Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1895-06-06
THE coL,MA DISASTER.

now the Inflated ship was Wrecked on .
Eeef-Listle Time to Prepare for Rescua
The B0sts One After Another Filled
with People Only to be- Enguifed Upon
Leaving the vessel-But One survived.
San FRANCISCO, May 31.-The Elk.
aminer prints the following:
Ce1IMA, Mexico, May ga special
messenger arrived from Manzanillo
this rsorning at 4 o'clock with official
information for the governor of Cefima
regarding the Colima steamship dis
aster CT Manzanillo.
SeveDty-five miles below San Bias
hurricane was encDwntered. and it was
debated as to whether or not the ship
should attempt to. gain partial shelter
in the shallow and treacherous Ban
deras, bay, which has. rocks near its enr
trance OF whether it were better ia
push out TO sea.
One local Mexican passenger. Dom
Matias, Moreno, says the report was
about on. the deck, and testifies that
while cautiously steauing for what to;
all appearances was the usual en-
trance, a. slight tna1nOr was felt
through, the ship. Ii was SO faint.
that it was hardly apparent to the.
tain. Ths captain ordered slight
change ini the course and gave othen
instructions which were obeyed.
by the officers and Grew. In very
few seconds after, the keel or ound on:
a rock lightly and there was at once.
great excitement among the officers
and crew. and fear ON the part Of the
few passengers on deck. Following,
the danger signal, in, Less than ten.
seconds the great ship erunched on an
unknown reef and a shudder ran.
through the hull from bow to stern.
The passengers sprang from their
berths in terror and. ran out on the
decks, screaming and praying in a,
paroxysm of fear as, the awful truth.
began to dawn upon. them. The wind.
howled and dense pail of fog hung.
over the ship as she .nas tossed by the
surges and began to- pound herself to.
pieces upon the rocks She rose and.
fell three times, and then a crash was
heard. This was followed by silence
for the space of quarter of a minute
during which time only low sobbing
was heard and mu fled prayers.
MAN the hoatsr' trumpeted the
SdpG1lu dl CcT d SaE1II Eli ttI tdl, III " AI-lF
another crash was heard. The boats
had previously been made ready, with
all the life savers placed at convenient
places, although covered from the
view OF nervous passengers. Within
three minutes of the first crash In the
hull the ship began TO reel from its
upright balance, to settle and to sink
in its free hinder part.
The scenes about the lifeboats were
indescriba BILE. According to all the
testimony obtainable, the panic
stricken passengers and the ships
forces struggled for first place, al
though, to the credit of the crew be it
said, that few of the sailors or ships
people lost their presence of mind, but
gave their main attentions to saving
the passengers.
There were a number of children on
the passenger list, and one of these
was pitched overheard by a frenzied
father, who aimed for one of the life
boats while still upon the davits.
A woman of evident wealth and re-
finement among the passengers, whose
name is thought to be Broslyn or
Crosslyn, displayed remarkable pres
ence of mind, and in the most trying
moments passed among the frenzied
throng exhorting the people to keep
quiet and take particular care Of the
women and children.
Some of the passengers, not willing
to await the chance of a place in the
boats, seized the life belts and boldly
cast themselves into the sea, where
they were tossed lifelessly upon the
waves or dashed against the rocks,
which were easily observed from the
fast sinking ship.
The first boat to be lowered with its
heavy burden of humanity succeeded
in clearing the ships side. but was
swept away in the fog. OF this load
only one of the sailors is known to
have escaped the engulfing flood which
swept over the boat within five min
utes after it was launched. A similar
fate befell all the other boats with one
execution.