The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-01-08
OIL SHIPS FLOATING
HALF Is BOMBARDED
Cutter Seneca Sends It to Bot
tom With Shells as Menace
to Vessels.
HAD DRIFTED 90 MILES
Capt. Gunter Of Oklahoma Here
Tells Dramatic Story
Of His Escape.


carrier Oklahoma. which was torn in two
in an eighty mile northeaster OF the
Delaware Capes on Sunday morning. was
sent to the bottom OF the Atlantic at
noon yesterday BY a shell bombsrdnent
OF the revenue cutter Seneca, known az
the "derelict destroyer" but usually
salvor OF abandoned craft.
Capt. Johnstone OF the Seneca found
he could not use phila nthropy in the case
OF the Oklahoma, SO lie steamed within
few ship lengths OF t.e wreck and le.
loose with his rapid fire ak Founders.
with three inch shells. Capt John.
stone In his first report Of tho lombard.
ment to Capt Wilde, head OF the revenue
cutter service at this port. said he would
verify the position of the dereiict by TAX
ing soundiugs. lie did this and at go
o'clock yesterday afternoon sent this mes
sage TO Capt wilde. for transmission to
the Treasury Department
Forward part OF Oklahoma sank In lau
tude 70 degrees ] z minutes north longi-
tude "a degrees ~ minutes west. in seven
teen fathons. TIE least water above the
wreck is eight and one-half fathoms. win
return TO port unless otherwise ordered
with three bodies picked up in boat and
turn them over TO the Coroner at Tomp-
kinsville on arrival"
wreck Had DrifteA sixty MiIes.
According to Capt. Johnstones wireless
message. supplemented by others he sent
10 the Treasury Department direct, the
fnidship end Of the broken derelct was
touching bottom when ne reached Il and
she had turned bottom UP. The wreck had
drifted more than eighty miles southwes,
OF its original position.
II wAa the first lob the Seneca had
Of destroying even @ part OF q steel dere-
iict She used the exploding shells, which
tore apart the watertight bulkheads that
might have kept the wreck afioat inder-
nitely. menace to coastwise navigation
II vanished swiftly.
Capt. 9unter OF the Oklahoma, who ar
rived here last night. said he could not
account for the buckling and breaking ..
his ship. lie had supposed she was en-
tirely sesworthy. Even when the seas Rs
saulted her with uneXamplec fury In the
hurricane squalls he f-l. no fear fot the
BIG tanks safety
Propellers MovrA Hair Of ship.
We found We were being driven south.
west, OF toward the shore. under the ter
rife force Of gdl- ana sea-, said Capt.
Gunter, and headed Into ihe eye OF the
wind 20 get OF shore. The Snow squalls
made IL hard TO distinguish part OF the
ship AT times. We were pitching tre-
rnendously. While I was hesding her
into IL | heard a grinding noise aft and
looking that way. ] saw that the snip had
broken In half. In the!! flight from the
engine room the engineers had LEI; the
throttle open and the after half c: The chip
with her propel!ers churning was steering
course o: her own. II brought her
alongside OF our haN, which was Tilted
at an angle OF 40 degrees.
Al ha htttl. nf fha a(Har hn1f
alongside We thought II was oil up with
us. Some OF the men thought that the
bow would alnk first and ran TO the rail
and prepared to take the great risk OF
jumping TO the stern half. dissuaded
them from DOING 40. AS 7 believed the
hulkheads would hold For a few minutes
we we're in mortal fear that the stern
would collide with us and send us 10 the
bottom.
We noticed the men aboard the stern
half getting out OF the lifeboats. Capt
Gates. who was a passenger. took charge
Of the after part OF the ship. Instead
Of staying afoat twenty-five minutes. a.
originally reported. the stern remained
sfoat nearly three hours"
Planned "a Die quickly.
Capt Gunter repeated the sta,einan,
that the propsllers Of tho ship continued
10 whirl even after the end Of three hours
a long time in eNhGusting itself. When
the after half Of the ship had steamed
uncannily out OF sight. and almost into
the teeth OF the gale. Capt. Gunter and
the men in the bow went away forward
in the carpenter shop. starIing most OF
the time on the after bulkhead. They
rugged a sort OF pendulum to show whether
or not the bow was listing more heavily
and decided that, should IL go down. they
would lock themselves IN the carpenter
shop and have the agony Of death over
with swiftly.
Al! the liseboats had been aft and the
best they could do 10 save themselves. the
skipper said. would have been TO construct
a flimsy raft that merely would have pro-
longed a death that seemed SO certain 10
all hands that they entered into the com
pact TO do down with the ship without a
inurmur OF dlssent from any man.
Capt Gunter said he was reluctant 20
cr!ticise the commander of the Manuel
Calvo. who made an effor, to launch n
boat. but he thought that the Spanish ship
miglA have stood by until daylight on
Monday. at least. or until the Hamburg
American liner Bavaria and the United
Fruit liner Tenadores hove in sight
II appeared to him that the Spanlard
might have made another effort TO launch
q boat, which was not impossible. as
two boats had been launched from the
after half Of the Oklahoma.