BURNING OF THE STEAMSHIP GOLDEN GATE. ONE HUNDRED AND NINETY-EIGHT LIVES LOST.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 260, 20 October 1862, Page 7

BURNING OF THE STEAMSHIP GOLDEN GATE. ONE HUNDRED AND NINETY-EIGHT LIVES LOST.

By tho arrival of the Alice Thorndyke from Briti.«L Co!umbU, we are in possession of intelligence of tb\ destruction by fire of the Golden (3ate, a large steam ship engaged in the passenger trade between Sai Francisco ami Panama. The following particulars o this fearful tragedy are from the Alta California of August 9. The Alta says:— The steamer St. Louii arrived at 5 o'clock p.m., on the 6th inst., from Panama. MEMORANDA. The P. M. S, S. Co.'s steamer St % Louis, W. F. LapidgP, commander, left San Francisco July 1, at 10 a.m., with 145 passengers and 1,267,;60 dols. in specie, for Panama. July 6, at 9.20 p.m., passe*?, steamer Golden Gate, bound up. Arrived at Aeapulco July §, at 415 p.m.; received supplies, anr Bailed at 8 p.m.; same day, at 930 p.m., passes-, rteampr Sonova, bound up. Arrived at Panama July 16, at 7 a.m. Returning, left Panama, July 20. at midnight with 405 tons of frtight. arid 320 pa<«engers from New York, of July 11, by steamer Not them Light. Arrived at Acnpnlco July 27. at 845 am. Received j coal and supplies, and siiled at 3 p.m. Amved nl Manzanillo July 20, at 5 a.m. On arriving at this port received intelligence of the total loss of P.M.S.S. I P. M. S steamer Golden Gate, by fire, on the evening ' of July 27th, about-'ls miles north-west of Manzaniilo harbor. The St., Louis immediately started for the scene of the wreck; fired signal guns, lowered boats and took off the shore all the survivors of the wreck who could be found. ltemaiue'l at Manzmillo till July 3') th, at 5 p.m., leaving Capt. Hudson and his crew at that port to render any further assistance that might be necessary. The St. Louis brings up 78 of the Golden Gate's pa^ Bengers, (all that are known to be saved) and a portion of her crew. Arrived at San Francisco, August 6th, at 5 p.m. The St Louis brings 126 packages mail from JS'ew York, and 102,470 dols. iv specie from Munzanillo. Left in port at Panama, U.S.S. Baranac ; at Acapulco, foal ship .Tnliet Trundy, %£§ There were on board the Golden Gate— 242 passengers and 96 crew—in a 11.... 339 Known to be saved 140 Lost or missinp; IDS Cne l;oat, containing1 22 people, had not been heard from, at the time the t*t. Louis left Manzanillo. This boifc was in charge of the third mate, and is supposed to have missed the harbour in the night, and gone down th<J coast. These are not included in the list of saved. STATESIFNT OF THE SECOND OFFICER. | Mr Hmry M'Kinney, the second officer, informs us as follows:—On Sunday, the 27th, at five minutes past five, the fire broke* out between the engine and fire-rooms. The steam pump and hose were immediately applied, The fire gained on them, notwithstanding nil efforts. Worked the pump until all the hose was burned, At 6.27 that evening got the port boat off in safety ; the second boat capsized, but fortunately no lives were lost; the third boat got over, and the boats pulled for Manzanillo. The up starboard boat got off about 6 p.m. The St Louis, bound up, reached Manzanillo the next morning at five o'clock, and rescued the passengers. The fire originated in a mysteriou3 manner, and spread v/ith great rapidity—so much so that the clothes of the officers were burned off their persons. When the wreck was abaudoned the me had burned everything to the water's edye. Nothing is known of the origin of the fire. captain Hudson's statembnt to the agents of the v. m. s. s. company. Manzanillo, Juiy 30th, 1852. Gentlemen, —I have to report to you the total loss of the Golden Gate, by fire, which occurred on the afternoon of the 27th instant, fifteen miles to the westward of Manzanillo. At five in the afternoon, when at dinner, the ship was reported to me on fire. I immediately arose from the t*ble, requesting the passengers to remain quiet, and procecdel to the spar deck, when f. found a dense volume of smoke coming up from the engine room hatchway. All the fire hose of the ship wore immediately put in requisition, and worked with ail po3sible energy. The ship was now about three or four miles from the land. I saw at a. glance the impossibility of subduing the flames, and irnmediate'y put the helm up to run the ship ashore. Men. women, and children, were now ordered forward, and probably one hundred had reached the forecastle, when the