The Douglas independent. [volume] (Roseburg, Or.) 187?-1885, 1880-09-11
TELEGRAMS.
TERRIBLE DISASTER AT SEA.

The s.vera Crua' Foundered on the
FlorIda Coast.
ST AUsuTrEE. Florida, Sept. 3.-There is
reason to believe that the steamer Vera Cruz
ofthe Havana and Mexican line which sailed
from New York, Aug. 25th, has been lost
with all passengers and crew.
Parts of the mail she carried ha se been
washed ashore, and cargo supposed to be hers
strews the shore for forty miles below St.
Augustine.
Five bodies have also been washed ashore
and trunk bearing the name of one of the
passengers in the ship A large steamer. sup
posed to have been the Vera Cruz, was seen
Saturday last about 60 miles off sh 1re from
St. Augustine by brig which was wreck ed
in gale which broke out on Sunday. On
the following Thursday the mail matter
wss washed ashore.
Nothing is known by the owners in NeN
| York concerning the vessels fate. The wires
in Florida connecting with the Havana cable
are unfortunately not working, so that no in
quirits can be made of agents at Havana
The Vera Gus was stauneh ship and she
must have. been struck by hurricane, and
probably foundered on Saturday night OF sun
day morning
The following is a Ist of the passengers
| who sailed on the City of Vera Gus: Ra-
iael Afrue, Mrs. R. Arrue, Walter Bechie,
Adola Kosque Miss E. Burns, Miss A. Clark. !.
Geo W. Cole, Miss Sadie Foy. Gen. Forbes
| h. Frenks, MIR. q. A. Carols, Mrs. G. A Gar.
| cia Il. Glasho, John Gadhill, John Gambay,
Felix Hernands 9. Mrs. Hernandez, E. Liole-
J. Rayensburg, Miss T. Rubio. 0 p Silva T.
| H. Maur Alexander Wallenge, M. Welsh.
Mrs. NJ. Welsh and Mr. II. Alexander.
| One mail bag contained letters for Cuba
and Mexico which had been posted in Paris,
France, August 18th, and another lot wss
h
| New York, Aug. 25th. This alone indicated
| that the lost vessel was mail steamer bound
| for southern ports and founded the surmise
that II must have been the Cty Of Vera Ofas,
as she left New York on the day last named.
| Closer examination showed several bills of
| honr brings news of some more startling dis
covefy in regard to the supposed wreck, and
the body of lady and little child have been
found on shore, cast up by the waves. They
| were buried BY party OF wreckers on the
I sands near the place where found. This
makes already five bodies recovered
i Three others being corpses OF unknown per-
sons Two, from their dress, are thought to
be passengers and the other was evidently q
sailor. The trank found was marked Her
nandezn Two sailing vessels in addition to
the brig Eddy have come ashore since the
gale near here. Signs are that the hurricane
has been very fatal to shipping.
The City Of Eeva Cras Was Q wooden vessel.
4 1874 tons register built at Green Point, l i,
| in 1874, for Alexander d Sons line, between
this city. Havana and Mexico. in which trade
| she was employed. She was q screw vessel
296 feet long, 81 feet beam and 26 teet deep,
and had draught of 10 feet water.
She had three decks, was brig rigged, and
her motive power consisted of two compound
cylinder engines. Her propeller was fifteen
feel six inches in diameter. with pitch OF
twenty-three feet. Iron strips four inches
wide and FIVE eighths of an inch in thick ness
1 doubled and diagonally laid, strengthen ed
the vessel very mat risiy She had accosi
modations for 100 passengers and was finely
furnished.
Probabilities, Posslbilities and Guesses.
NEW YoRK. Sept 3 1t is suggested thar in
he event of an accident 10 the City Of Verl
Gus, or ii the steamer became uuulanag abte
IN storm, tee crew and passengers might
have taken to the boats, bringing the mail
with them and have afterwards thrown tht
mail overheard to tighten. Fne postofiee
authorities here say that the mai washed
ashore postmarked New York, Aug 25Sh, anc
Paris, Aug. lst, indicates that it arrived here
by the Baturia from sIiverpooi and was dis
patched BY the CITY Of Hera Gtts at ths
office of thesAlex aBder LIns up 10 noon TO
day no fu, ther information ~ 10 the reported
loss had been received. The owners do NO
believe hat the steamer Is lost, bit thin sh,
encountered hurricane, during which tn,
mail and baggage went overheard raey pro
neunce her one of the strongest steamers IL
the world. She was on the dock previous Il
the last trip. The vessel was worth 500 00l
and was insured in tue London Americs
Survivors at JacksonyIile.
