The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1880-09-05
CONDENSED from New York Heraid.1
THE LOST STEAMER.

Il
CONFIRMATION OF THE roUSDEmSo or THE
cry or VERA cRUz--yHTY-sEvEN LIVES
rosT--oxLY THREE OF THE TwEyy-EsGHT
pAsseyoERs sAvED-EIgBT 0P THE CHEW
| ALIVE MAyoR-uENERAL ToRBERT AMONG
Tur DROWNED OF THE WOMEN Sur
vrvg--GRArntC DESCRIPTION or THE TER
rtp.g scEaEs-DEvoTIoS OF THE oP-
yIcRRs-THEY ALL PERISH At THEIR POSTS.
Tins FAR only thirteen OF the seventy peo-
ME who eft this port on board the ill-starred
shin are accounted fol, and the details Of
the terrible hurricane IN which the City Of
vera cruz went down leave but small hopes
NJ any more being heard from. The details
az the fatal hour when the ship was given
over to- the fury OF the storm are not enough
70 form Judgment on the calamity. but the
fact that only three OF the passengers are
accounted for in list oil thirteen survivors
IS In itself significant.
The names OF only two OF the survivors
are rs vet known, as follows: james Kelly,
seaman, New York; Mason Talbot, seaman,
tEngland, Kn8wn to be lost: Edward Van
Slice. CAPTAIN; Frank NJ. Haynes, first mate;
6. +. Whitney, second mate; General a.
r. A: Torbert. passenger; Mrs. II. Ames,
passenger Miss Il. Burns, passenger; Miss
a. Clark, passenger; Miss Sadie Fay, pas
senoer: Mrs. j. A. Garcia, passenger; Mrs,
+. Hernandes, passenger; Mrs. Nj. Welsh,
passenger; - Welsh, child, passenger.
DETAILS OF THE LOSS OF THE CITY OF VERA
CRuz-TERRIBLE SCENES AMID THE STORM
HEROIsN OF THE OFFICERS AND CREW.
lBy telegraph to the Herald.J
ST, AUGUSTINE, FLA, September 3, 1880.
The painful surmse regarding the fate Of
the steamer City Of Vera Cruz, which tele-
graphed you last night, has been fully con-
tirmed, for few survivors have happily es-
capped death and are now safely on shore.
The Inflated steamer foundered at 81 O'Clock
on Sunday morning, in the midst OF bur-
ricane. having labored painfully for some
hours in a heavy sea. OF the seventy per-
sons who were on board when the steamer
left New York only thirteen are known TO
have been saved, so that fifty-seyen souls
peri,hed There is very little hope that any
addition will be made to the list OF sur
yiyors for 50 long a time has elapsed since
the steamer went down that it seems impOs.
sible for any more to be found alive. The
hurricane that occasioned the disaster pre-
cluded all chance Of succor from other yes-
sells.
THE STORY OF THE WRECK.
As vet your correspondent has been un'
able to clean all the particulars OF the disas'
ter, owing partly TO the fact that but lew oil
the crew survived The wreck, and both they
and the three surviving passengers are SO
exhausted by their terrible experience that
they are incapable OF giving clear and sue
cinct description Of the scenes before and
after the laundering OF the steamer. Put
ting together such facts as | have CLEANED IN
their regular order, after being carefully
noted down in the disiointed manner OF re-
ceiving them, | now proceed to give the
Herald the story Of the wreck, leaving tt
future efforts the gatherini: OF fuller ac'
count Of the incidents connected with this
terrible catastrophe.
ENCOUNTERING THE GALE.
On Saturday afternoon the steamer en-
countered a strong gale, which soon IN
,, creased in fury. 1t was then about two
bells g Z. NJ. Then the steamer was run
ming on her course, being in about 80 de
,, grees west longitude, and 80 degrees Al
minutes north latitude. The sea ran yer,
high and the City of Vera Cruz laboret
heavily but sturdiiy for some hours.
PUTTING OUT A DRAG.
Every effort was made to keep her before
the wind, but it was found necessary at
O'Clock on Sunday morning TO throw out !
drag TO keep her head about. This secured
, / the desired result for the time being, bu
. the gale had now grown to hurricane, ant
! immense waves began breaking over tn
doomed steamer.
THE FIRES EXTINGUISHED.
t Each succeeding wave tore away piece
I OF her upper works until her deck wa
finally swept clear, even the rigging bein!
y torn and shattered. The drag ceased y
0 fulfil IFS functions, and rs the seas rose owe
e her bows and delueed her decks they sool
Y reached the furnaces and eXtinguished tn
; fires. the matches having been torn from
= their fastenipgs by the pillows.
n AT THE MERCY OF THE STORM.
!. The fires being out soon put stop to tn
: engines, and the City OF Vera Cruz lay
= the mercy of the waves and storm. No
: even the donkey pump could be worked L
!. relieve the vessel OF the water she wa
;, rapidly making in her hold. In this eA
u tremity Captain Van Size ordered his me
70 throw overheard the deck load, a tas
that had been begun about midnight. Bu
the sea was too heavy to permit the GREY
carving out their captains orders, 10
while thus engaged several OF the men wer
:. carried off their feet by incoming seas an
Is many Of them washed overheard.
II THE OFFICERS LOST.
e Captain Van Size and his officers acte
's courageously in the performance OF thel
II several duties, but were one by one Washe
}. overheard from their stations as the stedmt
i labored in the trough OF the sea. As nea
n as can ascertain the captain persisted full
&c an hour before the vessel finally succumbe
t. and nearly all hands were lost.
- EVERY MAN FOR HIMSELF.
- The few remaining alive on board no
- saw that there was no hope, so they took
= the life-preseryers, the life-boats having a
. ready disappeared. In fact, every boat an
-. life.rait was stove in when the top.hampC
- went by the board. The sailors and IL
~ Messengers then seized fragments OF spar
y, stateroom doors, or any other movable art
20 Gle that would float. and awaited the end
~ knew to be at hand.
20 THE STEAMER GOES DOWN.
d The surviving sailors state that the yess
le was about thirty miles off shore at th
o. time. the hurricane being one OF terrib
a fury, By the time the sbipwrecked me
and women had equipped themselves wit
their imprOmptu buoys The nnal cataSlropl
= occurred, it being then, as already s'ate'
~ about balf-past a. NJ. with one avn,
y, and tremendous lurch the steamer SUDDEN
- sank into the ocean, the swirl calfyln
- down many of the living. or the severn
:; souls on board before the storm began on
~ thirteen have reached the land alive.
~ sUFFERrNGs OF THE SURVIVORS,.
" These thirteen were all men, three
Y, them passengers, eight deck-haDds, one e.
ne o;peer and one oiler They were ali in ii