San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1895-05-30
SHIPWRECK AT SEA.
A GRAPHIC DESCRIPTION OF THE
C0LIMA DISASTER.
Deed Of a Frenzied Father-A Noble
Woman Of Wealth-Poor Sea-
manship, but Sacrificing
Sailors.


Examiner this morning prints the
following:
"CoLIMA, Mexico, May 30.-A
special messenger arrived from
Manzanillo this morning at one
O'Clock with official. information
for the governor Of Colima regard
ing the Colima steamship disaster
of Manzanillo. The report is very
obscure and laments the loss of
the 100 people more than it goes
into the causes and detail Of the
wreck.
Seventy five miles below San
Bias q h rIicau" WAS amounted
and it was debated rs TO whether
or not the ship should ate mpt to
gain partial shelter in the shallow
and treacherous Banderas bay,
which has rocks near its entrance,
or whether it had better push out
to sea. One of the local Mexican
passengers, Don NJ. Moreno, says
that while cautiously steering for
what to all appearances was the
usual entrance, a slight tremble
was felt to go through the ship. 1t
was so faint that it was hardly APP
parent to the trained senses of the
pilots and captain. The captain
ordered a slight change in the
course and gave other directions
which were obeyed by the officers
and crew. In very few seconds
after, the keel ground on a rock
lightly and there was at once great
excitement among the officers and
crew and fear on the part Of few
passengers on deck.
"Following the danger signal, in
less than ten seconds the great ship
crunched on an unknown reef and
a shuddar ran through the
hull from bow to stern. The
passengers sprang from their
berths in terror and ran
onto the decks, screaming and
praying in a paroXysm of fear as
the awful truth began to burst up
on them. The wind howled and a
dense pail of fog hung over the
ship as she was 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 follow
ed by silence for a space Of quar-
ter of minute, during which time
only low sobbing was heard and
mutfled prayers.
"'Man the boats = trumpeted the
captain, after short intervals in
which another crash was heard.
The boats had previously been
made ready with all the life savers
placed at convenient places, al
though covered from the view of
the nervous passengers.
"Within three minutes of the
first crash in the hull the ship be-
gan to reel from its upright bal
ance and to settle and to sink in its
free hinderpart. The scenes about
the lifeboats were indescribable.
According to all testimony OBJ
tainable the panic mad passengers
struggled for the first places, al
though to the credit of the crew, be
it said, few sailors or the ships peo-
pie lost their presence Of mind, but
gave their main attention to saw
ing the passengers.
"Children were on the passenger
list, and one Of them was pitched
overheard by it's frenzied father,
who aimed for one Of the lifeboats,
while still upon its davits.
"A woman Of evident wealth and
refinement among the passen-
gers, whose name is thought
to be Broslyn or Cross
Ign, displayed remarkable
presence Of mind and in the most
trying moments passed among the
frenZied throng, eXhorting the
people to keep quiet and taking
particular care OF the women and
children.
Some passengers, not willing to
wait the chance Of a place in the
boats, seized life belts and boldly
cast themselves into the sea, their
almost universal fate being death.
"The first boat to be lowered
with its heavy burden of humanity
succeeded in clearing the ships
side, but was swept away by the
mighty force and swallowed by 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 minutes
after it was launched. A similar
fate befell all the other boats, with
the one exception"
Welcome Callers.
Col. c. B. Peck, OF the Texas Car