The San Francisco call., 1898-05-19
LIBELINe OF THE IDA A.
A ROW BETWEEN RELATIVES
 CAUSED THE TROUBLE.
Captain Charles Nelson Badly Hurt at His Home by the Accidental Discharge of Gopher
 Gun.

for San Francisco, and the French bark
 France Cherie, from Tahiti for Puget
 Sound A cable from London received by
 the Merchants Exchange last Tuesday
 stated that on March 30 the Leyland Bro
 thers had been spoken about 800 miles
 east of Hawaii partly dismasted, so nat
 uraliy she was not looked for just yet.
 The vessel is not damaged to any extent,
 however, and insurance men are now 1n-
 clined to think that 1t may have been
 the British bark Midas, from Nagasaki
 for Astoria, that was spoken. The latter
 Is long overdue, and 30 per cent reinsur-
 ance has been paid on her.
 Shipping men had become anxious for
 the safety of both the Leyiand Brothers
 and the France Cherie and were offering
 reinsurance on them.
 Captain Bailey of the Leyland Brothers
 reports that when two days out from
 Calcutta he ran into 8 cyclone which
 carried away one of the lifeboats from
 the poop deck and did other slight dam
 age. On April 15 the Pitcairn Islands
 were passed, and some of the islanders
 put of to the ship. They reported that
 everybody was we'll in the colony, and
 sent a number of letters by the Leyland
 Brothers to their friends in San Francis
 co. It took the ship IA days to make the
 run, and Captain Bailey explains the long
 voyage by saying that outside of two
 blows he had nothing but light winds and
 calmS.
 The France Cherie is the old British
 bark Beth Shan. She is 546 tons net bur den; and was built In Sunderland, Eng 2s feet inches broad and IS feet ' inches
 deep It took her forty-seven days to
 come here in ballast, while the Galilee, same port, made the run in twenty-n1ne days The France Cherie comes to Pinet x Co. and Is in search of a charter.
 Captain Charles Nelson, the ship owner,
 was able to be about again yesterday after being confined to his home at Semi nary Park since last Thursday. He met with a most peculiar accident, by which he lost the top of the forehnger Of his right hand and had the thumb shattered. The grounds around his home are infest- ed with .gophers, and the gardener has for months past been waging war against them. Thursday last he made a gopher gun out of 8 piece of gas pipe and set 1t in front of the principal burrow. Captain Nelson came home from the city and see ing the piece of gas pipe lying on the throw it away. Directly he moved 1t the gun exploded, and for minute the cap tain thought his hand was blown off. A physician was summoned and he had to amputate the foref1nger at the first joint, while the thumb was bound up and may be saved.
 Captain Searles went out in command of the Mail Company's steamer San Jose yesterday. There was some friction over some changes made by the general man ager, and at the last minute Captain Me Lean remained ashore and Captain Searles had to take the vessel out Cap tain Pillsbury is a great favorlte with Lieutenant Schwerin, and when the City of Sydney was chartered by the Govern ment to carry troops to Manila Pillsbury Lean was transferred from the Sydney to the San Jose to take Pillsbury's place Mclean is an old old and experienced nayi- put upon him. The result was that the San Jose went out without him.
 The old tug Mary Ann. which came has had her machinery taken out and is now tight little 96-ton schooner
 The bark Martha Davis, now out sev- In command of Captain Friis. While the bark was here last a son and heir was porn to the regular. commander, Captain Soule, at his home in Honolulu, so he is remaining ashore one trip to nurse the baby.
 drew Alien of the gasoline schooner Ida A are in trouble with the Inspectors of Hulls and Boilers. The Ida A is owned by Captains Anderson and Alien and mas Bay. while A. Savers, a brother-in- law of Captain Anderson, runs a stage coach between San Rafael and Bolinas Bay, which also carries passengers and freight. There is no love lost between the shipping man and the stage driver and when Savers found that the schooner was cutting into his staging business he began to look around tor a chance to get even. During the fishing and camp Ing season the Ida A has a special license to carry forty passengers, but at other As i'll luck would have 1t, few trips ago Engineer Andrew Alien was taken sick, an while he was away trying to get some one to take his place the captains down with the intention of making the trip to Bolinas. They were board 1 when Captain Alien came down without | an engineer and insisted upon going with | them. He had his full complement of pas sengers without them, but was overper- | suaded by his wife and took them along | to fill his brothers place he had to run | the engines himself This was the oppor- | tunity Savers l nd been looking for and | he at once lodged a complaint with the l inspectors charging the owners of the | vessel with sending her to sea without a licensed engineer and with more passen- | gers aboard than the law allowed. The case will be tried In the United States | District Court, and the chances are that | both captain, the vessel and the owners | will suffer.
 -ie work of getting the Australia ready For sea Is now almost completed, and the steamer could go at an hours notice if | the freight was aboard and the troops ready. The soldiers who will go on the Australia may be sure of pleasant | tr-p, as everything possible has been done by the owners of the vessel for their com fort. In the tween decks tiers of hunks , have been built, and every one of them has been fitted with wire-woven mat Lresses. whi.e the same kind of furnish ngs have been provided as were used vessel was in the Klondike trade A pas runs between each tier of hunks. SO that the men can come and go freely and all the other accommodations are ample. Things are different on the City of Peking and the City of Sydney, how sver. The work on them is not nearly in such forward condition as it is on the Australia, and it is very doubtful about heir being ready by Saturday to receive freight and passengers. The berths in the tween decks are laid down five in a row, the ship will have to climb over four of his companions in order to get into his punk. When the Picking and Sydney get sick there will he much discnm fort in the