The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-04-25
GOSFORD AND LOS ANGELES
Will Both Receive Attention
From the WreCkerS.
MORE LIFEBoATs NEEDED
Steamers Should Be Provided With
More Life Saving ApplianCes-1he
Marie e. Smith DOcked.


plant that Will in a few months to come
bad into a millIon-dolar venture fol-
wreckihg ships materialized yesterday in
the shape of the wrecking sc0w San Pedro.
The San Pedro has been placed in charge
OF Captain MacGenn, at one time In the
employ of Wrecker Whitelaw, and will
sally forth in the name of the California
Iron and Wrecking Company to salve the
Los Angeles, and incden tally to have q
trial at the remains of the British ship
Gosford at Colo anchorage.
1t is an i'll wind that blows nobody good.
and the initial task of the new wrecking
company would have had to be postponed
until convenient ship ran on convenient
rock, had not misfortune 0vertaken the
Pacific Coast Steamship Company's little
vessel.
The underwriters and steamship people
secured the services of the Sau Pedro and
incidentally the services of the Spreckels-
Rodgers Company.
Captain MacGenn will take with him a
number of anchors, as the wrecked Los
Angeles is in very exposed position. Al
effort will be made TO save her cargo and
part OF her machinery.
The wrecked GosfOrd will be attended
to pieces and returned TO her owner.
Then it Will 0evolve upon the new wreck
ing company to save what is left Of the
British ship that was grounded in such
convenient place and ID such convenient
manner.
The Gosford was sighted on November
% last off Point Conception. She was
burning. Her cargo of coal had igniteG on
the 18th, and Captain Nathan headed
toward Conception with distress signals
flying.
The steamer Caspar took the Gosford in
tow and set her pumps to work to subdue
the flames.
The tug. Monarch and Fearless went to
Colo, the Fearless succeeding in securing
the contract to save the ship. Shortly
after the Fearless arrived the vessel was
beached, partially stripped. and now the
work of saving her Will be again tried
under the auspices of the new wrecking
company.
The tug Viglant towed the disabled
schooner Marie E. Smith iuto port yester-
day.
The Smith went ashore at Redondo
some weeks ago. but was recently fioated
off.
The schooner was placed in the Mer-
chants dryuock Immediately on arrival.
She does not show any great amount of
damage about the hull.
Part of her heel is ground away and her
stem: has started little, but beyond this
and a number of leaks caused by seams
that were started, the vessel is rot very
badly damaged.
More boats. more liferafts, more life
saving appliances are said to be needed
by coasting steamers. Moreover. IL is
claimed that no lives would have been
lost when the steamer Los Angeles went
down had the vessel been amply provided
with lifeboats and liferafts.
Steamers on the numerous coast runs
have been carrying as many as $50 and 300
passengers within the past sixty days, and
the question has often been asked, what
would the 800 PEG lie do in case of an acct
dent to the vessel?'
All of the Pacific Coast Steamship Com
pany's vessels carry all the boats that are
required of them to carry by law. But it
is evident that the law is defective. In
the case of the Los Angeles it proved to
be at least
This matter was discussed yesterday to
some extent on change, and the sugges-
ton was made that steamers carrying 200
or more passengers should be provided
with at least dozen large lifsboats.
In the case Of the Los Angeles every
boat was dangerously overcrowded, and
had high sea been running 1t is doubtful
if any one of the little craft would have
lived In a bolsterous sea loaded as they
were.
Describing his inability to secure seat
in boat n. Sanford, one of the Los An
geles passengers who was forced TO seek
safety on the lferaft. said yesterday:
1T was impossible to get into any of the
boats. They were crowded so that ex-
pected they would capsZs."
Mr.. Sanford spoke of his experience
while on the raft, and claimed that had
another boat been lowered all hands would
have been saved.
A question of whether or not the Pa
cfc Coast Steamship Company Is re-
sponsible for the baggage of the pas
sengers has also been raised. The pas
sengars seem inclined to think that as the
wreck of the steamer was due to careless
ness on the part of an officer in the employ
of the corporation the latter is respon-
sibe.
Captain 81. D. Leland and Purser II. T.
Stanley of the Inflated Los Angeles ar
rived last evening from Monterey, and the
former at once proceeded to his home in
Berkeley.
Captain Leland is expected in the city
to-day and will file an official report of the
accident with the Pacific Coast Steamship
Company.
The United States Inspector will begin
a formal investigation into the cause OF the
disaster in about ten days.