flames spread with such rapidity as to cut off all communication with the after part of the ship. I ordered Mr Waddell, the Chief Engineer, to keep the engine moving as long as possible. All regular communication with the engine room was cut oft' in a few minutes by the flames; several of the firemen and engineers were still below. The feed-valves of the boilers and furnace doors were opened wide, and all precautions used to prevent explosion. So rapid wa=> the spread of the flames, however, that the engineers and their men barely escaped with their lives by forcing a passage through the after freight room bulkhead. At half-past five we grounded about three hundred yards from the beach, where there was n very heavy surf breaking. Before reaching the shore the after boats were lowered away and filled with passengers, under charge of my chief officer, Mr Nolan, who remained by the ship, rendering all possible aid in saving lift1. In the meantime, life preservers, spars, and everything of a buoyant nature, wore furnished to the passengers, thrown overboard after she struck. The flames spread with such rapidity that the hurricane deck, from the foremast aft, fell with a tremendous crash before reaching the shore, and soon afterwards the foremast went by the board. The heat had now become so intense as to compel all who remained to leave the burning wreck, by lowering themselves in the water with lines furnished for that purpose ; and many had thrown themselves into the water from various parts of the ship. After all had left, Captain Pearson and myself dropped from ibe bowsprit, and succeeded, with great difficulty, in reaching the beach- I found about eighty had reached the shore with life. All that remained visible of the ship at 8 p.m. was her engines, boilers, and wheel-frames. At daylight on the following morning, the 28th inst., we found and buried sixteen bodies, and at 8 a.m., we started for Manzanillo, and a nron we reached the tei minus of the bench, about five miles from the wreck, and found the roads impassable from the density of the chaparral or brushwood. At 3 p.m , a boat hove in sight, with which we communicated and sent to Manzanillo for relief. On the morning of the 29th two of our boats reached us and reported that they had saved sixty-four passengers. The St. Louis touching at Manzanillo early the same morningl, and hearing1 of our disaster, came to our assistance, rescued those who had remained with me on the beach. We had, on leaving San Francisco, two hundred and forty-two passengers and ninety-six crew. There now remain seventy-two passengers and sixty-two crew making" our lost and missing (some of whom may yet be found) two hundred and four. Capt. Lapidge will remain at this port until to-morrow evening, the 30th instant, for the purpose of searching still further for missing passengers. From the shelving bench and heavy surf where the ship is lying, there remains little or no probabi ity, in my opinion, ot saving the treasure. I shall remain, however, as agent of the underwriters, with a portion of my crew and officers, for its protection, and with the hope, also, of being able to save an additional life. Orders from you will reach me through the house of Oetling and Co, of Manzanillo. I cannot say too much of the efficiency and coolness of my officers and crew, under the trying circumstances through which they have passed. Very respectfully, &c. W. W. Hudson. Messrs Forbes and Babcock, agents P.M.S.S. Co, San Francisco. rUlit* STATEMENT OF CAPTAIN H. N. PEAKSOK, A PASSENGER. FCttTIIER PARTICULARS OF THE WRECK. The following is a copy of a letter written* by Capf. Peaison to a friend :— FULL PARTICULARS OF THE LOSS. steamer St. Louis, off Manzanillo, 29th July, 1862. On the 27th inst., at about 4.45 p.m., we had jusl sat down to dinner, it was reported to Capt. Hudson that the steamer (Golden Gate) was on fir' 1 We immediately left the table; he took the deck, while I ran to fight the fire, which originated between tho forward smoke stack and the cabin galley. I saw the forward part of the upper engine room in a blaze, (that portion of the deck just under the galley.) The ennineer was attaching the hose, while I ran to tht paddle box, calling on all I met; to follow and pass down the buckets'of water that were always kepi there. Tim was done, and I dashed watei in around the smoke stack till I was driven from it by the smoke and h?ai I then ran to the upper deck, aft, to see that thej ■were getting th«j hose along from the after pump and, as this was being done, I turned to say a wort of caution to some; men who were getting one of th< boats over; heard Captain Hudson say that he hac headed the steamer for the shore, which was distanl some 3£ miles. Jumping down; below, I saw at £ glance that we were a doomed ship, as the flames flared up the engine-room hatch; met Mr Waddell who said his men, below were cat off and would bt

