The Portland daily press., 1893-12-13

and GIittered, as the Second Mate Poeti-
cally Expressed 1t, Like Caves of the
Internal Regions-How the Vessel Was
Saved.
New York, December 12.-Today's
papers print the detailed story of the
collision of the Portland ship San
Joaquin with giant iceberg in the
South Pacific. The story of how the
ship struck the berg and the captains
plucky sister took the wheel abandoned
by terror stricken sailor has already
been briefly told. When the helmsman
abandoned his post, Miss Larrabee
rushed to the wheel, seized it,, and did
the best she could toward carrying out
the stentorian injunctions of the second
mate to put it hard up.
1t was too late for her to be of any SER
vice, for before she could make a turn of
the wheel the bow of the clipper ran full
on the berg, bringing down on her for
ward deck tons on. tons of ice. The skip
per ran to the aid of his sister and took
the wheel. He cried as he did SO:
II guess it is all over with us this
time.n
He and his sister were the coolest per-
sons on the ship. They were unaffrighted
by the flight aft of the panic-stricken
sailormen. The nine japanese in the
crew were nearly wild with fear. 1t was
q Jap who was with Second Mate
Guthrie on the lookout He did not fol-
low Guthrie down the ladder, but jumped
ten feet from the forecastle head to the
deck and ran yelling aft
Immediately after the ship struck she
swung broadside to the berg. She came
around with sssuch force that the port
channels OF her mizzen rigging were
smashed and the screen Of her red port
light broken.
The glare of the light on the berg re-
vealed 60 the terrified crew great assures
that extended, cavern like, far into the
interior of the berg. The red glamor of
the light gave these fissures, SO the
second mate said, the appearance of caves
OF the internal regions.
Far above the ship there was canopy
of ice, for the berg had an overhail1
peculiar to south Atlantic monsters. The
overhang was much like the projecting
caves of a big building.
The sky was blotted out entirly by the
half arch of ice, and great fear came
over the men that part of this impend-
ing mass might at any moment drop and
obllterate the ship and all on board.
1t was ten or fifteen minutes after the
collision before the men board the ship
knew exactly the extent of her injuries,
When the skipper found that there was
s1lll,hope of saving her, he had all avail
able sail set, and made an effort to work
off the submerged edge of the ice
The tangled mass of wreckage clinging
around the ships bow made it impossi-
hla for her fn U1OvA forward Than all
hands were put to backing the mizzsn
topsail yard.
None were more enthusiastic or fearless
in this work than the temporarily
paralyzed Japs, who quickly responded
to the commands of the skipper.
The yard was set back, and, under
the influence of the northwesterly wind,
the ship gradually drifted, stern first, off
the berg to the southeast. Then the
skipper and his men had a chance to
observe how much damage had been
done.
The foremast, which was heavy stick,
about two feet in diameter at the foot,
had been snapped off about ten feet from
the deck. 1t had fallen over the forward
house, smashing in the roof, demolish-
ing one of the boats and tearing away
part of the star board railing. The bow
spirit and jibboom were snapped off and
were hanging alongside by the stays.
Everything in the main went except the
lower mast and the main yard. The
mizzentop was broken off at the hounds.
The forecastle head was piled high with
ice. Some chunks weighed ton or more.
After it had been thrown off into the
sea it was seen that the topgallant fore
castle had been shaved off as if by
giant scythe and the forecastle head
bulged up many feet All the port bow
from the forecastle deck to a few feet
below the main deck was crushed in.
All hands stood by until dawn, as the
night was too dark for them to work to
advantage. Then they began clearing
away the wreck and kept steadily at it.
repairing meanwhileauntilt the following
night.
They cut away the ,lanyads, the bow
mast and tangled rigging over the side.
Then the ship was put under jury rig
and finished the voyage as already re-
ported.