Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-09-09
BODIES Of HEROES
LIE IN FAR LAND
Dr.. Aughinbaugh Wants Them
Brought From Chile to Ar
Iington Cemetery.
RECALLS BRAVE BATTLE
FOUGHT BY THE ESSEX
Yankee Captain Refused to Surrender
His Ship to Superior Force
of British.

Bodies Of American sailors who died
in defense Of their country and which
now are resting at Valparaiso, Chile.
should be brought to this country and
buried in the national cemetery at Ar
iington, In the opinion of DR.. w. E.
Aughinbaugh. a Washingtonian, who
spends most Of his time travelling in
South America He was formerly In the
navy. He claims that in justice the
bodies Of the Americans now at Valpa-
raise should be brought back to this
country, the same as were the bodies of
ippines and Cuba.
when I was in Valparaiso last SAID
DR.. Aughinbaugh, Il was struck during
the course of a tour of the suburbs OF the
city by the sight of this tangled little
graveyard, which is perched on top or
one of the steep hills overlooking the
town. had been told there was ceme-
terry where the men who were killed dur
ing the Baltimore affair in Valparaiso
were buried, and got out OF my carriage
to see whether their graves were kept up.
I found that something like sixty Ameri-
can sailors were buried In this place.
zone thing that struck me was a little
tomb. rectangular-shaped. on the top
slab Of which was engraved:
In memory of the officers and seamen
slain on board the United States frigate
Essex in this harbor (Valparaiso) in an
enea1ement with H. B. M. S frigate
Phoebe and brig Cherub, February q,
1871
List Of Buried Americans.
, "Then followed a list of names Of
two commissioned and four petty off,
GERS and forty-seven Of the crew, as
follows:
Lieut.. James p. Wilmer, Gunner
Rheul Bland. Boatswain Henry Ken
nedy. Lieut. John C. CowelL Sailing
Master Frank Blaird and Boatswain
William Smith.
Thomas Brown. D. F. Cashmere, Thos.
Davis. Joseph Terrell. Francis Greene.
Ben Hazen, John Jackson, William
johnson. William Lee, Samuel Miller,
c. E. Norgran, Thomas Russell. Cor
John Allison. George Beden. Henry
Buff, William Christopher, George
Douglass, Thomas Ferry, Frederick
Hall. George Hill. William Jennings
Peter Johnson. John Lings Thomas
Harry Vickers. James Anderson. Thos
Brannock, Robert Brown. John Glib
ton. Lewis F. Earle. James Folger,
George Hollett. Mark Hill. Thomas
Johnson. y, John c killian. Zachary
ley, Philip Thomas, William White and
William Wyne.
II had seen a mention Of the fight
between the Essex on the one hand
and the Phoebe and the Cherub on the
other. but the histories do not give
the details. Some OF these I learned
by a little research.
story Of the Fight.
ION the evening Of February q, 1914,
the ofncor who was in command OF the
two British ships met Capt. David Porter
Of the Essex ashore in Valparaiso and
suggested that he surrender to the su-
perior British force then in the harbor,
assuring him he would receive all the
honors Of war. Capt Porter replied that
he and his crow would Tight, and not as
long as q plank was afioat would they
surrender.
Next morning the Yankee got under
way and started out Of the harbor. At
the entrance she was met by the two
Britishers. The first round from the
two took Off the foretopmast and main
topmast Of the Essex, the wreckage
aittering the deck and rendering the
vessel unmanageable. While the crew
was clearing away the litter the Essex
drifted on bar and stuck fast. Again
Capt. Porter was called upon to surren-
der. and again he refused. One of the
Britishers then Unanswered to q posi-
ton back Of the Americans stern and
raked her fore and aft. while the other
ranged alongside and poured broadside
after broadside into her. Part Of the
result Is told on the moss-covered tomb
stone. Farragut. then only eleven years
old. was rnidshipman on the Essex
Earthquake Shattered Tonb.
For fifty years those bodies lay in
the cemetery with hardly more than q
simple wooden cross to mark their rest
Ing place. Finally. somewhere In the
sixties. Or. Trumbull q missionary and
q grandson Of Joshua Trumbull. signer
Of the Declaration Of Independence. took
up q popular subscription among the
foreigners resident In Valparaiso and
built the tomb. This was torn apart
during the earthquake some years ago.
but was repaired by the American con-
sui. Alfred II. Winslow, who betrayed
the expense out Of his own pocket.
Now. why should not those bodies
be brought home to lie In Arlington
cemetery among our honored dead? II
would be easily possible for them to be
put upon one OF the American warships
that frequently go TO Valparaiso, and
the cost would be trivial.
Admiral Schley's Brother.
lover the remains of the two sailors
from the Baltimore killed in the streets
Of Valparaiso October 10. 1891. Boat.