New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-05-10
BURNED OFF THE JERSEY COAST
THE AMERICAN SHIP FRANCIS WITT, c.,oo -.
WINES and OILS. DEsTRoYEp-No

SHIP FRANCIS. WITH A CARGO OF
WINES IND OILS DEsTRoYgD-No
LIVES LOST
Ihe American ship Francis bound n tb,s ror,
from San Francisco with a cargo Of vino, ord
oiis' was totally destroyed by fire off tho rerso,
coast on saturday night. All the crew esc.nod
though they saved more Of their be,oro,raa
captain Smith. the ships master. arrived IN nor.
last night on the Merritt Chapman wrecker
merritt. and reported at once to the agents ver-
non n Brown & Co. He refused to talk abou,
the destruction Of the vessel
Inc FRANCIS had fairly good passage around
'"e rorh ana everything was I'm good shape
until saturday afternoon, when she was off tho
""a'e breaKWater Then one Of the crew
discovered fire In the cargo The seat Of the fire
seeiieu 10 De just aft Of the main hatch and
captain Smith summoned both watches TO the
deck to fight the fire. The flames had made
considerable headway. and. although everything
possible was done to stay them tber continued
to gain upon the crew CAPTAIN Smith dater-
mined to beach the ship. She was headed land
ward. and took the shore near Egg Hsrhor In
let about midnight Oh Saturday night The fire
mad by this time made the decks so hot that Il.
was alrncs, Impossible to walk upon them and
the men had recourse to the rigging as often as
1t was possible for them to leave the deck
The distress signals were burned as the shin
headed shoreward, and before shallow water was
reached the crews OF two lifesaving stations were
on the water and ready to give aid IL the situa-
tion beca ne such that the ship would have TO he
abandoned before her nose took the sand The
ships decks were so hot before she grounded
tina. the caulking materials began to run and
abou. the time she rested on the sand the fire
began to make tsel: visible.
While the trying journey to the beach was be =
ing made In the ship, her papers and instruments
had been placed in the ships boats and these
were lowered and saved. The crew. with the life
savers and beachmen turned their attention to
another effort to the ship. but were soon
driven away by the flames. The wreckers were
in the mean time summoned. and the l. j. Mer-
ritt dispatched to the scene The crew Of
twenty-fou men were landed and the ship al
lowed to burn The crew left with but the cloth
ing on their backs.
Before morning the masts had gone and the
ship was a wreck to the waters edge. The Mer-
ritt arrived too late to be of any the fire
had burned itself out and the wreckage did not
appear worth saving. The hull is believed to be
ruined, but will be examined by divers. The
cargo is believed to be a total loss
The origin OF the fire is not known. but It Is
believed TO have resulted from spontaneous
combustion or from friction.
What renders the accident still more unfortu-
nate is the fact that Captain Smiths wife died
at sea on the outward trip OF the ship. He had
the body embalmed and sent home 10y train. 1t
awaits his arrival in Boston.
The Francis was a full-rigged ship Of 1874
tons: 231 feet long. OF 43 feet inches beam. and
26 feet u inches deep. She was built at Bath.
Me. In 1885 OF oak and yellow pine. and was
copper fastened She sailed from San Francisco
for this port January II, with general car
go consigned TO John Rosenfelds Sons. and Yer
non II. Brown. Her crew consisted Of twenty
four men.