Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1895-06-08
the STORY OF The COLIMO
Captain Taylor Blew Three Blasts
as the Ship Sank.
Omeers OF the Fated Vessel Ibid Their
Duty to the Last - Que Hundred
and sixty . Two Lives
Were Lost.

MhZatlan, Mex, June 1.-The steamer
San Juan has arrived here with the
'venty-one passengers picked up on
Tuesday from the wreck OF the steamer
Colima. From the passengers the par
ticuiars have been learned Of the dread
full disaster which happened on Monday
at noon when the Colima was about
twenty miles out of Manzanilla and ten
miles from shore. All the rescued ara
badly bruised. They were all picked
up from pieces OF wreckage and RATS
with the exception Of A. j.. Sutherland,
who had chung To a boat after 1T "a
capsiZed five times and drowned all the
others who attempted to escape from
the wreck in her, The steamer was
heavily laden and had a large deck
o. OF lumber. The wind Increased in
fury until the managing OF the steamer
became impossible. At last about noon
her head could no longer be kept up and
she preached TO in the trough of the sea.
a mighty wave struck her n she vas
thrown on her beam me Whether be-
cause of the heavy deckload. the shift
Ing Of coal or cargo or the force Of the
storm, the steamer could not right her.
self. The gale tore parts of the deck
load Of lumber from its fastenings and
whirled the heavy planks about with
appalling violence. Many were struck
and manned. At least one passenger
was killed by having his head crushed
by flying timbers.
The survivors say that the officers
of the steamer were brave and active
In this crisis. Captain Taylor stood
upon the bridge with the chief officer,
Griffiths. At an order Grifiths ran
forward to superintend the launching
OF life boat No. 5, while Second officer
Langhorne was in charge Of boat No.
3, The latter was successfully launched
and filed with passengers. Then the
ship went down and Langhorne's boat
was capsized. All in both boats are
supposed to have persisted. Capri
Taylor went down with the ship, and as
the vessel sank he blew three blasts on
the whistle as a goodby signal. The
engineers and firemen went down at
their posts. Third officer Hanson was
among the saved. He sprang from the
ship as IL went down n succeeded in
reaching a piece Of wrecKage. There he
chung for twenty-four hours. washed
and buffeted by the waves. Two life
RATS were atioat. ON one were three
men and on another six, including j. a.
Chilberg Of Seattle, who seemed to
have been a leader in the work of
launching the RATS. The others who
were saved fioated ashore on pieces Of
wreckage. At the time OF the capsizing
OF the Colima the passengers were gen
orally In their staterooms and went
down with the wreck. No ome or
children were saved
There is still a chance Of encounter.
ing more living people from the wreck
and strenuous efforts 10 this end will
be made today and tomorrow by max.
ing an exhaustive search along the
shore and among the reefs within ten
miles Of the place where the Colirns
went down.
Messrs. Thornton. Chilberg and the
seamen say that from the time of leav-
ing ManZanilla the sea was hea on,
and the ship made no progress. but
that there was no danger until the cap
tain attempted To put about and got
the ship into the trough of the sea,
when she went over Immediately. They
declared that the machinery and steer.
ing gear were not out OF order.