bnr-nod, and. wa iWded to knfiok (town, tfca U".}k.fau4 m the after freight worn, and, if poa'iulft, save hem. This was done, and Waddoli nimselj'. when prevented by' the fire from1 coming up, jumped overboard, from the after freight port and waa caved-

immediately I directed the panic-stricken women and children that were in the cabin, to the stair-ways JZ eX, n Paddle-boxes forward, myself carrying two of Mr K-ickards children, tbe flames burning us as we rushed by them. About this time it was that baptam Hudson was driven from the port paddle box f >nvard. At the risk of my life I passed back a<*ain over toe paddie-box, cut the cover of the forward after boat and caught at three'life-prescivors; rushing i nvard again through the scorching heat I met Mr } n iZ i Purser Wood, to each of whom I gave one ot the life-preservers, and secured one to the forerigging to use myself if I became so exhausted a3 to need one. Mr Wood gave this to a woman, who, notwithstanding was lost. - ' ' My labrs were now turned to the head-pump and hose, and we fought the fire foot by foot, until the men were driven away; at about thi3 time the steamer changed her course from the direction of the land to the northward, as if the wheelsman had been forced to leave his post, but she soon changed again and headed straight enforce beach.. I unrove the awning side ooes -that were burned off, and made them fast, to the forward rails, that the passengers might cliag to them, and advised those who could not swim to secure such things as wou'd float them, and keep calm until the steamer struck tbe beach. Many did so, but others, confused and bewildered, threw theraselres at once bitd tbe water. At a quarter-past 5 p.m.. by my watch, the upper deck fell in and the foremast went by the boar,!, falling to starboard ; soon after this she took the 'beach very easily, having but little way, though the engines kept working up to that'time;-then it was tliat I told the people to jump and try their best t > reacn the shore.

Huge breakers were rolling pa*t the ship, sweeping everything before them to the beach, and. those persons who retained strength when cast on the shore helped to dra;* the exhausted or dead from the surf. At last Capt. Hudson and myself were alone. Tearing off our clothing- as we hung on under the bowsprit, with flakes of nre falling on us from above we watcbel our chance to jump in afrer a roller - but the rope Hudson held burned off, and he feli into the water, washed ashore and I was alone, exhausted physically and mentally, with both haiuK Wfc arm and right shoulder burned, and so, th-wli I am a good swimmer as you will remember, I doubted if I should reach the shore if I abandoned my life-pre-server; Seeing a small spar fast to the "starboard bow by a rope, i jumped with my life preserver and was swept some distance from the steamer across the starboard bow ; but I swam back to the s^ar I spoke of, got astride of it, but was capsuwl twice enough to prove that my strength was not equal to the task before rue. I managed to put the life-pre-server on, but could not tie it; I let go when I was swept across to port skle, threw myself on my back and before another roller came succeeded in fastening Then I was overtaken by a quick succession of immense breakers, beaten and bruised by them and was finally pitched amongst the wreck of spars attached to the foremast. The danger was imminent of being crushed, but my strength was nearly gone, and I could make no effort to free myself; hut the next roller threw me clear of them, and on to the beach, when some good friends rushed down and dragged me into security I quickly regained my strength, and was deeply pained to learn that more were not saved. Some were Jyin* dead, and some whose names I called had not been seen. We mustered but one hundred persons. Flint and Hollfdny, and other familiar faces were not amonjr them. We were sad indeed. While the fire roared through our noble ship and huge seas made breaches through the charred timber, hurling the flames high in the air, we gathered our dead by the light, and