Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1886-12-24
DRIVEN ON THE R0t KS.
TWENTY-FIVE LIVES LOST BY THE
WRECK OF THE ATLANTIC.
The Bark Caught by the Inshore Currents
and her Rottel sides Unable to Resist
the Seas and she Goes to Pieces
Almost Murder by the Owners

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 11-At 2:30 thi
morning the whaling bark Atlantic Wa
driven ashore mile and half below tn,
Cliff House and went to pieces in Il few
minutes, not a spar remaining standing
The wreck was strewn along the beuCl
for three or four miles. About % men ar,
believed To he lost. The captain and mat,
with or 10 men were saved. At the tim,
of the disaster there was Il dense fog ant
heavy sea was running. The Atiantl,
left here yesterday afternoon for IA cruist
in the southern Pacific. Following i,
Capt. Thomas Narren's statement of the
wreck: owe were lowed out to sea yester
day. There was heavy head swell AND
no wind and the currents were so strong
we could not get out of the swell. We let
go both anchors, but the sea swept oul
decks and was 50 heavy that the anch rs
could not hold. We dragged ashore and
struck at 1870 II. IN. The men were being
washed off during all this time by the i'm
mense waves that dashed over us. The
vessel went to pieces an hour
and II half after she struck There
was very heavy fog and 1t
was pitch dark We succeeded in lowering
two boats, but both were capsized before
getting two boat lengths from the ships 4;
the first boat contained Il. II. Doty, first
mate, Anton Perry, third mate, and Tour
or five of the crew. That was the last we
saw of them. In the second boat were
myself, the second mate, Ring and five
men When we were swamped the sea
carried us in until we touched bottom,
when we dragged ourselves ashore. We
made no signals of distress, as 1t was too
foggy for any to he seem
As soon as the captain reached shore he
l,..t Il
to the life-saVng station few hundred
yards away and gave the alarm. The lie
saving apparatus was Immediately GOT Uut,
but owing to the darkness and fog II WAS
some time before the wreck could he
located. \ line was then shot over her,
but it proved of no service as 1t became
entangled in some floating Nreck&ge ana
the vessel shortly went to pieces. The YES
sci was valued at $1,000 and her
outfit at $4,000; insurance $1,000, p to
the present time only II persons are
known to have been saved and only one
body has thus far been recovered. 1t Is
rumOred that large portion of the crew
were intoxicated and That % men Were
below sleeping off the effects of liquor
when the vessel struck. There Is some
doubt as to the number Of person, on the
i'll fated bark The custom house records
give the number as A. while the captain
states that there We're but IS persons on
board. The ships captain and pilots eN-
press the opinion that the tug which tow
ed the vessel out left her too soon she
should have taken her at least four mile,
further out to sea, where she would have
been beyond the inshore sweep of the in
coming tide.
Major r. J. Blaksny, superintendent of
the life saving service in this district, has
inspected what was left of the wrecked
vessel and says OF her timbers: "Ihcy
are so rOttOn that Il slight blow VIII break
them. The same state of things exists
in every part. II seems TO me Il rigid IN
vestigation should be ordered and the re
spOnslble persons be made an example Of
In my opinion this is little shorl of cold
blOoded murder" The statements OF a
number of the survivors corrOborate Maj.
Blakeny'S assertion.
The Atlantic was an old vessel, having
been built in 1851, and was OF Pol tons
register She WAS owned by j. * w. X.
Wing of New Bedford, Mass, and was
commanded by T. p. Miller. 1t is not Yet
possible to ascertain the names OF the lost
and saved