Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1898-05-30
\ Bad ACCIDENT.
The United States Cruiser Columbia
Disabled Yesterday.
Had a Dig Hole Knocked in Her
Side as the Result Of a Collision
With British Ship The Latter
Sank, but the Crew Was Saved.

-
NEW YORK, May 29.-When the United
States cruiser Columbia, in command of
Captain Sands, anchored off Tompkins-
VILE S. J., this afternoon, it was seen
that she had large Jagged hole stove in
her .starboard side abreast of the main
mast, and Immediately forward of the
after barbette. Above the water line the
hole extended about ten feet high and six
feet wide. Just how far below the water
line the cruiser was damaged could not
be asce~tained, and none OF the naval Of
ficers vA1uld give any information in re-
gard to the accident. AS soon as the
vessel came TO anchor, the captain and
the crew, twenty-one in all, of the British
steamer Foscolia, which left this port
yesterday with cargo of machinery and
general merchandise for Bordeax, went
ashore Neither the captain nor any of
his crew
WOULD TALK WHEN THEY LANDED
and left at once for New York to report
10 the agents Of the company to which
the vessel belonged. No one was allowed
to go on board the Columbia, but TO a rep
resentative of the Associated Press who
rowed out to the cruiser the officer of the
deck made the following statement
u. y
steamer Foscolia, in command of Captain
John Evans, collded with our vessel dur
ing a dense fog We were then about
eight miles southwest of Fire Island
light We lowered two life boat. and res
cued the captain and crew, numbering
twenty-one all told. We stood by until
the Foscoia sank at 3 o'clock this morn
ing. AS soon as we arrived here we sent
the rescued men ashore. Further infor-
nation in reference to the accident l can
not give you"
About 4 O'Clock one of the navy yard
tugs steamed alongside the cruiser and
delivered some message from Rear Ad-
mral Bunce, commandment OF the navy
yard at Brooklyn. A few minutes later
the Columbia headed for the Brooklyn
navy yard, where it is supposed she will
be dry -docked in order to ascertain the
full extent of her injuries.
EvANS'S STATEMENT.
Captain j. Evans, of the Foscolia, after
reaching this city, said regarding the
collision:
1.-THE Foscolia cleared from this port at
noon Saturday with a general cargo of
about 200 tons. All went well until even
ing. when heavy fog set in. I was on
the bridge and ordered the lights up and
the fog whistle kept going. AS the fog
grew denser the speed of the Foscolia was
reduced to one-half.
About s O'Clock Lookout Johnson on
the forecastle and Thompson on the
bridge. reported steamer on the port
bow. Our lights were burning brightly
and the fog signal was whstling ] look
ed up and saw big steamer with four
tunnels dead ahead. AS the steamers
We're not 200 yards apart, I saw that a
collision was inevitable. / blew three
whistles and the approaching vessel an
swered with one blast. That was the first
time l heard the Columbia's whistle In
stantly / ordered our engines full speed
astern. The vessels came together with a
terrible crash and the bow of the Foscoia
ran up on the cruisers armor belt and
then cut through her sponsor They re-
manned locked for a couple of seconds.
but the backing of the Foscolia's engines
TORE OFF HER BOW
rs far back as the first water tight bulk
head The wreckage struck in the cruis-
Frs side above and below the water line
and caused the Columbia to list consid-
erably. Had it not been for the bullying
of the sponsor from the side of the war
ship the Foscolia would only have struck
the Columbia a glancing blow The bow
of the Foscolia became wedged between
the sponsor and the hun of the cruiser
and the bow Of my boat was completely
wrerched off
1t was dead calm at the time of the col
hsion. After backing away 1 saw that
the injury to the Foscolia was serious
and instantly ordered the ife-boats
launched. They were in the water in lust
four minutes and my fifteen seamen were
ordered into them. 1 remained aboard the
wreck with my five officers. My engineers
after trying the engines, reported them
to be so badly deranged by the collision
rs TO be incapable of working the ship
The Foscolia was leaking badly and
THE PUMPS WE'RE STARTED.
The crew We're sent aboard the cruiser
which had hole in her starboard side
arse enough to drive a team and carriage
through. The pumps were kept working
until 1880 p. m, but the Foscolia was
getting lower and lower in the water.
The two boats from the Columbia were
Handing by me and Lieut. Williams ask
- me at that hour what I intended doing
| replied that l would stand by my ship
until she went down. Then 1 ordered the
pfficers into the life boat and / remained
at the main rigging, while the steamship
boat and remained with my officers about
fifty yards from the sinking ship. Exact
" at a. m. the Foscolia went down head
first in about nineteen fathoms of water
1t reappeared again few minutes later
and then disappeared forever, stern first.
None of my men were hurt, but I cannot
tell if all the men on the Columbia es-
capped injury. l think not
The Foscolia, which l commanded for
twelve months. was an iron vessel of $50
tons net and 1856 tons gross. launched at
Lowe, England in 1879. and her hailing
port is London. She was 252 feet long.
thirty-four feet beam and twenty-five feet
seven inches deep. She was schooner
rugged, had two masts. a double deck.
four bulkheads, compound engines. and
carried water ballast"