laid them up on the sand, out of tne reach of the sea, and then sat down to watcli the gloomy scene. By 9 o'clock p.m., what was not burned of the steamer was broken up; the bow and stern came ashore, and in the morning there was nothing left but the bed-plate, wheels, and attachments. The beach was strewn with various portions of the wreck. Some kega of ale were picke-1 up, and suffering, as we all were, from thirst and exhaustion, ifc revived many who were too weak to stand. Among our number we recognised Captain Whitney, P. C. S. N. Co., and a better man does not live : Mr M'Mullen, exhauster! and bowed to the earth by the loss of wife and children ; and Mr Waddell, chief engineer. We had seen several of the ship's boats, after changing about a little, keep away for Manzanillo, which was distant but some 14 miles, and we hoped that they would come to our relief early in the morning. As soon as day broke we buried the dead, four of them were women, two of these elderly women, and I think, from the 2nd cabin, an insane person, and Mrs Me Mullen. We buried them in the sand, digging the gray s with pieces of board. Mrs McMullen was a lady raunli esteemed ; and as we straightened her stiffened limbs and covered her face, my heart ached that so untimeiy a fate should check a life >n useful, and so lonely a grave should mark the resting-plnce of one that in life was surrounded by so many loving friends. We placed a nross at the head <if the graves to designate the *pot as sacred. When this sad duty was over, we started tow-irds Manzauillo, marching over burning sands, through jungles and thorns, around a mountain, until we got ."breast the " White ltock," eleven, miles from the town: here we found in th: wood a little water, brackish and dirty ; still it wa; our salvation, and we drank it eagerly. After resting, we surveyed with a new s*nse of our position the high mountains tnvcring above us covered with an impenetrable chaparral on the one hand, and impassable cliffs on the other bordering the s~a. On leaving the vicinity of the wreck, our party numbered nearly one. hundred, five children and one woman—a Mrs Wallace. God bless the woman, a braver and better I never saw, and never can I forget how she cheered the weary through our toilsome and painful wanderings—how, when others rested, she bathed the frying children in the only fresh water we found, to enable them to hold out, and so on through the next night, with our little band of about twenty-: five, some badly burned, and all sore and lame—our fret bound in old canvas, (pieces of the fore-top sail, that came on shore with the y;ird,) and most of what we had on taken from the dead. Here we passed the night, without water or food, while those who were in advance strayed into the mountains. But we were comforted by the appearance of the Custom-house boat of Manzanillo: she took two men who were able to get to a point of rock, from which they iumpei, and were then picked up by the men in the boat, who promised to come to our aid in the morning. Through the long night we suffered, and at daybreak sent two men in search of water, of which they procured enough for a scanty drink for all : and then, a little refreshed, we took up our line of march over the mountains to get to where we could jump from the rocks into the water, when the boats should come to our rescue. We climbed through chapparal, cactus, and thorns, over hedges, and down frightful steeps such as you never saw. Mrs W, did all this with the strongest without a murmur ; she faltered on^'e. poor soul, when we reached the rock from which we jumped, and as I tied the rope around her which was thrown me. She dreaded the fearful waters, and feared we would not reach the boat; but at the right time I told her to jump, pave her a push, and she was safely drawn to the boat. About this time Mr Nolen, in one of the Golden Gate boats, came in sight, and shouted that the St Louis was at hand. Captain Hudsou, a man badly burned, Mrs W. and I got into the Custom Hou^e boat, where we found the good old French doctor (Dormet) of Manzauillo, who had come to our relief with wine, water, and bread; the other boats, under 'Messrs Nolen and Sutton,.took.off the remainder of our fellow svfferers. Captain Lapidge received us with -open arms, he, his officers, and some of his passengers cared For our wounded and burnt, and clothed us. While I write (for I fear that I may break down to-morrow,) the steamer is cruising about, fiaing jyuns, and picking up the stragglers that come out of the mountains . . ' At 3 p.m we came to anchor at Manzanillo, leaving the coats out to rescue all they could find. Before we came in, we saw several dead bodies drifting to the southeast. .'