Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-12-31

because of air tight compartments and al
that sort of thing, but it is q matter OF fac
that there are occasional lapses which are
sometimes serious and sometimes fatal.
EVERY now and then there is an ocear
disaster and the more there is known about
it the greater becomes the mystery con
nected with it. This was shown by the City
OF Chicago's loss, by the fate of the Oregon
by the narrow escapes of half dozen big
| passenger ships within four or five years
all of which have had an element of mystery
connected with them. Among the passen
gers on the Umbria when she had hel
mishap i'll 1887 there was very sharp talk and
| criticism of the events before and after the
accident. 1t was openly said among shipping
| men in Liverpool that it was the intention oi
the Umbria's owners to lower the record on
considerable wager and for this purpose her
| hull was cleaned and her machinery over
| hauled. She was run at high speed through
heavy fog, the fog horn blowing continu-
ously for almost "A hours. Then the fog
cleared, there was rain and stif gale with
| a heavy, ugly sea. just before mid
| night the officer OF the watch
| told me We were making between
| IS and 10 knots in spite of the weather and
he added that he expected to make big
run during the night. AT or 5 O'Clock the
ship struck wave, was torn, open on her
| forward deck, rigging and fittings were
| carried away and the lantern at the main
truck, 60 feet from the deck was smashed.
| The iron compartment doors on the main
| deck were apparently shut amidship, but
| were open forward. There was six feet OF
water in the staterooms and in the open
| space at the foot of the forward stairway.
| The steerage forward was heavily awash, 1t
| being separated from the irst-class cabins
| on the main deck by q bulkhead, which
was entirely crushed by the force OF
| the wave. just beside my room door was
| the forward iron compartment door. This
| was open when got out into the hall, but
in about ten minutes the crew had it shut
| and screwed last, and some 20 or 30 passen-
gers in the rooms forward were thus unable
to get amidsh1ps, and had to get through
the shifting water which had been shipped,
and which was full of floating trunks, mail
bags and loose articles from the rooms.
For several hours, the ship lay in the
trough of the sea while her machinery was
being examined and the water gotten rid of.
OF course, at first there was panic and
the terrible scenes which occur when men,
women and children are overcome with
fright. The story of the officer in charge
was that there suddenly loomed up an enor-
nous wave dead ahead, which could not be
avoided, and into the middle of which the
ship plunged. II it had caught US amid
ships or aslant it it is likely we would have
been overdue forever. just what was wrong
none of US could learn, but some
body was cursed by the sailors
and crew in that first wild quarter of an
hour and such expressions as g fool"
"He'u sink us some day." "He's a Jonah
anyway" mixed with curses were frequent
among the men, who had for the most part
hurried up half dressed to help the watch,
when the call of "all hands on deck" was
given. We proceeded at length with much
caution, and when we reached New York.
there were many stories told by Agent
Brown and the crew about the accident and
its causes. but all agreed that it was an act
Of Providence. Since then, competent COM
handers and sailors have agreed that driv-
ing q ship at such O speed through the fog
and such sea as we were in was careless
ness of sort which some day would result
disastrously Since that day the Umbria
has changed captains, McMickan being sue
ceeded by Mckay, who is generally consid-
cred to be conservative navigator and per
sonally adverse to record breaking. If
after having spoken several vessels 1t
should prove that the Umbria was after all
lost-which is hardly likely-it would have
big salvage bill and run foolish risks in con-
sequence.
SCI SEE you take up some of the minor
grievances of Pittsburgers," remarked a
merchant yesterday, "and 1 want to call
your attention to crying evil. In some of
the stores which have large custom, and
which sell groceries, there is something
wrong with their scales. 1t is really neces-
sary that a sealer of weights and measures
be re-established by legislative enactment.
am not alone in my complaint. l have
heard the same story told by several of my
acquaintances. Not long ago I bought
pound of certain article. l don't know
what excited my suspicion, but l think it
was that the package looked small. I
weighed it at home, and found it weighed
but l3 ounces. I took it to the store and
called the attention of clerk to it. He
tested it on the scales, and found it to be as
1 had said-three ounces short. Not
long afterward, having bought another
pound package, 1 tried it and found
but IA ounces. Then l sent my
office boy to buy another pound
of the same thing and it weighed but IL
ounces. This made me determined to test
it all around. and found frequent petty
shortages. In one case where six pounds
of staple article were bought from q store
in Allegheny it was found to weigh but five
pounds. hope that some of the members
of the Legislature from this county will
take up this matter, and introduce bill at
the coming session which will at least give
US q chance to complain. AS l understand
the condition OF AFFAIRS now there is no
redress except by IN action for fraud, which
is a hard thing TO prove. There is no guess
work about my statement to you, as my
tests were careful"
IN the way of gloomy weather the town
has of late been quite up to the Smoky City
of old.
IT is understood that to-day the Farmers
Deposit Bank will follow the custom it has
been fortunate enough to maintain for years
and will add 100000 to its surplus fund,
making il O round million in all.
SOME of the new Columbian half dollars
have come to town and beautiful coinage
it is. Foreign coin experts say that the de-
feet in American mintage as rule is that |
they are not bold enough in relie. English
men, for example, rightly claim that even
their crown piece excels any of our gold in
the work on the George and the dragon, and
the same is true of the sovereign. This is
not the case with the die work OF the souvenir
coin. When you get one, place your fin
ger upon the shoulders ana bust OF the Co. |
Iumbus, leaving the face only exposed, and |
YOU will see a perfect likeness of Franz
Lizt.
ONE of the largest merchants on lower
Fifth venue said to me yesterday: "Do |
YOU know am seriously thinking of buying