The Colfax gazette. [volume] (Colfax, Wash.) 1893-1932, 1902-01-10
LOST ON THB PACIFIC
Steamer WalIa WaIla Sunk Off
the California Coast.
Coliided in Early Morning With
the French Bark Max-Fortv
or More Lives Lost.

steamship Walla Walla and an unknown
sailing vessel resulted in the sinking oI
the steamship and the loss of from 25
to 40 lives. The WalIa Walla. owned
by the Pacific Coast Steamship company.
sailed from San Francisco January | for
| Puget sound ports. She carried SO first
class passengers, % second class and q
crew OF 80 men. When off Cape Meudo-
cino, on the California coast, about 4:lO
thursday morning, an iron bark, be-
lleVed to be French, lOOmed up in the
haze aud crashed into the Walla WaIla's e
DOW. Then the sailing vessel slid of
into the darkness and was seen no more
All the passengers and crew of the
| Walla Walla, except the few on watch,
we're asleep, but were aroused bv the
crash. The steerage quarters were in
| the bow and it is believed that some OF
| the steerage passengers and crew were
crushed to death. A big hole was made
in the steamers bow and she sank in a.
minutes. The officers and crew main
tanned strict discipline and boats and
| life RATS were lowered. All who were
not killed in collision got off except
Captain Hall, who went down with his
ship. lie was picked up later by one of
OF few bruises. There was a choppy
sea running and the small boats could
not make landing on the shore a few
miles distant. They drifted about al!
day and finally IS people were picked up
by the steamer Dispatch, which took
them to Eureka. Another boat contain
ing IL people attempted to land at
Trinidad and was swamped.
More Survivors Rescued.
San Francisco, Jan. 4.-The steamer
Nome City arrived here tonight and with
six survivors of the wreck OF the steamer
Walla Walla. They include five of the
crew and one second class passenger
They were picked up off Trinidad yester-
day afternoon from life raft.
Advices received at the office of the
Pacific Coast Steamship company were
to the effect that two of the missing life
boats arrived last night north of Trini-
dad, and that II people were landed
from them. This leaves one life boat
and two rats yet to be accounted for.
The RATS are in charge of the first and
second officers of the Walla Walla.
Landed at Big Lagoon.
Eureka, Jan. 4. = Word has lust
reached here that a lifeboat from the
wrecked steamer Walla Walla, contain
ing seven passengers, has landed safely
in Big Fresh Water lagoon, Is miles
north of Trinidad.
Eight other passengers, who landed at
Big lagoon yesterday, arrived at Trini-
dad late last night, among them being
Officer Lupp, who was on watch at the
time of the collision. A lifeboat which
left the Walla Walla with 10 persons on
board arrived at Trinidad with only
nine, the wife of Revenue Officer Kotzsch-
mar of Tacoma having died on board,
her body being thrown overheard.
COlliding Ship in Port.
San Francisco, Jan. 5.-The French
bark Max, which collided with the
steamer Walla WalIa, Jan. 2 off Cape
Mendocino, was towed into port at D.
m. by the steamer Acme in badly dis.
her water tight compartments, the Max
would also have gone down. The Max
was picked up by the Acme seven miles
southeast of Point GOrda at II q. m.
yesterday.
The officers of the Max in their version
of the collision throw the blame on the
crew of the Walla Walla. They claim
that the Max had all her lights set and
burning. They saw the lights on the
Walla Walla, which attempted to cross
their bow. After the collision the Max
was in such a critical condition that
they had all they could do to take care
of themselves. For this reason they
we're unable to stand to for assistance.
Ninety-twO survivors of the Walla
Walla arrived here today from Eureka
on the steamer Pomona. There is still
some discrepancy in the lists of dead and
missing. The number ranged from 81
to At. This discrepancy is due to the
fact that several passengers boarded the
vessel ust as she was leaving port
Others, who were ira Yelling second class,
gave assumed names in order to hide
their identity. By striking out what
are possible duplicates, the number of
lost stands at ~, classed as follows:
Known dead, nine; missing, passen-
gers, IS; crew, 20.
One life raft is unaccounted for and it
is feared that all the missing are lost.
O@cers Drunk and to Blame.
capitalist of Seattle, who was on the
w aha w AHA Will Ills WIFE. ldyb Uut
blame unequivocally upon the officers OF
the steamer. He says that he was on
deck a moment after the crash and that
he then saw the lights of the bark
brightly burning. The night was 80
clear, he declares, that even if the Max
had had no lights she could have been
| seen 1000 feet away with the naked eye.
Miller also makes the sensational charge
of drunkenness on board the Walla
Walla.
j. W. Ettershank. the quartermaster,
who was at the wheel of the Walla Walla
when the Max crashed into her on the
port side, saw the bark approaching,
but shifts all responsibility for the dis
| aster to the two officers he says were on
the bridge Second Officer Lupp and
Third Officer Hughes.
81 have made my statement to the
inspectors of hulls and boilers" said
Ettershank, "signed my name to it and
swore to it's truth 1t will surprise
everybody, even the officials of the
steamship company. All sorts OF stories
have been published about the wreck.
but they are all wrong. My statement
| is right. [ was in the wheelhouse when
the bark rammed her prov into us.
"On the bridge were Second Officer
Lupp and Third Officer Hughes. John
son was station man, Wilson was deck
Watehman. 1t was q clear night and We