The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-02-19
LOST WITHOUT A SHOT FIRED.
Many Warships and Hundreds of
Lives Destroyed Within Few


Many Warships and Hundreds of
Lives Destroyed Within Few
Years.
From the New York Tribune.
There have been numerous losses of war
ships all over the world within the last few
years by causes other than the casualties
Of war The losses of life on these occa-
sions have been large. Spain herself has
lost two cruisers in Cuban waters since
the outbreak of the Cuban war, both
through accidents. The Spanish cruiser
Cristobal Colon ran aground on Colorado
Point, off Mantua, Cuba, on Sept %, 1895,
and was a total loss. All the crew were
saved except three sailors. She was a sec
ond-class cruiser of 1,1S0 tons.
The Spanish cruiser Sanchez Barcaizte-
gui was struck by an incoming coasting
steamer directly off Moro Castle, in Ha-
vana Harbor, on Sept. 10, 1895, and sank
, almost instantly. Admiral Parejo, Capt
Ybanez, three other officers and thirty
sailors were drowned. The Barcaiztegui
was of 800 tons displacement.
A far more terrible disaster was the
wreck of the Spanish cruiser Relna Re
gente somewhere off the South coast of
Spain, in March. 1885, with all on board,
400 soulsJ The Reina Regente was one of
the three Spanish warships that lowed the
carayels across the ocean TO take part in
the Worlds fair at Chicago She was the
largest vessel in the Spanish navy.
The United States has been much more
fortunate or her commanders much more
skillful. The last vessel lost by the Unit
ed States navy before the disaster to the
Maine was the famous old corvette Kear-
sarge, wrecked on the reef called Ron
cador in the Caribbean sea, on Feb. 2, 1894
The officers and crew were all saved with
one exception. The Kearsarge sailed from
Port au Prince, Hayti, Jan. 80, for Blue
fields, Nicaragua. She ran on the reef
which is one of the most dangerous OBJ
structions to navigation In the world in
the night. The officers and crew got off
in good order in small boats, and reached
a reef called the Roncador Cay after ex-
citing adventures. One sailor was drown
ed in making a landing. A boat was sent
out to Old Providence Island, distant cigh-
ty miles, for assistance and a steamer
was dispatched from there and took the
party off. The Kearsarge was Admi-
raj Stanton's flagship, and was command
ed by Commander Oscar F. Heyerman
She won fame in June, 1854, when, under
the command of John Ancrum Winslow,
she engaged and defeated, off Cherbourg
harbor, France, the Confederate privateer
Alabama, that had done untold damage to
the commerce of the United States during
the civil war.
The men of-war Vandalia and Nipsic of
the Pacific squadron were wrecked upon
a reef in the hurricane at the harbor of
Apia, Samoa, i'm March, 1889 The Van
dalia lost four officers and thirty-nine men.
and the Nipsic seven men. There was one
man fatally injured at the same time on
board the man-of-war Trenton, but the
vessel was not injured. The British ship
Calliope and the German vessels Adler
Olga and Eber were also caught In the
hurricane at the same time, but escaped
serious injury, although the Adler was
thrown upon a reef and the Olga was
beached.
One of the worst marine disasters of re-
cent years was the loss of the British
battleship Victoria In the eastern Med
ifterranean sea, off Tripoli, Syrian sea-
port. twenty-five officers and 1886 men
were drowned. The Victoria, which was
the flagship of Vice Admiral Sir George
Tyrou, x. c. b., was maneuverng for
practice with the Mediterranean squadron.
and was run into almost al right angles
by the battleship Camperdown, of the
same squadron. She sank in fifteen min
utes in eighteen fathoms of water. Twen-
ty-nlne officers and 262 men were saved.
Among ille uIOWUtI was v ice -AQmlTdl
TYron. himself; Commander Fe.licome.
commanding the ship, was saved
Eighty lives were lost in September.
1893, by the sinking of the Haytlan war
ship Alexandra Potion, off Cape Tiburon.
The Potion was new ship; she left Port
au Prince on Sept 6, bound for San Do
m.ngo, with a number of Haytian diplo-
mats of high rank aboard, going 10 ne
gotiate a treaty with San Domingo. The
vessel sank suddenly in a smooth sea, no
cause for the disaster being known. Only
one sailor was rescued.
on July g. 1896. the German gunboat
Tits was wrecked on the promontory
Of shan-Tung China Seventy-five ON
GERS and men were lost, only eleven Of her
crew being saved. She was a single
screw steamer of $50 tons.
The Russian cruiser Viluaz was wrecked
off the Korean coast on June IA, 1893.
Two officers and fifteen Of the crew were
drowned: the others were saved. The
vessel was wrecked In a great typhoon,
with which she had struggled for three