New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-11-14
THE LOSS OF THE SERPENT.
WRECKED ON A REEF IN THE HARBOR OF
CAMARTNAS.
APPALLING sUDpENNESs OF THE DdsAsrEH-
SCORES OF HUMAN BEINGS DROWNED
LIKE RATS In GAGE.


LIKE RATS IN GAGE.
London. Nov. l3.-Ad6itional details regarding
the loss of the British torpedo cruiser oerpe"'
have been received here from Corunna Inc "
aster occurred OF l; o'clock Monday niEh~ "
heavy storm was prevailing, and the hisnV ~
denscly black. When the vessel struck nci ~ 49,
was torn of and great hole was stove III ', ns
bottom She slipped off the rocks ih'o u.ep
water and Immediately foundcred. tons OIL "'
rushing through the hole In her buii ,.,.,
,na;or;tv Of the officers and crew were below
when the vessel struck and she sank so q"i0NSS
afterward that none of them had time 10 ie"~"
the deck The disaster yas so sudden a"u v.
plete that it. was impossible for those WIZ
ON deck 70 get boat into the ""oi
Tho time between the striking and tne Si,iNins
~ tho vcssel WAS so short that nearly ail on oo"'"
went down without making sign ino 90
sailors who managed to reach the shoie MO-
arnas were badly cut and bruised py peiis 'n'o""
by the seas against the rocks anu wne" my
reached land they were exhausted oy Unen s'"s
giles They were taken to hospitai "here 'hey
,e, remain Orders have been sent TO them from
London to proceed to England as soon as 'ney a,o
in condition to do So The Admiralty Will hold
an investigation into the circumstances attending
the loss of the Serpent, and the three SURVIVORS
,y;Il mo called upon to give their evidence.
The Queen has again teegraphed asking for in
formation regarding the disaster, and expressing
her sympathy with the families of the officers and
crew who lost their lives.
II is officially stated that the Serpent had be-
come partialy disabled in a hurricane and that
IL was necessary for her to repair before proceeding
ON her voyage. Her commanding officer there
fore decided to put into Corunna or Vigo, and
while attempting to make a port the vessel was
lost.
An official statement regarding the loss of the
Serpent has been issued 1t shows that the
sci had l76 men on board, of which number only
three seamen were saved. The Spanish Govern
ment has been asked TO assist in recovering the
bodies of the lost, the British Government offer
ing a reward for each body. The British Vice
Consul at Corunna has gone to Camarinas TO make
inquiries of the survivors regarding the disaster.
ii. NJ S. Lapwing has left Vigo for the scene
of the wreck. An Admiralty officer who has
knowledge of the locality of the wreck thinks it
probable that the Serpent's compasses were dis
ordered by the contiguity of the vast masses of
iron along the coast The enormous masses of
ore in the Galician Mountains have been ascrbed
as the cause of several wrecks in the locality.
The bodies of most OF the victims of the dis
aster are undoubtedly still in the wreck. Several
divers have left Vigo for the scene of the dis
aster. 1t is believed that the thrush OF water
exploded the boilers of the vessel. One eNplana-
tion of the cause Of the disaster is that the ships
navigator did not make allowance for the strong
shoreward current.
During the last naval manoeuvres the crew OF
the Serpent were unanimous in pronouncing the
vessel unseaworthy. Experts differ as to the
merits of the lost cruiser. Admiral Doweil says
he would gladly risk voyage around the world
on Just such ship as the Serpent. On the other
hand, Admiral Elliot says that the Serpent was
UNIQUE specimen of shoddy-buit ship. He
thinks her engines were altogether too powerful
for such frail frame.
Spanish war vessels cruising in the neighbor-
hood of the sunken vessel, the lookout for
corpses and wreckage. Very little has been picked
up.
sympathy TO Queen Victoria on the loss OF the
serpent - ~
Madrid, Nov. 13.-The latest adyices from Co
runna say that several more bodies have been
washed ashore. No signs of boat have been
discovered. Little information can be CLEANED
from the survivors, the inhabitants and the sail
ors not understanding each others language.
Spanish Admiralty officers think that the Serpent
became disabled in the gale on Monday and tried
10 make the harbor of Camarreras when she struck
"a reef. locally known as dangerous to navigation,
extending a quarter of mile south of the harbOr
and covered by only four feet of water at low tide