The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1916-02-10
Randon. Oregon, Jan. II, 1916.

Bandon, Oregon, Jan. IT, 1916.
The evenness of the shoreline of the
northwest coast of the United States
makes havens for storm-tossed vessels
very scarce. There is practically no
refuge, available ats all hours and sea-
sons, between San Francisco and Puget
Sound. There are few roadsteads
where shelter can be obtained from
certain winds.
There are a few estuaries which can
be entered at certain phases Of the
tide in moderate weather, and these
are the channels through which the
shipping of the west coast is handled.
The most notable of these is that of
the Columbia, but there are small
rivers which have ocean outlets, and
these all have their shipping. All of
any Importance resort to jetties to
control the tides and currents.
Bandon is located at the mouth of
the Coquille river, stream that is
navigable perhaps forty miles inland.
1t has jetties perhaps four hundred
feet apart, and a length through which
the breakers are dangerous perhaps an
eighth Of a mile.
Steam schooners of a certain class
bring supplies to towns such as Marsh
field and Bandon, where it is reshipped
to the smaller towns along the coast
which do not have improved harbors.
One Of these boats, the Randolph,
used in reshipping goods, capsized at
the entrance to the Bandon harbor last
spring The Randolph, which was per-
haps fifty feet long, instead of coming
squarely in with the breakers, came
in at an angle and was caught sidewise
by the waves and overturned.
Two men were in the rigging of the
boat and one on deck, and they were
thrown into the boiling surf One, an
athlete and expert swimmer, managed
to reach the shore. The other two
were drowned.
AS the Randolph turned her two
masts struck the bottom of the bar
and were pulled out. The overturned
boat floated to the south of the jetties
and on to the beach. A row of life
savers ran a line out to the wreck,
wading, with the water at times, to
their necks.
Bottom up, the Randolph had
grounded on the beach. With an ak
the life savers chopped hole in the
bottom Of the hull and lifted two men
out into daylight. One of the men
still held pipe between his teeth.
Later l talked with this man and his
story had an absorbing interest.
He was the engineer of the boat.
Gasoline was used for power. His
companion was the captain, who,
when the boat made it's first dip, made
a misstep through scuttle and landed
in the engine room, and to safety, as
it afterward developed.
When the boat turned over, said the
engineer, the most prominent sensa-
tion was that it was dark. He found
himself on the ceiling of the small
room and for few minutes it seemed
to be raining monkey Wrenches. The
engine turned few moments bottom
side up and then stopped. The air be-
came dense with the fumes of gaso-
line. Occasionally the boat would tip
with the force of the breakers A
little light and a gust of air would
come in. Thus they were ventilated.
But through it all he chung to his pipe,
A number of slabs of bacon, part of
the boats cargo, foated on the water
and were picked up by the natives, and
later when the boat righted itself it
did not take long for the cargo to dis
appear. The law of the sea, as it is
interpreted in this particular neck of
the woods, gives the cargo of a
wrecked boat to whoever can get it.
For this reason it might be said that
more than one citizen at this time
brought home the bacon.
The law that wrecked cargoes belong
to the finder is carried to the extreme
in this section. Early in December, the
Santa Clara was wrecked on Coos bay,
another estuary short distance to
the north. The Santa Clara was a
passenger and freight boat, one of the
types of steam schooners that do the
freighting for the ports between Port
land and San Francisco.
Something like ten lives were lost
in this wreck. The boat lost the use
Of her rudder by striking the bar while
in the trough of wave aud drifted to
the south shore Of the bay A cable
was afterwards run from the boat to
tree on the shore.
A throng Of wreckers gathered,
bringing tents and blankets and cook
ing utensils and preparing for long
job The Santa Clara held many tons
0f freight as well as parcels post mail.