.ned the work were relieved alternately,
the captain and his offiers making every arrangement necessary
a-ad co-tributing b, their conduct and bearing to increase the hopes

and ke p up the spirits of the p r :gingers. In tke course of the day
on Siterday it was known by all the passeng. rs t at the ship was in
a sinking condition, but still there was Meets, and very i tie evidences
ref fear, tent amid this state of feeling people might be seen sh k ng
hands with each other, whi e others were °ewer, ed to pray or occupy
their time as i it was their last. Towards evenii g a sail hove in view.
All eyes were strained towards her, and as she approached it was
seen that she was a s " fore and af." schooner, but even 'his
ves.el appearing at such a critical tine, rester •• d conduce e to ever:
one, and even had the effect of producing cheerulness. She at eng h
approached battling wit's the storm, so close that the caetaia se eke
to her. He t Id her captain that his own ship war in a sinking state,
and that he wanted a beat to send a me of his passengers to the
schooner. The c mtain of the latter rep led that "he hal not a
boat that he c ruld rope" and before other words c .uld be exchanged
the fury of the storm had rose parated the vessels that all hopes of
obtai ing r.lier from tie s.lionner were abaedone . and while she
kept on her course, those on board the Central America relapsed into
their former tate of glories and anxiety. About h if past four o'clock
in the evening another vessel appeared. She also fippruached the
Central America. The captain spoke to her, too. She proved to be
the brig Marine, bound f..r Europe. The capt in then tell I.er
commander the condition of tir. steamship. He rep'ied that "he
would give what help was in his power to save the 'tree cf those on
boare the steamer." The brig n stopped and lowe ad her boats.
a d the capta n of the Veemer a solewerei her t,oa s and a rangements
w,re at once m.de for conveying the wornea and children to
the brig. All the beets were felled with them, but the see was so
high and the ereakets se furious that many persons almost pre e• ed
remaining on board the ship to venturing in the small boa s, wh eh
appeared as if they were tossed by the mighty waves only to be over-
tirned at any instant. They were, howe. er, a'l soon cllel, a d 'they
passed an t repassed for about a, hour or more, until th. y perish, d.
one atter the other. About this time, writes a 'weenier who was
saved, I mood on the deck of the sinking eh p watching for an oppor-
tunity of getting my uncle, an ir firm old maneaho was attacked wi h
rheumati in. into ono or the boats, and in cleseqeence of this I m .de
no exert on up to the preseat time, to save myse f The boat in which
the b atswain of the steamer was, was the last teat was els .bled; but
her turn came too, and the boatswain returned in her for the last time
about six o'clock, but announced o the captain that his b rat was
stove in, and that she could not carry a single passenger. row I saw
that there was no chance of my being able to render any assistance to
my nac'e, and I began to think of the test plan of preserving myself
Several men were at th s time doing all they co ild to construct a r
al 1 did what I could until about a quarter past eight o'clock, when
the yes el was so ow in the water that almost every wave broke over
her and tole sod her decks of almost everythi g; and I, with several
other eas.enger., was swept off also at this time by one monstrous
wave, which also cleared away the planks, &c., which were on the
dace for the purpose of malting the raft. It was now entirely dark ;
the storm r .god i r the height of its fury ; the brig was Wag fence out
of s,glit, with the passengers who were so fortunate as to be pit tee
board of her. I felt my elf alole, at th s time, a good distance
from the wrece, c lag ng to a plank of which I tad taken hold
immediately after I was swept into tee sea. Mr. Lee continaes :
A few minute a after I had left the ship she foundered, and at this
tme I was abort; two or three hun red s ards from her. I was iMMe-
diateat dragged un er water by the whirlpool canoed by the sinking
o the vessel, and it was with the utmost difficulty that I cent I hold
qn t my plank. On rising a,,ain to the surface, the scenes presented
to my view were horrifying—men, some holing planks, and others
without anything, were toss d about through the sea for a 'great
space, and appeared to me 1 ke so many corks, whi e the cries of
despair which were uttered by al. faintly reached me. I could not '
describe my fee'inge at this awful moment. For hours Icing to this
pl ink, suffering intensely from thu cold, every inch of my body being
iminervd in the wa'er all the lime, with 'tit seeing or hearing any-
tai ,g except the roari et of the dreadful Aortal, or the faint c yof some
of my companions in misfortune, who, rise me, had so much lack t
get old of a plank. and were ales tossed about in tee same manner
About five o'clock in the mo ning I saw a vessel ; she was hove to,
t rein; up teoseraylia were on she planks. My tare cam, too, and all
wen were spared up to this time were taken on bested this vessel.
which proved to be the N,r we _Lin barque Ede r. We were all elated
by 'hi- clang() of fortune, and sot about making whit chenees we
could in our clothes, tec , and we were then conveyed by the barque
to Sam:awn-reeds where we arrived on the Friday following, amid
the storm, which e rnriauee unebited ne to this time, and we were
t• en t ken by the steamer Faripnra City and coeveae i to New Yee k.
