The Portland daily press., 1899-07-11
Relieved That Captain Mistook Position
When Heard Bomb Signals.

Halifax, N. S., July l0.-Ths passenger
steamer Portia. which for some years
has been engaged in the old established
Red Cross line service between New York,
Halifax and st. Johns ". r.. tonight
met with disaster to the westward of
Halifax harbor which will In oil proba.
biiity end her career. That the disaster
was not attended by more serious conse-
quences was due to the coolness and good
management Of the steamers officers
and the readiness with which their orders
were obeysd by the large number of
passengers on board for though the
steamer lay in perilous position on an
isolated shoal, envelopei by dense fog
and none able to tell where they had
struck and the danger Of their surround
ings necessitating the abandonment Of
the steamer forty minutes after she ran
on the rocks, every soul on board was
placed safely in the ships boats and all
scceeded in reaching shore without the
loss Of single life. Shortly after tan
o'clock tonight the startling ne ws Of the
wreck of the Portia was received in Hall
fax by telephone from Sambro village.
Captain Farrell and boats crew had
landed at Sambro after all the passengers,
officers and men had been comfortably
housed on Inner Sambro island. There
are only two houses ON Inner Sambro, but
the occupants of these quickly turned out
to receive the large shipwrecked party,
numbering all told liz people. but though
accommodations are meagre for such o
crowd there was good shelter for all for
the few hours they would be compelled
to remain on the island till help arrived
from tn city.
Full particulars Of the wreck had not
been received in Halifax up to midnight.
but from the facts that have been learned
it is known that there is little Likelihood
that the steamer will be saved from oom-
plete destruction and he prospect of se-
curing any OF the cargo TN board Is also
very slight. The spou where the Portia
struck is known as Big Fish shoal, which
lies about a mile and u quarter southwest
of SAmbro light and half mile to the
east Of Inner Sambro island. The weather
was extremely thick at the time and there
was heavy southwest swell on the sea
o. o'slock, schedule time. Saturday after
noon, probably arrived of the mouth OF
the harbor a couple of hours before run
ming on the shoal and Ii is supposed that
when that misfortune came upon her. she
was proceeding at slow speed owing to
the impenetrable mist which hung upon
the water.
1t Is believed that Captain Farrell mis-
took his position when he heard the
bonn mb-sig1als at Sambro light, which
sound every twenty minutes and which
Captain Clarke of the Red Cross steamer
Silvia says are so misleading that 1t is ex-
tremely difficult TO locate a ships position
on hearing them.
Sambro light was on the Portals star
board bow, mile and a quarter distant,
when she pounded on the Big Fish shoal
while to place her In a safe position the
light should have been ON the port bow.
1t was ten minutes to seven when she
struck the rocks. She began to make
water Immediately and at 7.30 o'clock
Captain Farrell sencluded that IL was
safe TO remain ON board any longer.
Orders were then given to lower the boats
which were already filled with the pas-
sengers and manned by the crew, and In
few minutes the entire ships company
were floating ON the heavy rolling sea and
steering eastward In which direction IL
was known the mainland lay. The fleet
of life boats, keeping close together, made
Inner Sambro island in less than three
quarters OF an hour and their occupants
were soon housed. From Inner Sainbro
to the mainland Is only a short distance,
and as soon as Captain Farrell found
that Everybody from the steamer was safe
and sound. he started for Sambro village.
whence he despatched the advices Of the
wreck. When the steamer struck most
Of the passengers were on deck, despite
the dampness Of the surroundings, all