The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-01-04
FRENCH VESSEL CRASHES INTO
THE WALLA WALLA, BOW ON,
IN FOG
TWENTY SAID TO BE LOST
out Offering Assistance to the
People ON the Sinking ship,
but Nearly All Got OF.
GRAPHIC TALES BY SURVIVORS

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. "a collision
at sea early Thursday morning between
the steamship Walla Walla and an un-
known sailing vessel resulted in the sink
ing of the steamship and the probable
loss of at least twenty lives.
The Walla Walla, owned by the Pa
cific Coast Steamship company, sailed
from San Francisco Jan. 1 for Puget
sound ports. She carried thirty-six first
class passengers, twenty eight second
class and crew of eighty men.
When off Cape MendocinO, on the Cali
| fornia coast, Thursday morning an iron
| bark, believed to be French, lOomed up
in the haze and crushed into the Walla
Walla's bow. Then the sailing vessel slid
off into the darkness ana was seen no
more. All the passengers and crew Of
the Walla Walla, except the few on
watch, were asleep, but we're aroused Fy
| 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
| thirty-f1ve minutes The officers and
crew maintained strict discipline. and
boats and life RATS were lowered.
Living All Got OFF Safely.
All who were not killed IN the collision
got off except Capt. Hail. who went
down with his ship, but was picked up
later by one of the boats, uninjured, with
the exception Of a few bruises.
There was cnoppy sea running, and
the small boats could not make Il land
| ing on the shore, a few miles distant
| They drifted about all day, and finally
| siXty-five people were picked up by the
! steamer Dispatch, which took them to
| Eureka. Another boat, under the COM
! mand of Engineer Brown, and containing
thirteen persons, attempted 20 land at
Trinidad, and was sWamDeG John Will
kinson, quartermaster; William MarteI
| fireman; L. Drube, Passenger. and three
unknown men were drowned.
| When the Dispatch reached Eureka
this morning with the survivors, tugs
were Immediately sent ont for missing
| boats. The tug Ranger picked up one
containing eleven passengers AMI three
| of the crew.
| The Walla Walla was valued at about
$250000. She was formerly used as a
collier, and about ten years ago was con-
verted into a passenger V v9ssel at cost
of $175,000 The vessel was insured for
about 100000.
Capt. Hall gives a graphic account of
the disaster. He says:
''After we left San Francisco the
weather thickened as the night adVanc-
! ed, ana thursday morning d heavy fog,
| accompanied by rain, set in. Abort 10
a. m. I was suddenly awakened hy an
awful crash on the port side, well for
ward. My bunk was struck and thrown
| across the room onto my table. After
! the crash the vessel, which l think was
a French bark, judging from the lam
| guage used by her sailors, reboundad and
| groped alongside. I called to her to
stand by. She drifted away and was
! lost to view. I could not tell now bad
| ly she was injured, but do not imagine
| she was severely hurt, as she struck us
| bow-on, and it is not likely her hull suf-
| fered materially. Those of the passengers
| who had not been awakened by the
crash were aroused at once The vessel
| began to fill Immediately and she sank
in thirty-five minutes.
Was No Confusion.
There was no confusion on board The
| officers and crew kept the passengers
| from becoming panic. stricken. The
| crew was Immediately ordered to man
the life boats and RATS, and an effort
was made to save the baggage. This
was given up, however, the vessel filling
| at such an alarming rate that no thought
was given but for the safety of the pas
sengers. 1 gave orders to have the port