, 1880-04-29
The Mohongo.


at work breaking up and removing the
boilers, cylinders, hues, etc. The cabins,
decks, and in fact all the wood work,
will be removed, and the hull is offered
for SALE The hull, which is OF iron, is
said to be perfectly sound, and could be
utilized as sailing vessel, or, with sui
fcient expenditure, could be made to
serve as hull for screw steamer.
The Mohongo, like most sea going yes
sells that have seen their best days, has
had quite an eventful history. She WAS
built by the Navy Department. at New
York, in 1864, and belonged to the class
known as "double enders," which proved
very serviceable during the war in nav
igating the rivers of tine Southern
States. These vessels were Of light
draft, and from the popularity Of their
construction, were able to 60 backward
or ahead with equal facility, being built
sharp at both ends and provided with a
rudder at bow and stern-similar, in
fact, to the steam ferry boat of to-day.
Soon after the close of the war most OF
these vessels were sold, and many OF
them became attached to the merchant
marine. The Georgia, lost on her voy.
age from Panama to this port in Octo-
ber, 1878, and the South Carolina and
Wilmington, now in the service OF the
Pacific Mail Company, were double end
ers like the Mohongo, but were altered
to screw steamers, and the two former
were heightened by w. P. Clyde when
bought by HIM. In 1870, steamship
business was quite lively on the Pacific
Coast, and steamers were in demand.
The United States Government was oc-
casionally selling vessels as they had
been doing since the close of the war.
The Mohongo was then lying at Mare
Island. She was in fair condition, and
in those days a United States vessel did
not have to be in very poor condition to
be condemned and afterwards sold.
The manner in which she passed into
private hands forms the foundation for
very interesting story, which runs
about as follows: William B. Carr,
and one or two others in this city,
thought if she could be bought cheap
she might be utilized. He. accord
ingly employed an agent to 60 on to
Washington and interview the Sec
retary of the Navy upon the
subject. Mr.. Carr's agent took
the train for Washington, but before he
had got across the Sierras, he found in
fellow-passenger, an agent for Ben
Holladay, who at the time owned a
coast line Of steamships running on the
coast between San Francisco and Ore
gon, who was on his way to Washing
ton on the same errand, Wis to buy the
Mohongo. With degree of shrewd-
ness which would have done credit to
his principal, Mr. Carr's agent kept his
business to himself, and set about how
to circumvent his rival. The latter had
q weakness or two, which his fellow
traveller was not slow to discover, and
before they had reached New York, he
understood him thoroughly. Twenty
four hours spent amid the alluring in
fuences of the metropolis had so de-
moralized the Holladay man that Carr's
agent found no trouble in getting on to
Washington without him, and before
the latter had reached the capital, he
had closed bargain with the Secretary
of the Navy. 1t was understood that
Carr paid in the neighborhood of $780,
900 for the Mohongo He Immediately
put her into the hands of the Risdon
Iron Works for repairs and alterations
The engines were overhauled, new
boilers put in, her sides built up and an
upper deck added, deck cabins put on,
and her interior entirely re-arranged for
service as a passenger steamer. About
$4,000 were expended in making these
alterations. She was sold to William
H. Webb in January, 1872. 1t was
understood that Carr and partners made
between $4,000 and $4,000 by the
transaction. In March of that year she
cleared from this port for Honolulu
with the Australian mails Two days
out of this port she cracked her
steam chest, and returned on the Sd
of April in distress. After being
repaired she again put to sea, and
was kept in the Honolulu line until
the following Spring, when she was
sold to the Pacific Mail Steamship
Company, and after making one trip to
Panama under command of Captain
Connolly, she was placed in the line be-
tween San Francisco and San Diego.
In 1875 the Pacific Mail Company re-