The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1903-02-22
.DISMASTED
IN SOUTH SEA
HURRICANE
Awful Voyage of
the Old Ship
Paranita.
Seventeen Men Did Not
Expect to See Land
Again.
And in Making Honolulu Nearly
Went Ashore on the Island
OF Lanai.

One staunch American vessel at least
weathered the awful hurricane that al
most destroyed the Paumotu group of
islands in the South Seas. But this yes
sci, the ship Paramita, crawled into
port yesterday partially dismasted.
leaking like a sieve, and with the crew
of men that manned her exhausted.
Almost the whole of the fore rigging of
the vessel had been swept away. Small
! Ter yards from the after masts had been
rugged to her fore and main masts. The
upper portions of the masts had been
carried away. All the sails the vessel
had were on her yards and these re-
eembled the remnants one sees at
fire sale. None of the seventeen men
on board Of the vessel had ever expect
ed to see land again after being in the
worst of that South Sea wind terror but
when they did see land it was only in
terror. They were off the shore of the
island of Lanai on Friday and drifted
to within a very short distance of the
rocks. All expected that the vessel
were preparing to save themselves as
best they could should the vessel strike,
| when again the luck that had saved
! them in the islands came to their res
cue. The wind changed and the latter
ed sails took the good ship off the land.
There was joy on board and the men
counted that one night only remained
between themselves and safety-Hono-
lulu.
But Friday night was a night of wind
and rain and the vessel got the full
force of this. The gale caught her last
mainsail and this was torn to shreds. |
The vessel labored and was leaking but |
at the dawn of daylight was near the |
harbor. That was safety and a few |
hours later the men were inside wash |
ing down decks. There were grumbles |
concerning various little things but |
none very severe. An eastern college |
graduate, his face covered with stray
Cling beard and his feet clothed in ma
ture was brushing away with a broom
but even this was better than the |
hard luck he had encountered in
drought stricken Australia-and this
was the price that he had to pay for
his passage towards home
THE HURRICANE GAVE WARMING.
Captain Backus sailed his ship out
of Newcastle on December 1. He had
cargo of 1000 tons of coal for ]. j.
Moore & Company of San Francisco.
The vessel was twenty-four years oIu
and one OF the style of fuIl-rigged
wooden ships that formerly We're so
well known here. Although old the YES
sci was well found, had a good crew,
and on her yarus there was a brand
new set of sails. On January 9Th the
vessel was bowling along at a good
pace. She was approaching the Mar
quesas group. At eight o'clock in the
evening a playful gale came along, I
splitting the topmast staysail, the mir
zen staysail and the mizzen lower top
sail
COOK HOUSE UNDER WATER.
The Paramita has a long fo'c'sIe head ;
and a long poop and the main deck in
between is short and deep with high :
heavy bulwarks at each side. In this :
is located the cook house. Water com :
menced to fill this place. The vessel
was sent to the eastward on the morn !
ing of January tenth in the hope of ,
out of the storm but instead :
on Sunday morning, Jan. 18th, she en- :
countered the full force of the gale ;
The hurricane struck the ship full The
vessel preached to it, the galley was
flooded, a boat and gangway We're car
ried away, and for four days no man on p
that craft knew how many seconds :
were left to him for life For four days \
the cook could not get into his sunken
galley. The crew were huddled about Z
the higher parts of the vessel. They =
had some timed goods to eat and that :
was all.
,MASTS BROKEN OFF. 2
Sunday afternoon the wind was so t
great that it broke the tops Of masts off S
as if they had been so many cedar fish e
ng poles. The jibboom was torn right C
lut the PROV of the vessel The fore
-opmast and fore gallant masts were
rushed and carried over the side. Then
many other pieces of rigging went over
put these did not go free of the ships
md the lines attached to them carried $
hem along and belabOred the vessels II
side. The main deck was full of water Is
md so wild was the fury of the storm a.
hat most of the crew in abject terror U
'ould do nothing more than look after e
heir own lives by squatting fat on the g
'oop and holding fast. Then the wheel r
house was broken up and Mate c. 81
Johnson said an axe swept against his a.
DOT, cutting it into the bone.
WATER POURING IN HER SEAMS. :,
Then the greatest danger OF the sea ~
-ppeared. Water was streaming in 80