Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-03-16
FIRE ISLANDS DISASTER.
THE SCHOONER SUNK WITH
ALL HER GREW.

the Engine Room.
NEW YORK, March l5.-Capt. Collier,
Of the steamship Oregon, reports 1856
cabin, 66 intermediate and $50 steerage
passengers on board. The weather was
clear at 4:30 O'Clock Sunday morning,
with a fresh breeze, when suddenly a
sailing vessel loomed up. She showed no
light until too close to sheer of, when
she showed white light. When the
schooner was looked fer shortly after the
collision she was not in sight. She bad
gone down so quickly that no person and
no wreckage could be found to
give clue to her identity. One of the
National line steamers passed close at
hand soon after the accident but did not
stop. The Oregon ti0ated about eight
hours after being struck. The transfer of
her passengers to the pilot boat No. II,
aud The schooner Fannie A. Goiham, was
made by the steamers boats. All OF the
passengers were out OF the steamer by II
O'Clock. An hour later the steamer Fulda
came along and took the wrecked people
from the smaller vessels.
WAS THERE CARELEssNEssg
Some OF the passengers say that the
schooner was visible 10 miles away and
had been seen long before she struck. No
one attempts to account for the accident
except on theories. The steamer men
offer neither theory nor explanation. The
passengers say the tiremen and coal pass
ers made great deal OF trouble when the
passengers were being transferred from
the vessel. They endeavOred TO get of
first and one was knocked down by a
steamer officer to get him out of the way
OF the women.
ATTEMPTS TO APPROPRIATE THE BOATS.
1t was only by hard lighting and the
great nerve Of the officers that these men
were prevented from running away with
the boats and leaving the passengers to
their fate. Some of the boats with men,
bers Of the steamers crew were picked up
by vessels some distance from the wreck.
One boat containing the First officer ana
four men came to the city to-day. They
had been picked up after beng "a hours
in a boat. Another pilot boat was re-
ported of Sandy Hook this afternoon hay-
ing in tow five or SIX large boats supposed
to he part OF the Oregon's boats, OF which
the steamer had ten.
The passengers were driven from their
beds, and some Of them were taken on
board the Fulda scarcely half clad, All
Of them lost everything they possessed
EAttBb NuAb was 0M lHtAi D0GhHs ! hN
steamer was valued at S250,000, and her
cargo at $3.50, 900. Allth insurance upon
the vessel and her cargo was placed on
/ the other side Of the Atlantic. The vessel
| lies upright in % fathOms OF water, and
her topmasts are visible above the water.
Not much hope exists OF her being raised.
STATEMENTS or THE PASSENGERS.
Several OF the 0regon's passengers have
been interviewed. One is j. V. Farwell,
a Chicago merchant. There is a concur
renee of opinion among these that the
Oregon's equipment of boats would not
have saved one-half the people on board
if the accident had occurred in midocean
or anywhere that they would have been
the sole dependence. Capt. Collier
has stated, on the other hand,
that his boats would have saved every
body. The fact remains that the pilot
boat and schooner were both so crowded
that it was next to impossible for them to
take more on board had it been necessary,
aud had not the steamer Fuda happened
along the OregOn's people would have
been obliged to remain on the open decks
of the two sailing vessels with a scanty
allowance Of food and clothing until they
reached Sandy Hook.
PRAISE AND DENUNCIATIoN.
The passengers award high praise TO
the officers and crew of the steamer for
courage and GOODNESS, and they concur in
describing the cowardly conduct Of some
OF the stokers and few steerage passen-
gers. Some OF the latter jumped from the
deck of the vessel upon the heads OF the
women and children who crowded one
boat just as IL was about 10 push off.
First Officer Mathews, who was in
charge Of the vessel, says himself aud
four others were on watch at the time.
All saw a white light on the scuOOner's
port bow, but supposed 1t TO be a pilot
boat, and Mathews ordered the course OF
the vessel changed slightly so as to pass
as he supposed further away from the
approaching vessel, as The Oregon did not
want pilot.
SLIGHTLY HAZY.
He saws the weather was slightly hazy,
and that he could make out nothing OF the
course OF the strange vessel from the
light she showed. Officer Mathews thinks
the light be saw was merely a lantern
shown from the deck In the hands OF one
OF the crew up TO the moment OF the con-
tact Of the vessels. Officer Mathews had
no idea OF a collision.
MIR. Farwell, in his interview, says two
large steamers passed close TO the OFego n
after she was disabled, but gave no sign
that they had noticed the distress signals.
He says, also. that the cannon used for
signalling on the steamer was too small
nothing but a pOp-gun In iact--and that
the rockets sent up were also too small,
and OF poor quality.
THE MAIL MATTER.
Postmaster Pearson states that the Ore
gon mad j9S bags Of mail. About 1l3 were
closed bags, containing 260 bags OF letter
mail for the United States and Canada,
the balance being made up Of about 470
bags Of newspaper mail. dispatch bags
aud a number Of bags inclosing empty
sacks returned. or 66 heavy registered
mails estimated as containing about 2.400
letters and packages, only portion ofthe
French, Italian, swedish and Russian
mall "a pieces In all was
received, the British and German
registered mail being oil lost. The Brit
ish, German, Swiss, Swedish, Belgian,
Portuguese and Cape Town money order
lists from London, Berlin. BaBle, Malta
Antwerp, Lisbon and Cape Town, re-
spectiyely, ana French money OrGer ad =
vices are all lost, the Italian alone being
saved A duplicate list will be called for
Immediately.
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