' When I saw toe Central America or the last timZe there wee f air
m - on h:tr hurricane deck two of whom I recognised as tee captain
and Mr. Fraser, tee mewed mate, but I could n .t mike out whit, the
others were. I must sey of the captain of the Central America, that
he ac el with the grey est ca'mress in limes of the most cancer, and
t east his coaduct throuachout t'e ent re of the disaster was in every
ruep e. worthy of the highest ecomium. The c rptaia oft ho barque
which brought us to Hampto.eroads, treated every one with the
greatest kindness in his power. tie to dme the following incid nt,
weich occured ime e lately I Afore he fell in wi h us, as we were
drifting about at the mercy of the w yes on our planks, &c. The
captain said :—I was fore d by the WI d to sail a MU, nut of my
course before I came up with you, and on altering it a small bir I flew
across t e ship once or twi, e, and then °arts 1 Into my face. I how-
ever, to .k n notice of this circums"ance, end the same thin; occurred
again, which caused me to retard the circum tin a as something
evraordinary. and while thinking on it in this way, the mlste boos
b rd far the third time appear rd and went throngli the same extraor-

dioary menuvres. Upet,this I was i 'dated to re alter my core
sat t the orign al one which I had been a eir ng and in a short time I
heard no son, an 1 en try ng to dis..ove weat they proceeded 'torn,
d's 'overed ,hat I was in the iniiist or eople who hid heenshipw ecked."
Wien the bo its were passin- fr ,na the b ig to the steamer every one
wind rush to the si 'es of the ch p as each beat came to take awa%
her omp imeut or pas engars. Some would lock round wa ly and
a k f r t reir trlen4s before th.y would step i to the bolt which was
to convey th mto the brig ; but in mos instances to one responded
to t is p.acing call or it they did, their yokel was deuwned in the
gene al contusion. oth ri m ght be seed running for the tr.asure of
1 idiea who were gong in the brat, in order t at they might be in
time to 1 t them have it b fore the bo it pushed off. tint considering
the awfa, circrtmstancesin which all were pia ed, the order that was
preset veld, and the desire to render mutual atais'ance, which was
mat lotted by alt, have few parallels in the lii,tora of shipvrei ki I ,
lost eveeything but my life; so did most of th se who were picved up .
by toe b ague.
The chef engineer of the boat. W. As' ley, has pub' ished the ,01-
lowing narrative r—We 13 t flavannah on the Bth of Sept tither, at
910 a.lll. the ea Me. end bailers o: the s ip were n perfect order,
and worked we,l up eo Friday, the 11th, carrying an average of 15
pounds ot steam. Our m idumam working power was 2) petards to
the inch, but we m ran as h'gh as that under the m at favour-
. b P circum tanos.
Frid .y, Sept. 11. —The day commenced with Vie win 1 blow'ng a
perfect burro tne from ti.e N N.E., wth some r, in. At g a.m. I is-
covered that the shia was making consi erable water—more than the
oroinary results from the ti ippiegs of (Efferent parts of machinery.
I repo ted thi4 fact to Captain Herndon at once, aid then ate ted all
hat di in pa sing coal into the fire roam in buckets and baskets.
Capra n Herndon, at my equest, sent d neatly all the waiters to
assist in passing coal. The ship was se listed over to V e eta bourn
that oar coal Larroxs were u eless f.s pas ing colt'. We then etarted
s'arboi.rd Worthinc ton l ninp and b lee it jection, t king sterm from
the large boilers t his was about 10 o'clock. The water in tee shili
was In n qui e hot from being in contact with the boilers, I suppose,
and In consequence of ,er list being all in tile starboard bilge. The
ump took wee-, and worked freely- still the water gained on us
I then inspecte 1 al t to t apes aid their connect one, and found them
tight. At ab uc 12 u'oleck th • waier ove,fl wed the coal bunker
&ore, both f ward and aft, making It impossible for the men to work,
the steam from the water putting out nearly all oar 1 imps. I
reporteo to Captain Herndon the state of affairs in the engine-room,
and a, once r.i ected the a-sistant engineer to get up steam In the
den ey tot er, wh eh was dote at once. At the same time .s gang of
balers, consisting f passe: gore, was organised bi t ep'ain Herndon,
and another gang were at work breaking up steerage be the for fuel.
At txo o'clock the S es of the sta board toila-s were extingnis'red
by water. Another g ng o balers were then set at wo kin the after
catin etches, and still anoilier in the lower steerage—engineers,
men, and passengers, a I working with a will. Ihe engineers con-
tinued wo king nit to one o'clock p m., when they stopped for a tew
m.tes f. r want of steam. Ire, soon star ted agila with Cl) pounds
of steam, but having only the port fires to depend upon, the steam
was soon used up. at'e then commenced firing up with wood, and
coutineed to do sot 11 the water rose so riga usto put oat all the fires,
when tire engines stopped. This was between ton and five p.m. The
Wor.hiegton pumps, wed h had been previously worked by steam
from ;he main tot e, s, were then worked by the donkey bailer, and
c intloneu to work till about eight o'clock, with several stoppages of a
few min tie each, which were made necessary to free the feed pipe
of the boiler from obstructions. When the donkey b Her finally
stepped the feed pipe become so choked up that it was nrcea ary to
cut arid repair It. Du ing the night ail hands wet eat work baling.
The rot ing of the ship cansee a small leak around the starboard shaft,
which was atrpp d with blankets, and a sail wrapped around the
shaft outside, in the wheel.
SATURDAY, 12th.—Barrels were rigged with a whip and and worked
in the engine room, and the hatches in other parts of the ship, at
lr isting water. Mr. Keefer, 'he secohd a sistant enginesr„also cut
off the es ape pipes andrigged them as pumps in the sie,rince. one of
which worked we 1. Early in the morning steam WA* maingot on
the donkey beer, and. the pampa worsed till thwainclis gar