Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1873-01-03

We are permitted to copy the following
extracts from private letter, received by
our townsman c. ". Wingate from his
| father 1t is dated Dec 18th
- realize that you felt great alarm on
| the first announcement of the wreck of the
/ steamship Sacramento, on which W lille and
| were passengers ; but let Us offer up CRATE
full thanks that We are saved, and to-day We
safely landed at San Diego, after an I'M
pleasant five days and six nights, one night
on the wreck and five ON the desolate Island
of san Geronimo. lying ten miles from the
land coast Of lower California. DesOlate
indeed was the Island. for it had neither
wood nor wa;er, and our first two days
daily scanty supply Of food from the ship
to each person was one-half gill of water
and hard tack but the remaining time on
the Island We had meat and one cup OF
coffee in the morning, and still only one
half gill of water which We took with our
evening lunch. From the third day plenty
of provisions from the Sacramento, but
no larger rations of coffee and water till
the fifth day, when the ship Montana came
To our relief
The Sacramento struck the sunken reel
with terrible force, at II.2j, Thursday
night. December 9TH, and | was actually
thrown through my state room door across
the passage into an opposite room, the door |
of which closing upon my hand, badly Jam |
ming two fingers The night was all dark I
ness, and dense fog enyeloped Us; nothing 1
seen but dark, sharp rocks each side Of the |
prov, and the roaring surf daShlng around 1
the ill-iated ship.
After at least an hour Of terrible anxiety I
the Sacramento settled deep in the sand,
partly filled with water, but resting quiet.
and the passengers becoming calmer. When
Willie and first got upon deck that night
We were without stockings and shoes, and
while the ship was pounding upon the reel
We remained in that sad plight After it
got calmer, went to my room and found
our baggage all right. At a. m. we be
gan to leave .he ship. under a heavy swell.
| threw little Willie about ten feet, into
the arms Of the good stout colOred barber,
in boat and then. as the boat rose on "a
heavy wave, jumped for it rs far, and land
ed in a decidedly tumbling manner Ii was
one Of the largest ships boats, taking from
the wreck sixty souls, and, after rowing ten |
miles. we landed on the Island, through the
surf, and hope all offered thanks for their
safety Our voyage was unusually pleas
ant up TO the disaster.
will say, in conclusion. that in one hour
liter the accident a boat from the Sacra
nento left for San Diego, two hundred and
evenly mile, distant, and obtained the ship
hat came 70 our relief. The first night on
he Island We slept on the open beach, and
fter that raised tents.
In another letter, dated at SAN Diego, d
Dec. 10th, Mr. Wngate says: y
d" In my last letter | wrote You of my safe u
rival here
Cur escape from death seems ike mir
Gle, for chad the Sacramento at the time "
{ tie disaster struck twenty feet right or 81
att She would have dashed in pieces on n
unken rocks o
We left New York Nov 18TH weather 81
old. and in 1orty-eight hours were in the /
iulf Stream. Thermometer 10 :. sea calm. al
he day after, passed a wrecked brig, sails b
angling over her sides, sea over her decks. | u
ot soul aboard. Next DAY made san Il
llyadore. SIS We All remember the first land al
severed By. and the first landing place Of te
olumbuS IN his voyage to the new world. flu
ourth day. passed east of Cuba and sixty Do,
niles Of coast seen, and also sighted san OF
0mugo. were two days in the Caribbean vs.
"a and 1t was quite rough. On the on
ghth day. landed at A,piuWall at a. IA. hl
{ l. M. took ears across the f~thmuS IT
ere detained two days no Panama. and ia
rs some of the ruins of the old part of the oil
~ that was sunk by an earthquake one Or
inbred Years ago. Oh
On the Sacramento passed the ~tate- tn
Hranada. Gautamall and Costa Rica in tri
'utral America. and made the first port In The
eXico Acapulco. Then % Manzanila CIR
d TO san Bias and last at Mazatlan All tui
tins passage the weather was hot and the 70
/ smooth. Even the Gulf of Tehauntepec Pr
q the Gulf Of California were calm as ! d
rivers. although usually rough the
HD
ecked, the shores We're as barren As aft.
island of san Geronimo. for hun in
'd~ of miles. We sent boat Vol
eniy or thirty miles along the shore and By
chance 10 land. Another boat was sent pre-
~ miles 10 san Quintiu. and the town frie
$ deserted and no water there The oth'
Ter boat went two hundred and twenty stir
r. 10 san Diego and got assistance. act
relief, As ! before Wrote The whole Am
st range ON this Pacific side Is cha
. volcanic formation. We passed noun pas
l> 1900 feet high and two volcanoes in new
T. On the I,thmus. and IN the ports of | par
puIeo. Mazatlan and Nlanzanilla. the Of z
leS and people at night were strange I
wierd like 4 c1mmunitvofaH hues. a Ion
~ mixtures Of Indian. Spanish. negro Z wLe
White-->ome In gaudy dress. some the
2 an apron about their lOin-. and some your
b no dress ON the lsthmu~. a. the car. BIZ q
ped 90 wood. native. entirely nude gray
tn OF sixteen Years old. came along with pray
NY, and during the fifteen minutes stop rest
he train the boy faced the ears with per
Indifference
m Diego Is new town of four wears Ne
ankee growth. This hotel (Hortoh
seq Is large and elegant and finely kent III
daily papers published here. a bank -,
many good stores, churches and school,. 'ne
'oAie very inere~idence~ The weather have
ue-like" ~, -,