Morris tribune., 1886-12-22
WRECK OF THE ATLANTIC.
THlRTY-TWO LIVES LOST BY THE
TERRIBLE DISASTER. .rrs

The vessel Becomes Unmanageabie In the
Heavy Swell and Goes to Pieces Among
the Breakers-The Crew Half Drunk
Story of the Captain-List Of the VIC
Tins.
SAN FRANCISCO, Cal, Dec. 20.-Every one
was amazed Friday to hear that the whaling
bark Atlantic had been wrecked on the
ocean beach some six miles to the west Of
this city, and most Of the crew drowned
The night had been wonderfully calm, and
this, it appears, was the causa of the disaster,
which occurred within a few hundred yards
of the United States liye-saving station, ON a
smooth, shelving beach. The bark was towed
out to sea at 1 o'clock Thursday afternoon on
the flood tide. Not bit OF wind was then
stirring When given what appeared sufti-
cient sea room, she was cast off. The sea, as
often happens on the Pacific, was running
very high, though the air was calm, and the
long swell broke on the sand beach i'll 9
heavy surf After rolling around disobedi-
ent to the helm for many hours the bark
floated in on the flood tide. An almost i'm
penetrable mist obscurred the vision of the
half-drunken crew, and they were only made
aware OF their periis by the thunder of the
surf. Both anchor were let go i'll seven
fathomS of water but the sandy bottom
afforded no hold and the bark was i'll few
moments among the breakers The re-
mainler Of the story as told by the captain,
is as follows:
"The sea commenced sweeping over the
vessels deck at 1:5O Q. M. The bark was
struck by a wave and Immediately a heavy
sea boarded her, stavlng in her starboard side
and sweeping off three or four men. | told
the first officer to try and clear away the
boats. The officer succeeded, and he and a
dozen men got into one boat. The boat was
cleared away and shot under the counter of
the vessel and capsized. That was the last
we saw of the men. just then another boat
was made ready and into it the second mate,
six men, and myself jumped and cleared
away. y heavy swell came rolling over the
deck of the vessel, and, falling into the boat
was in, swamped it. We all struggled in
the water, and tried to get a hold on the
boat or some other piece of timber, but
failed, and the swell carried ms away. As
was being carried along in the water went
to the bottom once under heavy swell and
was rolled along in the sand"
The captain, like the other survivors of
the wreck, was finally rolled up half dead on
the beach, where all would have persisted but
party of early morning revelers, who were
driving along the beach to the Gilt house.
The men wrapped the exhausted sailors in
their overcoats and the women gave them
their wraps. Meantime the life saving Off
cials found their services were in demand,
and moving on the scene they shot a line
over the wreck, but without any results, and
before dayhreak the bark went to pieces,
those left on her being drowned.
The only body washed ashore was that Of
Joseph Stedley, seaman The other vic
TINS were: Anton Perry, Peter Nelson, L.
A. LeJune, Edgar Lee, Antoine Gonzales,
William Thomas, Thomas Ryan, Charles
Berdan, W. Mansfield, Jose Bellos, Ed Tracy,
John Moore, Tom Brown, E. ]. Brown, g.
NJ Ketanos, Peter Miller, Charles Stedley,
]. Henderson, John ]. Nye, Charles Indies,
James Antoine, John Gardner, Patrick La
vile, Charles Fersberger, John Anthony, J..
c. Carroll, w. F. Linn, William J. Colbert,
William Hanigan, c. II. Chesterton.
The survivors are: Capt. Thomas Warren,
Third Mate James Ring, Seamen Andrew w.
Look, Louis Tahiti, Edmund Kuhn, An
tonic Margaretia, John Lambert, Joseph
Antoine, Marue de la Rosa, L. n. Wall
ING