The daily gazette., 1882-09-25
Al STEAMSHIP WRECKED
A SERIOUS COLLISION IN MID
OCEAN.
PASSENGERS AND GREW RESCUED.
Two OF the Engineers Lost-A Terrific
shock - How the Occupants of the
Steamer Were Saved.

New YORK, Sept. 24.-The steamship
Lepanto of the Wilson line, from Hull,
arrived at Quarantine to-day with her bows
badly smashed in, she having run into and
sunk the steamship Edam of the Neither
lands American Steam Navigation Company,
last Thursday evening during the dense fog,
in latitude 66 deg. "a min. The Edam went
down shortly after the collision and two of
her engineers were lost, but the passengers
and the remainder Of the crew were rescued
and brought to port by the Lepanto There
was heavy fog on the ocean, hut the sea
was comparatively smooth at about 10
o'clock D. M, last Thursday, when the look
out ON the Edam, which was bound from
this port for Amsterdam, heard steam
whistle sounding few points on the star
board bow. Another whistle was heard
Immediately afterward, but this time on the
starboard beam, and the captain, who had
come on deck, thought that the danger was
now over and that the other vessel would
pass him. He steadied his helm, but I'm an
instant the bows of steamship doomed upi
the mist on the starboard side and bore di-
rectly toward the Edam. Both vessels had
beon going slowly owing to the fog, but
they came together with terrific shock.
The bows of the stranger, which proved to
be the Lepanto, cut into the Edam up to the
rebounded, but struck again twice, each
time cutting into the side of the Edam,
which began to fill rapidly. The officers
ordered the passengers, of whom there were
twenty-one on board, to leave their berths
instantly. There was, fortunately, no panic.
The crew was in excellent discipline and
quickly cut away the three life-boats, and
the passengers and sailors were distributed
among these. A boat from the Lepanto
came up and took the chief officer, the
quartermaster, and one of the cabin
stewards. No one else was seen on board,
and the captain entered his boat in which
the cabin passengers had taken refuge,
saving nothing but the clothing which they
wore. The second and third boats had
taken the steerage passengers, none OF
whom had saved their effects.
The four boats put off for the Lepanto,
which was lying to, and the distant whistles
of which sounded at intervals from out the
mist. Ten minutes after the abandonment
of the Edam the occupants of the boats
| heard low explosion from astern. Thit
was'caused by the laundering of the wrecked
steamer, the boilers of which had probably
burst as she went down. Finally the
Lspahto was found, and it was then dis
covered that the assistant and third engi
neers of the lost vessel were missing. The
L
post, for after the first blow from the steaH
of the Lepanto, signal was telegraphed
| him from the bridge to stop the engines and
| there was no response to this, rs there
/ would have been had the man been alive
The assistant engineer probably stumbled
in the darkness into one of the holes mad
by the Lepahto, and sticking there, wen
down with the ship. Two more of the lie
panto's boats were lowered to examine he
bows, which had been badly smashed in
| Her collision bulkhead was uninjuret
although her forward compartment WA
flooded. Soon after daylight the bows o
the Lepanto were temporarily patched, ant
she started up and steamed through ;
quantity of wreckage which came from TIN
sunken steamship.
The officers lost were Nicholas Leyen
decker, and third engineer, aged "a, ma
tive of Rotterdam, and Van Geyt, the as
sistant engineer, aged 30, a native of Am
sterdam. Both were single men. Mr.. II
Cazaux, the agent ofthe Netherlands Amer
lean Steam Navigation Company, says tina
the Edam is the Ilrst vessel which this lint
has lost. She was worth about $500, 900
and was fully insured in companies in Hol
land. The cargo was a general one, AM
eonsisted of grain, provisions, oil cake, ilou
manufactured goods ETC., which were con
signed to different parties In Holland, bu
the value of which Mr. Cazaux is unable t
estimate. There WAS about 5000 tons {
freight on board. The lost vessel was bull
at Dumbarton, Scotland, in 1880. She wa
brig rugged and measured $500 tons ne
and 3 300 tons gross.