The San Francisco call., 1896-12-31
CRUSHED BY THE
CHESTER'S BONES
A Broken Telegraph Cable
Tells of the Vessels
Shifting Grave.
Supposed to Be in a Straight
Line Between Fort and
Lime Points.
A Daughter Born to the Captain of
the Casablanca During the
Voyage Here.

The wreck of the City of Chester has
been located. at least that is the asser-
ton of the men on the cable-laying scow
owned by Captain Freese. They are posi-
tive that the machinery and all the iron
parts of the hull will be found in a direct
line between Fort Point and Lime Point.
The ground for their theory is this.
Some months ago the telegraphlc and
telephone cable between Fort Point and
Lime Point wore out. A second cable was
laid, and it also wore out. a third was
recently laid, and the work of rescuing
the remains of the other two were begun.
1t took all the strength of a powerful
wrecker to get one end of the cable ashore,
and when it was examined it proved TO be
rusted clear through. The other end,
when it was recovered, proved to be in a
similar condition. Nothing but iron or
steel resting on the cable for an indefinite
period could rust out the wire, and the
general supposition is that the iron and
steel in the engine-room of the City of
Chester when she went down have been
carried by the current on the Govern
ment cables and there held. Mr.. Freeses
cable scow will be towed out by the
Spreckels tug Alert this morning, and the
eaten cable will be on board the wrecker
this afternoon.
Every body will remember the occasion
on which the City of Chester and the
Oceanic were in collision in the bay years
ago. The Chester went down and many
lives were lost. Lawsuits followed and
the exact location of the point of collision
became an important matter in the cases.
The evidence of the cables may therefore
be of much Importance, although it might
be that the tides have shifted the sunken
hulk. Captain Whitelaw swears she is
resting inside Lime Point, and he once
took jury out and caught something
with his graphing hook that convinced
the jurors that the Chester was really
there.
Captain Cantley of the British ship
Casablanca was happy man when he got
his ship into port Tuesday night. During
the voyage his wife gave birth to female
child. Just before the happy event the
vessel had been through monsoon and a
hurricane, but the winds favored the
mother and little Casablanca came into
the world when it was almost dead calm
and the ship was not moving a Knot an
hour.
The Merchants Exchange contradicts
the report about the sighting of an over
turned vessel by the captain of the Invtn-
chile. The skipper says that all he saw
been anything. Captain Bottger of the
schooner Lily, from Umpqua, says he
passed close to a dead whale which, owing
to its age, had turned lead color and
looked like the bottom of a vessel. As he
passed it the seagulls were making
meal off the carcass.
The Lily also reports passing the gaso-
line schooner Checto. The latter has been
considered overdue, but Captain Bottger
says she had run out of gasoline AID was
making ler way under sail to San Fran
cisco.
Admiral" Boettge of the New CaIifor-
MIA House on East street, Andrew Ander-
son, John. McCray, William Chance and
Charles Webley had narrow escape yes
terday. The admiral has one of his scows
constantly at work on the Fair recama-
ton works, but derrick was required.
de purchased big pile, and, with mis- as
slstants, started IN sailboat to take it TO
Harbor View. All went well until the
tide rip off Lom bard-street wharf struck
the sailboat. Then the pile took COM
mand. Pile and boat ent crash into the
pier. and the boat lost her mast and the
boom was smashed in two. The men were
thrown oyerboari, but all escaped with a
ducking. The admiral lost his oilskin
coat and r~bber boots, but the damage to
the boat whs his greatest sorrow Event
ually the pile was towed to Harbor View,
Out tne crew nau mao all they wanted OF
the water, so they left the boat at anchor
and came back to the City by the cable
cars
The tug Fearless was sent out last night
to find the British ship Pass of Brander
The latter was spoken outside last Tues
day night, and the captain will order her
to proceed to Port Townsend.
The German bark Henry Hackfeld ar
rived from Honolulu last night after a
lengt thy passage of thirty-one days. She
is chartered to load wheat for England at
the rate of 27s Cd, and the charter party
expires to-day. In consequence there was