The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1902-03-28

OIL Major Barrett Burned
and Sunk-Crew Puts on In Two
Boats-Ix Picked Up by the New Or
leans.

The iron tank steamer Major Barrett
Captain Crosby. while bound from Sa-
bine Pass. Texas. to New York. with Z
cargo OF crude oil. caught fire early
Saturday morning about 10 miles of the
coas OF North Carolina. a Bodies
Island. and after burning about an hou.
n a half sank in 100 fathoms of water
The captain. officers n crew had mar
row ESCAPES both from flames and wa
ter. and were escued by the Savannah
line steamer New Orleans. CAPTAIN Kir.
wan. OF the Merchants and Miners
Transportation Company. under sensa
tional circumstances
The New Orleans landed her casta.
ways here yesterday. and from them tn.
story of the Major Barrett's partial de-
struction and loss was learned.
According to Captain Crosby the Ma
jor Barrett finished taking in her cargc
at Sabine Pass on March Is and sale
the same day. The vessel stopped al
Charleston to coal. and at 5 o'clock last
Wednesday morning again got under
way. Cape Hatteras was passed al
1880 D. m. on Friday.
The ship was running probably ter
miles of the coast and making good
time. About 4 o'clock Saturday. First
Assistant Engineer Granville Thompso-
being on watch. began the fight with
the flames. Mr.. Thompson tells the
story in these words:
Il was suddenly startled by a heavy
explosion which seemed to come from
under the boiler room. Immediately af-
terward flames began TO shoot out from
the interior of the ship, and / knew thai
the oil was on fire. Captain crosby
was in bed. as were almost all of tn
crew and officers. Second Officer Mar
tin Harris was on the bridge and we
gave the alarm. Hose was gotten out
and for several minutes we made ,
vain effort to check the flames. which
were rapidly spreading from tank &c
tank in the hold. The excitement on
board was intense. as all realized the
danger Of an oil ship on fire at sea.
Before manv of the men could reach
the deck the flames were roaring al
over a large part of the ship and tn
deck became as hot as a furnace plate.
So sudden was the outbreak of the fir
that the engines could not be shut off
and the ship continued to rush through
the seas with her hull ablaze.
"Chief Engineer H. F. Small. of Bos-
ton, was severely injured by fallirp
from the upper deck upon which HI.
s~tateroom is located to the main der''
below. His entire left side was para
lived.
FlTSl ol'c6T "A. .. bragg Hdl ~
escaped suffocation by smoke in mis-
room before he could open his door
Several other narrow escapes occurred
among the crew Of seventeen.
"Firemen August Schiller n Otto
Smith were singed about the face and
much Of their hair was burned off by
the explosion. They were in the engine
room at the time.
1.-THE fire was no doubt due to a spark
from the furnace dropping into tbs
bilge. where some oil which had leaked
from the tanks had accumulated, the
grating having been recently cleaned.
when all hands had mustered or
deck, a majority Of them without any
clothes except their underwear, Capital
Crosby ordered the oats lowered. IS
the ship was sinking. Two boats were
gotten out. and into these we piled
loading them down to the waters edge
1t is very fortunate that there was III
sen running. the water being almos'
calm.
"The fire. as T have said, started at
o'clock. and an hou later the vesse
went down.. but for hours afterward tn.
sea was lighted up with the hlazing OF
from the steamer.
About 500 o'clock we sighted the
New Orleans. coming from the south
and were taken on observation-disclosures
SIn