New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-05-26
SUNDAY EDITION.
MAY 26, 1889.
THE YANTICS HARD FIGHT.
HER CAPTAINS SEAMANSHIP AND HEB
CREWS BRAVERY.
FULL PARTICULARS or THE MARROW rsokpn
AS TOLD BY HER OFFICERS.

FULL PARTICULARS or THE NARROW rscAYa
AS TOLD BY HER OFFICERS.
The partially wrecked sloop-of-war Yantio, thd
victim Of the hurricane Tuesday, about 3sd
miles east-southcast of Sandy Hook, came up from
Quarantine, where she lay Friday night, to the
navy lard about IL 80 a. m. yesterday. Her
appearance alone was sufficient to tell the story
Vi "er terrible experience. She was bare of rigs
ehS FORWARD OF her mainmaSt. In fact. eli
'n"C could be seen above her spar deck forward
VI inc smoke-pipe, was the stub Of her bowsprfS
ana great heaps Of pieces of canvas and coils
oi large ropes, with some of the splinters of tho
wreck. Her foremost had been cut away close
10 the deck while she on her beam ends and
"heh inns went by the board it carried with ID
'uc rigging attached; also the main topr,ast. thu
,"in 'opgallantmast, the mizzen- topmast and
Tue oo"sprit, together with their stays and after
rigging.
immediately abaft the snolle-pipe was q windI
SAIL "a large canvas tube with wings to catch thu
WIND, and TO aid in the draft 10 the sra-room,
when She passed up the river with four NJ bo,
oo"'S gone and partially dismantled, she was an
interesting sight to people along the waterfront
"h" Oh tlc river Then there was about twenty
i'e' OF hcr port bulwarks gone, giving a FULL
u''"iHide vie" OF her pivot gun, lashcd with heayy
INES 10 'h' deck. AS she moored in her dock
at 'he navy lara, one Of the officers jumped of
and stamping his feet as if TO he sure that tho
ground would not sway under them as the Yea.
sci did, said: II seems good 10 he on solid
ground once more doesn't it ?" The scene was An
interesting one, and this was manifested by the
number OF officers and other people who went
TO the dock rs She came in
SCENE OF DIRE CONFUSION.
No one could picture the scene on board the yes.
sci during the storm. Before the hurricane struck
the ship, everything was made secure and thu
matches were battencd down and double fastened
with iron straps. The huge seas swept over the
vessel and carried everything before them. Tho
second cutter, the whaicboat and the dingy were
smashed into splnters. At one time the vessel
was on her beam ends, with the water on a level
from her bull<heads across Her deck To right her
the steam launch. which was filled with water.
was cast overheard, and the weight of her engines
and boilers carried her TO the bottom at once
This, however. did not right the vessel, and then
the foremost Was cut away. The vessel then came
mp on an even keel The bilkheads OF the cap
tain's cabin stove in, and the water filled the
cabin and tn" st"tcroOms of the officers. Food.
oil, etc. were floating around, and nearly all of the
property of the officers was ruined. The drawers
in the officers lockers were also floating around,
and some swept overheard by the food. All
the uniforms and outer clothing Of the officers
We're ruined, were also many Of their other
personal effects. The bedding and mattresses
were soaked. The negatives of some valuable pho-
tographs taken by of the officers were de-
stroycd. Below, in the freroOm, the scene was
awful The matches were battened down, and the
water was 30 high as 10 be up TO the necks OF some
of the men, The water became heated after pass
| Al ~zl.o
| ture above that which could mfortaby bathe
in. Notwithstanding this, the men standing
and working at the fires herocally, knowing that
| should the fires go out the vessel was doomed. In
| one instance two men were thrown into the ash
pan underneath the furnace and into the hot ashes!
but were pulled out by their feet The fires in the
furnaces were ultimately put out by the water, and
the pressure of steam ran exceedingly low. Pro-
visions were toatinS around in the hold, and the
beans by swelling, stopped up the Diige openings
10 the pumps.
Amid scenes like these, the seamen
ard officers CALAMITY fought the storm
and preserved the vessel from destrIo-
ton. During this storm and also in the
gale encountered two days later, oil was success
fully used TO break the force Of the waves. IN
tie second storm in particular the oil suspended
ov the bows in ba rs broke the crest Of the waves
and the vessel rested easily under sail. When
the storm had abatsd the fires were refunded by
pouring oil on the soaked fuel, and the engines
| had not been injured in the least. The galeS
encountered on Thursday were severe. but seemed
only light hr%zcs 10 the officers after the @rt ING
To be svaring of their food on the homeward Voy-
age. ms SO much Of the provisions had been sweps
| away. and what was left was watersoaked ana
hardly palatahp The vessel is probably not Serl-
ouslv injured though il is not Yet possible TO ds1
tcrmine the extent of the damage done
THE CHIEF ENGINEERS STORY.
Chief Engineer Jefferson Brown, in speaking OF
the hurricane Sid Though l have sailed thu
seas for over twenty years, the storm OF Tuesday
was the most terrific ever encountered. IT was
something like that which destroyed the ldaho lu
Jaranese waters. The barometer dropped o2-ioo
in two minutes, which is remarkable. We haa
| about half an hours warning In WINCH
10 prepare for the storm. and IN thas
time W, got everything ready. We
made things trim on deck, fastened down tae
Intchc, and made everything tight Inc storm
came up about o'clock III the ni't haaSH ssas
wcn, sill running as they continued to do al
night lou couldn I sec three leet away, W
account Of the spoon drift OF the sea. Ihe wayes
we're enormous We hay in the trough OF inc
sea with waves forty feet high on eitasr sue os
US For a space OF thirty minutes we wsss ~
nerpetual dread for We did not know wnetnec
Tho ,hiu wns going to sink IN the next nVe minutes
or not But the saving Of the vessel was d9e 70
the excellent scmansip OF S1nsn mHs, Ssrs
hccn LOST The other officers also acted promptly
and well. The men behaved with herolsm. Not,
withstaudiug the awful scene i'll the hre-r00ms
w., 90 ntt.mpe,l 10 lea :e his pest, but the men
m"rlsrd at the fires kncedeep IN the hot waters
Ge,erlninrd 10 do all they could to save the ship;
Ihr Yautic rode the sc beautifully and proved
herself a splendid sea. boat. After the fires werc
rekmdlcd, the engin,> worked excclently, and we
made splendid time coming home Every Dit OF
mr. canvas was carried away during the storm.
Hrfore the storm came up We had destroyed the
drrriict Alice Borlman and we were going to
destroy three other dcrchcts which We had 10.
o,taL We have Oh board the steering wheel
op The vessel which We destroyed"
EFFICIENCY AND BRAVERY SAVED HER.
Engineer Brown spoke in the highest terms
of the excellent seamanship Of Commander Rook-
we'll and of the bravery Of his brother of1cers
and Of the crew. Yesterday morning Commander