The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1889-04-26
THE SAMOAN DISASTER.
Particulars About the Wreck
ing Of Our Ships at Apia.

. iA'o o1 hpld.
| SURVIVORS Bring the Story OF tn,
Great Calamity.
The steamer Alameda arrived In Sa,
Francisco bringing advices from Apia. Same,
up to March 80
Inc steamer stopped at the Samoan capita
una TOOK on many Of the shipwrecked sailors
Among those who came upon the Alameda
were Chief Cadet Robert Stocker and Cadet,
Hibbs, Decker, Wells, Cloke, Sackland. Ie
Jurs Wiley and Logan, and Dr. Corders. Mi
OF the Vandalia. lieutenant Riplev came on
@ sSe 7. AiaEeda with thirty men, but stopped
- ia 81 hos1less..S hSrs;S
Samoa began about O'Clock on Sat.,riav
morning, March 10, and lasted until Sunday
at q little after o'clock In the morning.
|. Inc Eoer, the German vessel, was the first
so,r 20 DC , Wrecked. She broke up In pieces In a
being saved. Her guns, which were of oreat
Nnis1 %eight probably assisted in smashing her 50
Shortly .afterward the Adler German,
aiso drifted on the same reef little further
Westward. She was lifted high and tlry. and
is now lying on her port side high and dry. T
only few feet Of her side being Under watssr,
at high tide. In all twenty men were lost from
the The noIt United ted Sta States - steamer Nipso was
was Observable from the shore that she
would not be able to hold out. She was
drliting toward the reef, and at about nine
O'Clock she headed for the shore and lust
r,dJas rUdGnea % he points Of the reef with her
VIII VIII her stern post, but by the
skillful management Of tho captain and nrD
Ulcers they succeeded In Bleaching her ON the
sand; Greet credit Is due for the manner in
,,,s mm,ch .he Nipsic was handled, for If she had
would undoubtedly have been lost.
As ~ Is seven men were drowned, but oil
% would have been saved If they had stuck to
Early in the morning the Olga csllided
with the Nipsic, doing the latter considerable
damage carrying away her smokestack, steom
launch, whaleboat and part of her bulwarks
On account Of the smokestack being broken
on ON the furnaces would not draw to keep a
cident tho Nipsic, which bad powerful en-
gines, might have rode out the gale in safety
On Thursday morning the Nipsic WAS sue
Gesstuny noated out to her old anchorage.
her propeller is too much injured to be re-
paired In Samoa, and her rudtler is gone.
ihe Vandalia was the most unfortunate
vessel OF the United States Squadron She
dr1fted, about o'clock, near to the Calliope
ana ana tne Olga came into collision with both.
Inc, Inc Calnope struck her with great force ON the
port, doing considerable damage. The Van
dalia still continued drifting almost In com
Pany with tho Calliope but the latter vessel
having lost nearly all ho= anchors. put fuii
steam ram on and went steadily out to sea.
Of saving Ss aSi 81 the vandSla seeing no hope
and a.. IN endeayoring to reach the sandy beach
fifty yards from the stern Of the Nipsic.
The captain, paymaster, payclerk, lieu
tenant Of marines and many men were
washed overheard. The vessel was COM
pletely submerged, and all hands had to take
tn,, to the e. rigging, where they remained
about 8 O'CLOCK In the night, when
most Of the officers and crew rot on the Tren-
ton, excepting Lieutenant Ripley, who jumped
into the sea Just before the mast gave way, and
then to the % shSr e.. He HE
OF Samoans, got line out to tho wreck. The
loss OF life In the Vandalia were the com
mander, three officers and thirty-ninc seamen
and marines
coming closer to the land. She had her
bridge ports broken in, which left an OPEN
ing, nnd tho seq came in great quaptitie,
through this opening and the hawse pipe,
getting into the fires. This was unfortunately
fatal to the chances Of saving the Admiral 8
ship.
The engineers were unable to keep up steam.
All hands were ordered to the pumps, whic.,
were kept constantly going all day. About Q
O'Clock the Trenton had drifted down toward
from the reef. Both ships tried to avoid touch
ing, but collision was inevitable Tho
Olga's bow struck the Trenton on the Quarter.
opening large breach and doing 9TH.
damage and the Olga's bow was smashed.
ths drss s each other the the
and ono time held fairly we'll to her
anchors; but at about o'clock sho
dropped down just clear of tho
reef and ON to the Vandalia. The Trer-
toms stern was aground. She was broadside
on to the sunken vessel, and the poor fellows
who had been on the Vandalias yard about
twelve hours got on to the Trenton being as
sisted by the Admirals crew with lines and
other contrivances.
On Sunday morning boats were busily en-.
gagged oil day In removing the men from tho
ship to the shore which. was accomplished
without accident. All were removed before
night. On Monday $50 Samoans fromM Mataafa,s s
camp and tho men-of-war sailors were work.
ing hard all day saving property from tho
Trenton, and several Samoans and sailors
ashore.
No lives wore lost. The Trenton is q total
wreck. One Of the mon was killed early In
the morning Of Saturday by being crushed
among Vno timDer oIU9T tno cOiliSuOu. Ills
name was Joseph Hewlett, colored man.
The Olga, after slipping her cables and get
ting clear Of the Trenton, managed to make
Roadway against tho sea for short time,
and hopes were entertained that this vessel,
tho last left aaoat in the harbor, would be
saved, but within half an hour she was rlln
into one Of the best positions for beaching in
the harbG
The Nipsic is fitted up with the vandaiia's
funnel Herrudder and stern post are gone,
propeller bent and twisted.
The Trenton IL hard and fast on the reef.
Her bottom ia full Of holes and filled with
water up TO her gun deck. The crews have
been working ten hours daily trying to save
some Of tho rigging and personal effects and
stores. The Vandalia Is totally lost. Moth
ing can be saved from her.
Nearly every day since the wrecks of the
German and American vessels bodies of the
drowned are being washed up, greatly do
composed and unreoognixable.
Only forty Of our dead sailors bodies
have been found of Apia Some Of our
officers and men attended the German
memorial service, but not German wae
| present at the American services,
| Admiral Kimberly shows that the Trcnton
| could not have been saved, because the
badly constructed hawse-holes allowed water