...., We had hoped that the steamer's boats had saved a number of passengers, and, as it was but a short distance to Manzanillo, would have returned to hunt us up on Monday morning ; but those in charge of the boats did not keep close enough to shore, and the current swept all but one some twenty miles to the south-east of the port, so that they did not get to Manzanillo till. Monday afternoon. Then I learn from Mr Connor, late U.S. .Consul at Mazatlan, that ratich time was lost in trying to induce the captain! of the brig Minerva, of Mazatlan (on which he and his family came passengers), to come to our assistance. ;... 1.-"--:' : ',-■■ ',;■ . -■ " ■',- ■'■ , The inhuman wretch refused to move, though Mr Conner and others had worked all night; to hasten pur deliverance. Bonds were offered him of ten times the value of his vessel, but no persuasion or entreaty touched his heart of stone; he was as unmerciful as the" fire and waves from which we .were trying to escape.' The contrast between this scoundrel and the inhabitants of Manzaniilo was most striking; they throw open their houses, fed the hungry, clothed the naked, and buried, with the kindestcare,, three little children, who died from burns and exhaustion.' The captain of the Minerva's name I have not learned.

A ,te£ M *bd gs,flJd «1?l us esnfc up, ftud by thai yoa wUi Uuovf who \\ wa 1 -&t. I urn wlerab.iv woll. save Bfrwburns»; buctheroarc several others so much worse than I am, tiiat Ido not say a word. I haye lost all 1 had «ith me; but I regret ruo?t mv box of presents, which 1 had received through the past fifteen years. My only oomforl is that X tried to do my duty m saving t!ie ship ami. passengers ; I never turned from what I conceived to be my duty, to save even a paper of my o*n. My chief regret'is that so many were lost; it has been a fearful calamity, to be remembered with pain by al of us as long as we shall I wish to mention Mr William TV.-^Walker, who carried a small boy, most of the time, through our weansome tramp; his endurance v/as remarkable, and his humanity an honor to human nature. ORIGIN OP THE FIRE. , From all that I can learn, I think that the fire originated in the after galley, batweea the stoves and the smoke stack; it got the start of the crew, and the ship burned up iv the incredibly short space of time narrated hsre. 1 think Captain Hudson and his officers and crew did all in their power, and what fuey conceived to be best to save life. 1 have written this while the incidents are fresh on my mind, and I have no time or disposition to overl<o.< or correct this ; you can understand a plain sailor s statement. July 30.—The brig Minerva was bound to Acapulco, and though we felt like hanging the Captain to the yard-arm for his dastardly conduct in not going to the scene of the disaster, about thirty of us concluded to proceed to Acapulco in her. The brig was short of provisions, but Capt. Hudson made all arrangements for the passengeTs, so that we : might intercept; the Uncle Sam at Acapulco, and go on to our destination*;, but after we were all on board, and the St. Louis had been detained two hours or rnn-e, the scoundrelly captain refused to give us a guarantee wbeu he would-sail. We were fearful jhe would fake his own time about leaving after the | St. Louis loft, get out to sea, drift about in calms, and fail to reach Acapulco in time to take the Sam, and we concluded to return to the St. Louis and take the chance of mseting her as we went up. None of us we were well, and several are now on the doctor's list. Please inform Mr Bayerque that his friend Dr Hodinier, was drowned; bis body was recognised floating past a boat. Yours truly, K. H. Pearson. P.S.—Mr Flint and Dr Jones arc both lost. Hoilady was picked up by a boat, and is alive to tell his own story. I ought to have mentioned one oi two little incidents that may be of iuter<-st, showing the miraculous escape of four children, who came ashore in our party—one a baby of three months, a child of Mrs Giffen. Its broticrwas saved by the boats; its father and mother ar supposed to be lost. I uuder&ta:id they were from Baltimore. fctrange to say, three little children by me name of Manchester were saved ; one of them, v girl, with us—the other two, a boy aud a girl, by the boats.