New YoRK, Sept. "A teleersm to III
board of underwriters from Jacksonville, an.
neuncing loss of the steamer Vera Cruz. say
the survivors of the crew are there in distress
| sWaiflDp frnm n Thu
steamship company to which the lost VerG
Cruz belonged. tee.raphed 10 St. AugustiEs
this afternoon, ordering their agent to forw.r.
the survivors to New York without DELAY,
, Fol!n~iig is a complete list of the officer
of the Vera Cruz when che arrived in tni,
port on her last trip: Capt. E. Van Size
frat officer, F NJ Harris; second officer, b
Nelson purser, Siias A. Whitney csrpen
ter, II. Muller; quar,ermesters, G. Branden
boro and w. o'Neiil; chief engineer, N Mil
ler: first assistant engineer E. Brouk sec
j, ond assistant engineer. G Smith.
II The body OF y young man has come eshor
/ / at Matanzas. It haa on only a shirt AMI
drawers. A few miles further south the bod,
of an old gentleman who appears to hav
) been about 5S or go years old was washet
ashore, together with those of an elderl!
, lady and q young girl and child. 1t vii
, crafty friends of the drowned passengers ant
4 crew to know that letters have been founs
. and will be retained until further inquiry il
made respecting them. Many trunks hav,
) come ashore and have been rihed Il |:
deemed unfortunate that there is no life say
, | ing station on this coast to project wreeke'
! property and prevent it from being lost o
stolen. No portion of the wreck has cuu,
ashore except sofa coyerel with red plush
and some pieces If furniture. Tb
saved passengers far as can b
! Learned were A x Oven of Chester, Pa.
] civil engineer employed By the authoritie
ut Mexico; J. A Garcia Cuban Of Havans
, | 27yeals OF age; and two passengers wtos
names conlu not be learned, and vino wer
to arrive at ot. Augustine to-day. Beside
these passengers were young lady and thre
: men, whose Nantes Could not be learned. Th
| officers and men saved, SO far as known, ar
D Charles Brandenburg, qnartermaster, aged 3;
\ Thos Drurgold, 4sh assistant engineer, age
i2s. who resides in New York ci,y job
Greenfield. boatswsin Jas. II Kelly, ses
man, of New York, aged 33; Charles Smith
second assistant engineer, OF Baltimore, rge
about 20. Three sailors rescued give tne
names ~ Mason. Talbot Gnd oeaiLau.
Statement of One Of the Surviving Sea
men.
Tie Tribune has from Seaman Talbot th
following story of the wreck of the steamt
City of Vera Cruz: About 30 miles off shoI
. we began to ship heavy seas and water ws
found in the hold. As fast as we could cles
her she filled by another sea. Everything wi
panic Life boats we're cut loose ready ft
action and all hands supplied with life pr
servers. At daylight Sunday boats were Low
cred and tnapnei. They no sooner got the
!. cargo than they were overturned ~
| smashed to atoms against the steamer, q
hands being swept away or their lives dashe
out sgainst the vessels side. Boat after boz
wa dashed to pieces in the same manner I'll
I'll few OF the passengers would venture
|, | leave the steamer. The capita n and Officer
lost their lives in one OF the boats. Every
thing was in perfect bedlam, people scream
ing snd shrieking for help on all sides. II
steamer was broken in two, and after fe
:. surges she foundered aud went down, carr,
. ing with her all who were on board. Mhs
1 arose to the surface Icould see now and the
pieces of drift stuff and sometimes one or ia
i, men or women. They made no effort to sa
!! themselves and we're drowned in my sigt
70 mother and daughter were clasped In ea
rs others arms during the gale and they car
ashore that way drowned. From that liz
till 4 in the afternoon could see occasional
one or two men as they rose upon the crest
wave Il was useless TO try to hold to an
Z thing as the sea would tear it from your gra
and drive you TO and fro, faihoms under q
surface, and when regaining, yon would ha
to grasp something else. | was compelled