The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1898-02-15
IN SORRY PLIGHT
Barkeltile AragO DismaStGd Near
Oahu.
She WAS ALMOST LOST
Saved From Great Peril BY an ISL
and Steamer - Graphic Story
Told BY the Captain.

People along the water front wit
messed a sorry spectacle yesterday aft
ernoon as they watched the American
| barkentine Arago come into port tow
| ed by the steamer Lehua of the Wilder
Steamship Company There seemed
| to be such a hopeIessness about her
whole appearance, with foremast min
us the topmast and the heavy main
mast lying across the deck No one
knew but that some of the men aboard
| the vessel were perhaps lying dead be-
low for it hardly seems within the
range of possibility that such disaster
aboard ship could have left every man
safe. Although misfortune followed
the Arago from the time she left this
port last Friday, it cannot but be said
| that fortune favored her, for not a
| man was lost The narrow escapes
will be related later on In order to
obtain the correct story of the disas-
ter, Captain GreenIeaf was interviewed
and from him was obtained the fol-
| lowing:
eve sailed from the port of Homo
| lulu at about D. M last Friday bound
for San Francisco with a full cargo
| of sugar from H. Hackfeld & Co., Ltd.
| The pilot left us at D. m. and the
| tug boat, an hour later. A heavy sea
was running from the south and south
west and the ship was laboring and
pitching severely. At $50, the wind
| shifted to S. S. W. Tackled ship and
stood to the S. E. At p. M, the ship
was jumping heavily in the sea and
rolling. The trestle trees on the fore
mast were carried away, letting down
| the topmast like a telescope carrying
away forestays, slings of foreyard and
letting down topsail and topgallant
yards Gu the forecastle This made it
| impossible to do anything but keep the
| ship on the same course. The ship was
| at this time E. S. E. from Diamond
Head, about or miles. At o'clock
with heavy lurching and pitching of
| ship and the loose spars swinging
about, carried away the mainstay,
causing the main mast to break off at
the deck. To make things worse, this
| fell aft with crash striking the miz-
zenmast and breaking it off about 20
| feet from the deck. The mainmast re-
mained on deck while the mizzenmast
went over the side with splash. The
night being dark, it was impossible to
| clear away the wreckage until morn
| in r tiT10
| drifting along the coast and getting
closer inshore all the while. We were
then off Koko Head and things looked
very blue for us, but we kept up our
spirits and looked on the bright side
of things.
| "At IL p. M, made a steamer ahead
about five miles away from us and
evidently making toward Honolulu.
| Showed lights of distress and made
all signal possible but no notice was
taken of us. l tell you it was hard
beating about there on a dark night in
| the midst of a terrible storm, utterly
| helpless and at the mercy of the ele-
ments but when we saw that steamer
steer directly away from us and give
not even a light in answer, it was ten
times worse. There was hope when her
lights were seen but when they dis
appeared in the distance, the situation
was darker than ever.
Fortunately for US the wind held
to the S. w. and the ship cleared the
reef of rocks about three miles When
daylight broke upon us, the ship was
in the open sea and clear of all dan
ger. All hands were employed in cut
ting away and getting rid Of everything
hanging to the ship, as it would have
been impossible to save her without
this sacrifice. AS it is you can see
for yourself that the ship is chafed in
many places.
"All day Saturday. the ship was kept
20 the n. E. and as fast as possible
we got things in order By Sunday all
the wreckage was cleared away and
the sails were put in order to use the
foresail and the spanker. Ship then
headed for Honolulu. At that time
: the ship was about 20 miles north
from Molokai with the wind hauling
from westward to northward Diamond
Head bearing about S. w. by W. al
dark on Sunday night, the 18th.
''At $50 Monday morning sighted a
, steamer astern. Made signals of dis
tress and in five minutes she had made
about and was heading directly fol
MS In litt1a Whi1n ch oil