The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1892-10-18
a srEAMEn,s

In south American NAtpfb-hoW tho
adslphIa Escaped Gun boats ut Port
Isabella.
NEW YoRK, Oct. 1.-THE steamship
Philadelphia. OF the Rcd Star line, ar
rived from South American ports last
evening at Brooklyn. This is the yes
sci that had quite an experience with
Venezuelan gun-boats. The ships of
this line carry the United States mails.
A reporter boarded the Philadelphia
shortly after her arrival at her dock,
but her commander, Captain John
Chambers, and two mates were OIL.
| The reporter, however, saw Quarter
master BENJAMIN Ingemanson, and En-
gineer Edward Roebling, and between
them, got the story OF their trip.
we left New York" they said, on
September %, and struck Curacao in
about q week. We had some passen-
gers. While lying at Curacao, Cap
tain Chambers learned that Port lsa-
bella, u next stop, was blocked. He
t~elegraphed the Kearsarge, lying at La
Guayra, TO see US safe into Port Isabel
Ia. We left Curacoa about II that
night. Lhe following morning We
sighted the Kearsarge, lying outside
Port Isabella,
Gust about the time we sighted her
the Venezuelan gunboat Pamtara came
right out towards US. The Kearsage
was on the watch and she steamed up
between the Pamtara aud w. The
Kearsage then anne alongside OF us and
the Kearsage commander told our cap
tain to regulate his speed by the kear-
sage and he would sec US in. We
steamed about fifteen miles with the
Kearsage alongside oil Us. The Ven
ezuelan gunboat did not bother us. The
Kearsage frightened her.
1--WE dropped anchor off Port lisa.
bella and the Kearsage did the same.
We were only about 100 yards apart.
Then We got orders from the customs
house ut Port Isabella to como into the
dock and discharge cargo and put oil
passengers. Tho same night we left
for La Guayra. We got there all right
and after four days started back again
10 Port Isabella. We had another
cargo.
THE day before We left La Guayra
the Ncnez uelan Gunboats Pamtara,
Cantonese, Parsara and another re-
ceiyed orders, as we were told, if We at
tempted to enter Port Isabella to sink
US. That did not scare us much. We
had an Armstrong rapid-liring Twelve
FOUNDER on board that would sink any
Of their gunboats. Then, most OF our
crew OF tifty-four are men of the naval
reserve who can handle a vessel well.
Why, il they had shown real fight We
would have rammed them.
"Well, when we heard they proposed
coming for US We Immediately got up all
steam we could and ran out for Port
Isabella.
1.-THE Venezuelan gunboats were then
eight or ten miles from US. When they
caught sight OF US they came out off
shore. We steamed more in shore and
seemed the swifter. We ran clear away
from them and out OF range OF their
guns. When we got neal Port Isabella
the K~earsarge came out and took us in
harbor. We lay there all that day till
late in the evening, when we started Tor
Curacao again, the Kearsarge seeing US
out.
At Curacao we remained a couple OF
days and then went back to La Guayra,
again missing Port Isabella. We were
in La Guayra about three hours this
time for the mails, and from there we
came straight on to New York, bringing
coffee and hides as cargo and some pas
sengers. When we were at La Guayra
these three hours q detail OF about a
dozen United States Marines with OIL
fcers came on board. They. came in a
steam launch from our man OF war the
Chicago. There were other marines in
boats around our vessel to be put on
board if needed. When We got out OF
La Guayra the marines lett our ship
and went back to the Chicago. We left
there a week ago to-day"