The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1899-12-19
MUCH ANXIETY
OVER SCHOONER
AMERICAN GIRL
Now Long Overdue at
Puget Sound.
C0LUSA GIVEN UP AS LOST
WALLA WALLA'S REVERSING
GEAR BREAKS DOWN.

Inc foundering of the bark Colusa was
the principal subject OF conversation
among shipping men yesterday. The gen
eral opinion was that she was on no
rocks. Is the description given nv 10
lighthouse keeper tallies With thar of tho
DARK except that she had yellow streak
around her instead Of a white one as
gwen In the announcement However.
through the mist and spray IL was easv
10 make such mistake 1t will be re-
membered that the Colusa was on a reef
at hahului II. J.. and was considerably
damaged on that occasion. She dis
charged and started for Puget Sound IN
ballast. and again went on the rocks. The
TWO accidents must have strained the Co.
lusa great deal. so that the story of her
laundering is not improbable
The principal owners of the Colusa are
George Fogel. Captain G. Backus. Charles
hug, estate OF Harry Nippenberg. d. Tiet-
zen, Captain Ewart (master of the Coiu-
sa) and the estate Of Captain Sennett
Ihere was very little insurance on the
vessel
Another vessel that is causing great
uneasiness is the schooner American Girl
which left here on October s last in com,
pany with the bark Ferris S. THOMPSON
for Puget Sound. The Thompson arrived
at Port Townsend on December ?. and the
captain reported that the day before ne
had seen a 'bald-headed" three-n,astad
schooner about loo miles off Flattelv.
which he took 10 he the American t;irI
The schooner had only a forestavsail set
but she did not then appear to be in dis
tress. Inc general impression is that the
american Girl has lost nearly all her sails
ana is trying TO get back to the Sound
under snort canvas. There IS no fear Of
the crew running short OF provisions. as
there was ten tons of supplies in the hold
for Pope & Talbot's mill at Port Gamble
The American Girl was built at Port
Ludlow In ls75 and is PA tons net burden
inches beam and feet inches draft.
The principal owners are William RI.
Smith (manageD, Captain c. Backus
captain James u; Bruce and Al Rowe
The bark Woollahra, which arrived at
Eureka yesterday. reports passing
through wreckage on December 9 and 10
In latitude 20 degrees 20 min
which some people think is the remains
Of the American Girl. Among the wreck
age, was the housetop of a small vessel
1t had but one scuttle attached. There
were also a number of piles among the
wreckage. but they were old and had bar
nacles on them.
Captain Murk OF the Ferris S. Thomp-
son and the Western Union Telegraph
Company are at outs and a lawsuit may
be necessary TO settle the difficulty. When
the Thompson left here in company with
the American Girl she was under charter
TO bring a load OF telegraph poles from
the Sound here for the sum of 5000. When
the bark reached her loading port and
Captain Murk surveyed the load" of
poles, he at once said his vessel could
not carry them all. THAT is all right"
said the agent; your price for carrying
the lot Is $1,000. Now you can take all the
ship will carry this trip and come back
for the rest" Captain Murk swore by ali
the saints in the calendar that he would
do no such thing, so the Thompson is now
loading lumber at Blakeley and the West
ern Union poles are still on the beach.
Henry Smith of the schooner Emma
met with a peculiar accident yesterday.
lie was walking a small plank that con-
nected the schooner with the wharf. when
1t broke and let Henry into the bav'
When he came up after his involuntary
Grated his scalp and the other niece cnt
his nose. Smith was taken to the Har
Dor Hospital. wnere DR.. Davis dressed his
wounds.
The Union Transportation Comnanv ~
Stockton has added the steamer Mary FL
len Calvin TO its fleet of steamers The
old lighthouses have been torn down. the
machinery taken out and the vessel Is
being remodeled and refitted throughout.
When completed she will be as good a
vessel as the Dagntless and Captain
Weber. The Mary Ellen Calvin was buiIt
for Pat Calvin, the Klondike million
aire, and was named after his wife On
her trial trip she proved failure and
much water TO ever go up the Yukon
She has been In several hands. inclnding
the Sheriff $, since then and is now ~
make her advent on the San JOAQUIN
Sergeant Tom" Mahoney thinks he has
captured the sneakthief who has been
operating on the Sausalito and Tiburon
ferry steamers for u week past n has
been his practice TO pick up packages
and vallses and II anybody expostulafed
he would apologize and say he thought
il was his. Yesterday a passenger mn,
down his yalise in the Sausalito ferry de-
pot In order TO buy ticket. The sneak
thief picked II up by mistake" and was
walking off with it when he saw Sergeant
Mahoney and Officer Campion making in
his direction. He dropped the valise and
ran. but was caught and locked up I'm the
Harbor Police Station on charge of
petty larceny. He gave the name of John
Schmidt. but has no German accent
The steamer Walla Walla reached nor,
in the nick Of time yesterday. When off
Black Point something went wrong with
the machinery and the big mail boat had
to come to an anchor. An examination
showed that the reversing gear would not
act so the Walla Walla had 10 be docked
by tugs.