The San Francisco call., 1898-11-02
FIRST REGATTA
 EVER HELD OFF
 CAPE HORN Nine Vessels Were in
 the Race. A STRANGE COINCIDENCE CAPTAIN AND SON DIE ON sUC- CEEDING VOYAGES.
Two Melancholy Trips to Montevideo The Mariposa Delayed by the Non-Arriva1 of the
 English Mails.

Captain Shapland of the British ship Peleus which arrived from Newcastle, England. yesterday describes an event. the like of which has probably never been seen before. He calls 1t "a regatta or Cape Horn," and such an event was sure ly never recorded before as having oc- cured off the cape of storms. Nine deep water vessels were engaged Tn it, and the American ship Edward O'Brien worthily upheld the honor of Old Glory by arriving in port a few hours after the Peleus-
 On September 1 all the vessels were of Staten Island. Among them Captain Shapland enumerates the British ship Aigburth. from Philadelphia for Homo lulu; British ship Machrihanish, from Rio de Janeiro for Taltal: British bark Norma, from Antwerp for San Francisco; British bark Mertoneth: and Captain Ban field of the Edward O'Brien gives the British ship Falls of Clyde from Lon don for San Francisco and a large four masted French bark bound for the west coast nitrate ports.
 ''It was a wonderfully pretty sight" said Captain Shapland yesterday. We were all off Staten Island together on the night of September l. It was clear. but as cold as Greenland. Plenty of ice was in sight, but as 1t was blowing strong, fair breeze we did not pay any attention to 1t. Every one of the fleet had colors set, but we could not spare the time to make them all out
 "We all rounded the Horn on the night of September B. and in the morning we had our regatta. All the. nine vessels packed on sail and trimmed ship. and we Frenchmam was light, however. and ran right away from us. The rest of us kept in company during the day, but during the night we got widely apart anG me next day the Peleus was alone on ,ne ocean This was the most expeditions passage I have, ever made around the Horn to the westward.
 The Peleus had variable weather to Oc- tober 31, when she got strong northwest breeze which carried her to the par. Then it died away and she had to anchor. Yesterday morning she was picked up by the tug Sea Queen and lowed into port. A few hours later the Edward O,Brien was lowed in. so the Aigburth. Norma from The latter vessel holds the record between Swansea and San Francisco and should be along any day. now.
 osBrien reports the French bark as the Perseverance, from South Shields, Eng land, for Iquique. During the last two days of the passage the O'Brien lost and split nearly whole suit of sails in a .lorthwester.
 The steamer Acapulco arrived from Panama and way ports yesterday with large cargo and few passengers. The day before she left the isthmus Don Ricardo Araugo. Governor of the depart. ment of Panama, died, and was succeeded bv Dr. Facundo Mutis Duran, president of the Supreme Court. Don Araugo was a Cuban by birth, was educated in the United States, was naturalized citizen of Colombia and fought in the war of in- dependence. He was powerful factor in the politics of his country and will be very much missed.
 The American shipsR. R. Thomas, from Hongkong for Boston, put into Monte video yesterday with the captain dead. Two years ago precisely the same thins happened. Captain Blanchard was in command then. and the. vessel was on her way home from Hongkong. The captain died and the son, who was chief officer, took the vessel into Montevideo for orders. He took the Thomas to Boston and was made master. Now he. like his father, has died while homeward bound, and the ship is again in Montevideo for orders.
 Captain w. K. McMurtry is back in town for the winter. He was master Of the Alaska Exploration Companys s steamer Linda on the Yukon, and made two trips during the season. A splendid performance, when the short time he had fo make them is considered.
 The Harbor Commissioners yesterday decided to charge the Oceanic Steamship Company s250 a month for the use of Pa cific-street wharf.
 The oceanic Steamship Company's mail steamer Mariposa will not get away. for Australia, via Hawaii, Samoa and New Zealand to-day. The English mails are delayed, so the steamer will not sail until tomorrow at p. m.