The Penn's Grove record., 1893-08-25
WRECKS IN THE NAVY.
Some Famon Disasters to Uncle Sans We
sells Recalled.

some famons Disasters to Uncle Sans Yes.
sells Recalled.
The ar ident to the British war
snip Victoria recalls Soine other disas-
tiers in time Of IClce by VIII oh the
American navy has suffered losses.
The most recent. of course, was the
disaster at Samoa. Some OF these
disasters are mysteries which will
probably never be solved. One of
the most famous of these is the dis
appearance of the Albany. a slo,p-of-
war. She left Bombay, India, in the
spring OF 1856, with 2l0 officers and
men aboard. When last seen she was
in West Indian waters. She disap-
peared from the face of the deep as
completely as though she had never
existed. 1t WAS supposed that she
went down in a cyclone. No moe
p au tble explanation has been
offered sine, and, the Philadelphia
Times says, this is still accepted as
the reason for her disappearance.
Two years later there was ar"S
mysterious disappearance. 4 sloop-
of-war called the Levant, with about
200 men on hoard, disappeared as
completely as the Albany. She was
IN Pacific waters when last seen. No
wrcckage from her was ever found,
and no mcmHntu of her fatal cruise
was left. Communication in those
days vas slow, ana it was many
months LeI0re size vas given up en-
tirely.
Two famous disasters to United
States vessels wee the wreck of the
Monongahcll in 1867 and the wreck
OF the WatcrcC in 1868. The Monon-
gahela WAS picked up by a tidal
wave, CARED Owe a number Of large
buildings on the Island Of Santa
Cruz, knocking one of them down,
and was left high and dry In the
streets of the city. She was blocked
up by workmcn and launched again,
and she Is now on the active list OF
The navy. There is no record of ia
taliticS connected with this accident.
In the accident t. the Wateree,
which was of a similar character,
only one man was killed.
She cruised up a9d down the Pa
citlC coast for w years and in Au.
GU t, 1868, was anchored Off africa,
Peru, where she had towed the
stureship Fredunia On the Sth Of
August, 1865, a ont 4 O'Clock in the
afternoon, the men on the Wateree
felt a violent trembling Of the ship,
and saw a cloud OF dust approaching
from the southeast They saw the
hills moving anil heard a heavy
rumbling like thunder. The ship
reeled, but lighted herself again, and
when the cloud OF dust had settled
the whole town was seen to be in
ruins.
The roaring of the earthquake and
the trembling OF the earth con-
tinued. Then the water receded un.
Til all the ships in the harhor were
left high and dry, while the bottom
OF the seal was left exposed, covered
with struggling fish and sea mon
sters. This was the time when the
flat bottom of the Waterce saved her
crew from deStru ton. The round
bottomed boats in the harbor turned
over, but the Watcree rested on her
fat bottom The store ship Fredonla
had been hurled against the rocks
and all Of her crew were lost. Pres.
emily the water returned and the
Waterce floatc | again. Efforts were
made to rescue some of the men
whose lives were in danger elsewhere;
but the small boat which was
launched was entirely beyond con-
troll and all that the people on the
Wateree could do was to wait for tho
earthquake to su1side. The men
stood to their guns, under perfect
dis ipline. At $3.50 o'clock at night
the lookout forward reported a
breaker approaching. 1t was the
dreaded tidal wave. 1t came with
drca lful fore, burying the ship un,
der IL mass Of sand and water. Thu
men held to the life lines, and p es'
entity the vessel struggled to the sur,
face again and after a time her mo-
ton c. sed. Many Of the crew had
been seriously injured, but none were
killed.
When the vessel had quieted down
a lantern was lowered over the side,
and it was seen that he was on land.
The next morning it was discovered
that she had been carried five miles
up the coast and that she lay high
and dry nearly a mile inland, having
been lifted across a valley and over a
railroad and deposited at the foot OF
the sea-coast range of the Andes.
There she lay with her bow to the
sea, and the flag still flying and the
anchor chain still fast to the bow.
The English bark Chanacllia lay near
by, with one of her chains wound
around her, showing that she had
rolled over and over
The Wateree was in a position
which made it impossible to launch
her, and so she was sold at auction Ia
a hotel company. Afterward she was
used as a hospital, and then was
broken up By a bombardment during
the war between Peru and Chile.
But her old ribs still loom up on the
Peruvian coast