The Cecil Whig., 1886-03-20
THE BIG OREGON LOST.
Sunk Fast of Fire Island by an I'm
known Schooner.

sunk last OF fire Island by an un-
known Schooner.
All on Board Sayed-The schooner Crew
Supposed to Have Been Drowned.
SANDY HOOK, March II The steamer
Oregon was run into by a schooner be
tween > and 1 o'clock this morning while
east of FIRE Island, having two holes
stove into her. She commenced sinking
at once.
Part of her passengers were transferred
to a pilot boat and part to schooner,
and it is believed that they were all sub
sequently transferred to the steamer
Fulda. There are over 800 passengers
AM the crew of the Oregon on the Fulda
The Oregon was entirely abandoned
She sunk at | =. NJ, today.
The Oregon was built by John Elder u
Company, at Glasgow, for the Gulon
line, and was launched on June y, 1888.
She arrived here on her initial trip on
Queeustown to New York i'll ! days, $
hours and 80 minutes. At that time
she was the most magnificent, III Ost
powerful and fastest of the transAt-
lantic vessels. With the except on of
the f ,ruria. of the same line, she re
tanned a record for the fastest speed In
August, in 1884, she made the run from
| q leenstown to New York in e days, .
hours and - minutes, this being nearly
2t hours shorter than her first trip, aid
the fastest on recold. GA her return
6 days, II hours and . minutes.
The fittings of the Oregon were un-
usually fine. The grand saloon, capable
of dining the whole of the $40 cabin pas
sengers, was placed in the fore part of
the vessel, aud was laid with a parquetry
| floor. The ceiling decorations were al
most exclusively confined to white and
gold The panels we're Of polished satin
wood, the pilasters Of walnIt. with gilt
| capitals
New YORK, March IL The passen-
gers and crew OF the lost steamship
Oregon were landed in New York yes
terday morning, from the Fulda. The
Oregon lies in about twenty two fathoms
| of water, with the topmasts visible above
the surface \ survey of the wreck will
be made by divers. The vessel was
| valued at about 81. 80 900 The New
| York agent thinks most OF her cargo can
be saved. The cargo consists OF 1900
| tons of miscellaneous freight. The
| Oregon had 1876 cabin, GG intermediate
and 80 steerage passengers on board.
| Nothing has been heard of the schooner
| which struck her, and which is believed
! to have gone down with all on board.
The cause of the accident still remains
ny stery. All OF the officers were
silent as TO the matter The pas sengtrs,
! however, are, DIS rule, ready to express
their opinions when asked. L: appears
| from number of interviews had by a
! reporter with the survivors that a ma
| jority of them believe that the accident
was due wholly to the neglect or the
| miscalculation OF the officers in charge.
| One Of the cabin passengers said: Il
cannot myself see any reason under the
sun why the accident should have oc-
| CURED.
According to the statements made by
several of the officers and crew the
| schooner which run iuto us was sighted
| when fully ten miles away. If this is
! true, however, could the officer in
! charge have been blind to the fact that
the schooner was steering directly to-
ia Ia
was not changed run directly into us?
| Ii may be that there was a miscAcula
tion of the point at which the stranger
would cross our bows and that this Was
! the cause of the catastrophe.
The conduct OF the StokerS and tiremen
while the passengers were being trans
ferred to the Fulda was simply disgrace
ful, said another passenger They
seemed to think that they should be
taken Oft first OF al. 1t was not until
considerable force had been used that
they were driven away from the boats
| The women We're taken oil first, and
afterwards the male passengers. One of
| the stokers was SO brutal in his talk and
actions that an officer was obliged to
knock him down, in order to make him
obey his commands. The officers ex-
perienced considerable difficulty in quell-
ing the mob which would surely have
taken possession of the boats and al
! lowed the rest of us to drown has not
the most vigorous measures been used in
subduing them
The Oregon was insured on the other
side of the Atlantic, bat for how much
could not be ascertaned. The freight
was also in most ca 5eS insured on the
other side by the shippers. The ques-
| ton which Iow Interests the passengers
ls whether or not they will be able to re-
cover from the Cuuard Company the
value of their lost baggage. Mess it
can be proven that the accident WAS due
to the negligence of the officers of the
steamer, the company cannot be held
liable for the value OF the property. The
passengers will hold meeting at the
Morton House. to decide the matter.