The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1893-02-04
WILMINGTON ROUGHLY HANDLED.
Battered About Terribly for -Four Days
by Storms.
ARRIVED HERE -FOUR DAYS LATE
Twenty Feet Of Her Stern Carried Away,
Boats Smashed TO Pieces and all the
sails BLOWN to ATONE.

II there are any perils on river OF
ocean into which 1t Is possible for 9
boat to run. the steamer Wilmington
seems fated to flnd out the worst. She
arrived in Astoria last night In CON
dition that would place an ordinary boal
in junk store for the rest Of her ex'
istence
On Monday last. January Slst ths
steamer left Victoria. B. c., and anchored
In the Straits OF Fuca until Tuesday
morning. Leaving there she had a fair
trip till Cape Flattery was reached Then
the trouble commenced. The vessel ran
into the storm as soon as she got outside
the Cape, and the wind blew around
from every point OF the, compass. $ (
began to roll heavily and things on dec
became lively. Early in the day the
for'ard> port ilfeboat broke away from It's
lasyhinga the keel was torn off.ard 4 was
after long struggle secured 10 the upper
deck. During this time the other boate
We're banging from side to side. and al
had to be secured by heavy flashing
Wednesday was tho worst day OF | 4
trip. The wind came up dead ahead an
shifted fest. The malnsail carried ava
and the spanker boom was torn from It
boltings and came down with crasl
smashing the after cabin slylght. The
the boats and life RATS got ndrift again
A new life boat obtained In Portland
the last trip was smashed In on the poi-
side and rendered useless, as was ever
other boat on board with one exception
The life RATS were twisted and torn on
of shape and piled up on deck like kind
ling wood. The threshing around of tn
loose boats and broken boom tore away
about twenty feet Of the upper deck rail-
on the port side. and part of the stern
To add to the confusion the large water
tank In the fore hold broke adrift ard
rolled around among the cargo smashiis
u. dozen barrels of lime, which had to
be carried up In buckets and thrown
overheard.
Very little water was taken aboard
but the tremendous seas caused the vec
sci to roll heavily and the cargo Of lin,
rock and lime shifted necessarily. o.
Wednesday night the ship gave terri
BILE lurch and fully twenty feet of tn
stern and upper works carried awa5
leaving gap through which the waite
pOlitu III toiis. ~ ttttiButdtS DdtCii NfS
put in. and the wind falling, the ship
head was turned toward the Columbirf
river. of which she had been beating 10
two days, till Thursday night when s.
was blown back to within few miles 0
Cape, Flattery
When off Grays Harbor the terribi
strain on the machinery by reason
the heavy seas caused break, the ~
pump giving way. This necessltated
stoppage Of the machinery for over fou
hours. during which time the vesse
drifted to within few miles Of the roclsr
A jib sail was set which held her under
steerage way till repairs were completed.
During the whole Of the trip the wind
blew heavier than the captain has eve
experienced, and the snow came dows
so thiclely that those on board could no
see anything around. Not q thing wa
sighted from the time the Wilmington
left Victoria till she arrived in here, four
days late.