Daily press and Dakotaian. [volume] (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1875-1880, 1877-11-03

Che 9stly 3ress aud 1ststssss
= yANkToN DAKOTA
Saturday Evening, November 3, lSHI
An ENGLISH vEsoE LOST OIL A Rocx N the
PACING.
F .L .i4 4rss.a s.u
Her Msjssty's StsansAip Ansthyst Re-
FUSES TO hsseus the PasssnGsss-oreat
Loss Of Life, aud TsrriHis suass.
inEs OF The Survivsrs.
The Lima Journal Mercurio contains the
following account, dated At Vilos, In Chill,
Of the wreck Of the Pacific Steam Navixa.
tlon company's mail packet Eten, and he
strange proceedings Of the English wa ves-
eel Amethyst: After . tempsstuom and
dark night on the morning Of Sunday, the
10th Of October, at $40 the vessel struck on
. suuken rock, forming part Of 4 little islst
situated about 500 metres from the coast,
and four miles north Of the mouth Of the
river Chaopa. The highest part Of this islst
is capable Of giving oom 70 about eighty
persons standing close together, and was
soon destined to become the theater Of terri.
bic sufierings, physical as we'll q moral.
All was panic and confusion after the Eten
struck. The captain and his officers tried
IN vain to %tranquilize the terror stricken
Passengers and restore something like order.
sixty on the highest part of the bows. There
they passed about half an hour. when The
ship suddenly broke in two an eyery one
was precepi,ated into the watery sbyps.
Meanwhile, the stern, yielding TO the force
OF the waves, gradually approached the
point Of the rock, and between fftv and
sixty unfortunstes succeeded in Obtaining .
footing upon it by means of . plank. Al
the came moment that refuge Wa sought
upon the rocks another dreadful scene 1.s
enacted upon the vessels poop. An attempt
was made to lower the life boat from the da-
Wits where it was hanging On the quarter.
1t was instantly crowded with pallid, tremb
ling wretches, impelled BY a blind instinct
of selfpreservation to try to escape death
by rushing into iu very jaws. Most of them
only forestalled their fate, for in their hurry
and confusion o end of the boat was low
cred whilst the other remained stationary.
owing, probably, to the fouling ofthe tackle.
All who could not hold OF 10 the thwarts
were precipitat.d into the sea and persisted.
Those who remained at Last the cut tackle, and
the boat was swept away, reaching, wonder
women in it. Those who had saved them.
selves on the rock began to entertain hopes
Of being rescued, Listening eagerly to the
captain as he told them that the seaf.rine
inhabitana of the coast would soon come "a
their assistance. Endeavors we're made "a
construct RATS with planks washed in reach.
The largest broke adrift when completed
and on a small one two seasmen, who strange
TO say, could not swim, gained the main.
land ~ il BY q miracle. As time wore on
matters began TO change for the worse. The
wind increased, and the waves with the ris.
ing tide, dashed against the windward sid
Of the rocks; the individuals most within
their reach pressed inward, and gradually
pushed those on the opposite edge into tn,
water. The second officer, the carpenter
four English and six Chilian and Peruvian
sailors stripped and swan for the shore
which they reached, With the exception o
one, after q desperate struggle with III,
angry elements. MOI would several hav,
been saved, 80 exhausted were they, hat
not Don Jose Guerra. . Chillan gentleman
, bravely ridden his horse into the surf ant
by . dexterous use ofhis lassO drawn then
out one by one. About 10 hour afterwart
the captain, followed by the purser ant
other employees, made q similar attemp
without undressing the consequence beinl
that they sank before the eyes of the ii
tcted groab, who watches their .gouiziDi
struggles from the fatal rock, and doubt
less beheld then what would probably b
their OWN fate. This group had diminish.
ed from about sixty TO twenty eight o
thirty persons, and SO they passed the
. night. On Monday, the shore vas cover
ed With people brought from the surround.
ing country by the news Of the shipwreck
They TODD little heed of the tragedy ths
: was snacting upon the rock, giving them
selves up to Drunkenness and the plunde
of the wreckage which strewed the shor
in every form. including barrels of wine
spirits and beer. Such scenes becam
: hideous and sickening when occurir,
within a few hundred yards of the horrible
suffering on the rock. Onits black sum.
nit. standing out in relief againt a gra,
aud threatening horizon. was q knot O
despairing creatures, who for thirty. fou
hours had neither eaten, drunk nor rested
and this in the midst Of the most acut,
mental agonies and physical suffering. A
! last the gloom Of another night began I,
ICuvSAup SAS uSCiuuSA1Ay UCuc. AI. Ot4OQ-
enson. the second officer, who only forty.
: TWO hours hefore hsd narrowly escaped
watery grave, aided by . brave Freucbmsu
y succeeded In persuading three Chilian fsh.
ertnen 10 join them 10 an attempt to estab-
lish communication with the rock, and, en-.
tteripg the boat mentioned above, wer,
! iaunched ilto the breaken, only to be dawl
back after . gallant struggle to proeeed
which nearly cost them their lives. tn,
last endeavor made 70 save the castawayl
4 was In the shape of q raft, Consisting 8
: boards lashed to q large cask, which it wa
proposed to doat from q prominent reef O
rocks on the north Of the strand, 90 as to b
carried BY the wind and the current towerG
the reck, and within their reach.
At this moment the thrilling cry of ava
por! vapor!" q steamer! : steamer aros.
and the EnEli,h shouted 'The Amethyst! =
!, Flags Of distress we're quickly displayed
In : few minutes fye, waved Of the edge o
the water, With . large red one half.mast o,
. . LOFTY pole planted upon . hillock, in orde