The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-05-29
PIRATES SWARM ON DECK
THE SINKING SAN PABLO'S FIGHT
IN THE FORMOSA STRAITS.

ana oallteQ Out FOR Plund er-I Wenpy
Pirates Killed During the Desperate
Encounter-Eot Water Turned Upon
the Mad Crowd.
From the Ne,c York Sun.
SAN FRANCISCO, May 23.-The China
steamer to-day brought news of the extra
ordinary wreck of the costly steamer San
Pablo, which occurred ON April "a on a
reef off Turnabout Island, in the Formosa
! Straits, off the China coast Only brief
cable reports have been received of the dis
aster. The vessel struck a sunken rock in a
thick fog early in the morning. Every one
was aroused, and the captain soon saw
that the vessel must be abandoned, as
she was filling fast, and showed a tendency
| to capSize. just before the lfeboats were
ready to be lowered, swarm of Chinese
| piratlcal junks came from tho neighboring
| mainland. The queer-looking vessels sailed
| IN line Of battle, and Capt. Reed realizing
the danger his charges were in, made
! preparations to repel the attack. The
! pirates, however, came in such overWhelm-
| ing numbers that before any demonstration
| could he made on board the sinking vessel
the pirates were climbing up the ships
\ sides
| Il
| with cutlasS and a large revolver. His
shipmates were also heavily armed. Capt.
! Reed passed revolveIS and guns among the
| passengers and crew, and after a furious
fusilade the coolies were beaten off. They
| rallied, however, and made a second and
more desperate attempt to board the San
| Pablo, which was fast settling in the
water. Some of the pirates gained the
| main deck, in spite of the gallant stand
| of the passengers and crew, and were
| swarmng toward the promenade deck,
| where the defenders were busy firing and
reloading, when Capt. Reed brought the
ships hose pipes into requisition. The long
| coils of hose were manned by the crew, and
| Instantly the pirates were again put to
| flight, the torrents of boiling water from
the pipes sweeping many of them off the
| decks into the sea.
The coolies thon beat retreat and
drawing their vessels up in line, crused
| half mile off the sinking vessel, with the
evident Intention OF waiting for the aban-
donment of the vessel. During the fight
| Capt. Reed imprisoned all the Chinese
among his Grew with the Chinese passen-
| gers in the forehold, for fear they would
aid their countrymen in the attempt to loot
! the vessel As soon as possible the passen-
| gers, mails and specie were put into the San
| Pablo's small boats, and then all bore away
for the mainland. When only a short dis
lance from the wreck Capt. Reed and his
| charges saw the pirates set sail and rush
| upon the San Pablo as they had done few
hours before. They clambered over the
ships sides with graphing hooks and were
| soon masters of one of the finest boats that
ever sailed the Pacific. VIII ether by acct
dent or design, they soon set fire to the ship.
and when last seen smoke was pouring
from the wreck in great clouds. The pas
| sengers were taken to Hong Kong and tups
/ tO ba rali Of RI 10 ToI
| they found only the hulk burned to the
waters edge and stripped of everything
valuable.
1t is estimated that at least a score of nj
rates lsst their lives in this stubborn fight
with Capt Roed and his men, Daring the
battle the women and children who were on
board the San Pablo sought the stateroorns.
| where they were in constant fear not only
OF falling into the hands of pirates, but of
| being drowned in the water which was
| filing the ship.
The San Pablo was fitted up in finer
| style than any steamer that ever left San
| Francisco, and was valued at $500, 600,
| which is total loss, as she was uninsured
Nv kcn the San Pablo ran on the reef ~
says Capt Reed, 81 knew from the force of
the shock that she must be badly hurt. The
sharp rocks tore gaping holes in the plates
of the port bow, and water was pouring
| through them SO fast that it was only a
question of q few hours when the shin
would either capSiZe or slide off the treach-
erous reef and 60 to the bottom. As she
| rolled from side to side under the influence
of the sea, the water began to have it's eff
feet. First, it shifted her cargo, and she
laid so far down on her starboard side that
we thought sur0 she was going clear
over. 1t was in this emergency that the
order to lower the boats was given, and the
men were climbing into their stations.
when we sighted the squadron of Chinese
junks coming toward us from the land.
A single glance at the leaders of the ap-
preaching fleet told us that they were
pirates and the order to lower away the
boats was countermanded and one to pre-
pare to fight off boarders given. The seamen
hurried down to the ships arsenal, where
they were armed with guns and cutlasses,
and then they were divided into SQUADS and
stationed at the points on deck where the
pirates would be most apt to come aboard
While the Grming of the crew was in
progress the approach of the piratical fleet
was swift and sure. Their arching decks
were fairly swarming with yellow warriors,
who wore brandishing cleaning knives and
swords and guns, and shouting at the tops
of their voices. AS they came nearer the
din was increased by dssultory firing of
small arms which was evidently intended
to drive us below, but though bullets
whizzed and screamed about the ears of nv
crew not man retreatel.
Then the pirates came down ON us in n
rush. Almost before we could realize it we
wero surrounded, their graphing hooks
were aboard, and scores of the yelling iiends
were clambeiing up the sides and endeavor-
ing to get over the rails on deck The crew
and the passengers sprang at them, firing
very rapidly.
1.-THE pirates went back over the ships
sides faster than they could be counted, but
there were so many Of them that they soon
rallied and gained tho deck in force
"a portion of them made for the prone
made deck, evidently intending TO get be-
low. Another detachment tried 10 reach
the bridge. whore defending party was sta
toned, and still another gang began climb
ing up to tho hurricane deck. Tho scamen
were making gallant resistance, but the
odds were against thom until the engineer
conceived the notion that hot water would
be more effective than lead.
"Pipes were instantly run down 20 the
boiler-room, the pumps then started up,
and Il watch Of iiromen took the nozzes
with orders 10 boil every mothers soa of
them they could see. The hot water set led
the fight The moment it was tlgnod
against the pirates they began to retreat,
ana they went over the rail nto the sea as
ii the boat was aire. A good many of them
landed on the docks of their junks, and those
who were unlnjurod lost no time in cutting
loosa from tha San Pablo md