The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1889-04-14

weight of the vessel on the side next to tn
storm. This novel experiment was all tina
saved the Trenton from destruction. Th
wind struck against the men in the riggin
and forced the vessel out into the bay again
She remained there for only a short time
however, and soon commenced drifting bacl
against the Olga, which was standing OF
from the reef and holding up against tn
storm better than any other vessel in tn
harbor had done. The Trenton came slOwl.
down on the Olga, and at this time it scenes
as if both vessels would be dashed to pieces
The crowds on the shore rushed dow
towards the waters edge and through thu
binding storm waited for the crash.
SUDDENLY THE STARS AND STRIPES
were seen floating from the aft on the Tren
| tod. Previous to this no vessel in the harbO
had raised flag as the storm was ragin!
so furiously at sunrise that the ceremony
was neglected. 1t seemed the gallant shil
knew she was doomed and determined tt
go down with the flag of her country float
ing above the storm. The stern of thu
Trenton was nearing the Olga's how anC
Captain Won Erhardt, believing sure de
struction was upon him, let GO his anchor:
and attempted to steam away. He was too
late, however, for Just as the Olga com
menced to move against the Wind her bow
came into contact with the sJarboard quar-
ter. of TIE flag ship.
| NEARLY EVERY NINA WHO JUMPED
or 4 was washed into the water sue
ceeded in reaching the Nipsic, and most o
them were got upon the deck. None Of
those who were swept into the current
came near enough to be reached by the ma
tives, and such were all carried out anC
| drowned. The brave Samoans were urged
on by their chief, oRedoinna, to the
efforts to rescue the drowning men, and as
a consequence, two of the natives who got
| too far out were carried away, perishing
within sight of all the men whom they
were trying to save. At this time the only
part of the Vandalia, which stood out of the
water was the after part of the poop deck
and the forward part of the fOrecastle
Lieutenant Culver, DR.. Harvey, DR.. Soor-
der and Engineer Webster were in the fore
tor. In the maintop were Lieutenants
| Watson and Heath, and Ensigns Gibbons
and Ripley. Lieutenant Carlin, who was
the last man to leave the deck, climbed into
the maintop, where he sank down utterly
exhausted More than one man who was
climbing the rigging gave waytO the terri
ole strain and fell to the deck, only to be
washed over and drowned. Several persons
on the shore succeeded in making the haw-
ser fast from the Nipsic to the beach, and
the Vandalia's men who had reached the
Nipsic escaped in that way.
The stern of the Nipsic had by this time
swung out straight from the shore, so that
the distance between the two vessels was
not more than twenty yards. A white man
named Bickering went aboard the Nipsic
from the shore and threw a snallline to the
Vandalia. A sailor caught it and small
rope was made fast from the foremost of
the Vandalia to the stern of the Nipsic. A
few men escaped this way, but before all
on the foremost could be taken off, the line
parted, the Nipsic's stern swung back to
the shore and it was impossible to get
across.
TERRIBLE SCENES ATTENDED, THE SINKING
of the Vandalia and distracted attention
from the other two men-of-War which still
remained afloat About 4 o'clock in the
afternoon the Trenton and Olga were seen
to be dragging back. The Olga was almost
upon the reef where the Eber had struck.
Thu Trenton was coming down upon her
and collision seemed inevitable.
The condition of the American flagship
was very bad. At II O'Clock her rudder
and propeller had been carried away by
fOulng with the Wreckage. When the
rudder came into contact with the wreck
age, it was so great that the pilot wheel on
deck was Whirled around ike lightning,
and every spoke broken. Two men at the
wheel were thrown violently to the deck
and seriously injured Water poured in
through hawse pipes in the bow in torrents
and efforts We're made to close the pipes
but the force of the waters was so sUrong
that the coverings were blown off. Water
rushed in the berth deck TO the matches
and poured down into the fire room. All
attempts to keep it out failed, and in a
short time the fremen were up TO their
waists IL water and all the fires extin-
guished.
From about 10 o'clock in the morning
until six in the evening, when the doomed
Trenton went out against the storm with
out stern or rudder, and tho skillful man
agement OF her navigating officer, Lieuten-
ant Brown, was all that saved the lives of
every man on board.
Captain Farquhar, in his official report to
Admiral Kimberly, few days after the
storm, paid a high tribute to Lieutenant
Browns skill. AS soon as the steam gave
out, the Nipsic's storm sail was set with
the greatest difficulty. Oil was also poured
overheard, but it had no effect in
SHILLING THE WAVES.
The Olga's bowsprit and fgurehead were
carried away and the heavy timbers on the
Trenton's quarter were shivered. Several
boats were torn from their davits,
and the American flag which had fioated
IL O4LI VIC 1ICuJOu, was CdEIleu away anu
fell to the deck of the Olga. Fortunately
the vessels drifted apart after the collision,
and the Olga steamed ahead towards the
mud flats in the eastern part of the harbor.
Captain Won Erhardt had determined to
run her aground. The engines were
worked to their fullest capacity, and it
was only moment before the Olga's prov
struck and the steamer lay imbedded in the
soft mud in the softest part of the bay. No
lives We're lost. The waters poured over
her all during the night, but the only dam
age they did was to flood her decks with
water and carry away several boats.
The Trenton was not ableto get into the
bay again after the collision with the Olga.
She was now about two hundred feet from
the wreck of the Vandalia, and was
slowly drifting towards the shore. A new
danger now arose The Trenton was
sure to strike the Vandalia and to those on
the shore it seemed that the huge hull of
the flagship would crush the Vandalia to
pieces and throw the hundreds of men still
clinging to the rigging into the water. 1t
was now after o'clock, and the light was
beginning to fade away. In half an hour
the Trenton had drifted on to within few
yards of the Vandalia's bow. The men
who were in the rigging of the latter yes
sci trembled with fear as they saw the
Trenton approach. A feeling, hard to des-
cribe, came over hundreds of those who
watched the vessel from the shore.
Presently, the last ray of light faded away
and night came down
UPON THE AWFUL SCENE.
The storm was still running with as
much fury as at any time during the day.
The poor creatures who had been clinging
for hours to the rigging Of the Vandalia
were bruised and bleeding, but they held
on with the desperation of men that hang
between life and death. The ropes cut the
men ON their arms and legs and their ewes