The San Francisco call., 1897-08-16
Men, Horses, Cattle and Sheep
Loaded PromiscuousIy on
the Vessel.
DANGER AHEAD IF THERE IS
ROUGH WEATHER.
Stories Of Hard Luck and Disaster
Fall to Check the Rush to
the klondike.

VICTORIA, b. c.. Aug. 15.-The most
exciting scenes since the Klondike exodus
commenced were witnessed at the ocean
dock here this morning in connection with
the departure of the Bristol for Skaguay.
The Bristol is none other than the we'll
known Costa Rica, a huge collier which
had been lying unemployed in Esquimalt
harbor for many months, until some en-
ierprising Victorians realized the possi-
bility of coming money by securing her
under charter while the klondike rush
lasts. She can carry, perhaps, 5000 tons
of coal with perfect safety, and so loaded
is as steady going a craft as one could de-
sire.
But things seemed different this norm
ing. The Bristol has been filling up with
about 400 men, 500 horses and 100 cattle
and sheep. With the men below near the
water line and the live stock in three tiers
above, reaching to the hurricane deck, 1t
works a rather unusual distribution of
weight, though this fact does not seem to
have impressed itself upon any one during
the several days since her loading.
This morning, however, there was a
rude awakening. The mail steamer
Charmer, bound for Vancouver, passed out
about daylight at unusual speed, being
late, and in the mile travelled between her
dock in the inner harbor and that where
the Bristol was berthed, had acquired suf-
ficent way to make quite heavy swell.
This started the Bristol, and with her first
gentle ndulation the startled horses anu
cattle ranged around her upper decks
commenced to sway in sympathy with
the motion of the boat, which minute by
minute became more violent. Soon every
man on board was out of his bunk, and
when the astonished inspectors found that
all the commotion was due to the wash of
a passing steamer they very quickly lost
confidence in the seaworthiness OF their
huge ship as then loaded.
1t was not many minutes before men
and bundles commenced to come up from
the hold and gain the safety of the dock,
where great tumult was soon in progress.
For upward of two hours the vessel con-
tinued to roll, and it was only when the
screw was started slowly revolving that
she steadied down. The expostulations
and assurances of the ships officers had
the effect of bringing back the least fright
ened of the passengers. but nothing could
induce several to again board her.
Some time after o'clock the Bristol
steamed away, the motion of the screw
holding her as steady as one could desire.
But there are many misgivngs as to what
may happen should the weather be
rough on her passage. She is evidently
too lightly ballasted and carries ar over
balancing load OF a very dangerous char
acter on her upper deck. At Departure
Bay she will coal and the several hundred
tons then put nto her hold will no doubt
make an improvement, but it would re-
quire more coal than she proposes to take
on to give the Bristol the stability her
passengers might naturally expect. Some
OF those who deserted her took the norm
ing train for Nanaimo, with the intention
of going aboard there if reports are favor
able as to her behavior on The way, but
others have taken passage on the
Islander, booked TO leave to- night for
Skaguay. The incidents of this morning
are the great topic of conversation today,
but weather conditions being favorable,
there is no anxiety as to how the Bristol
Will make the passage.