Newspapers / The Weekly Star (Wilmington, … / Nov. 10, 1899, edition 1 / Page 1
Part of The Weekly Star (Wilmington, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
pit ISljeeiag xx. -ruiuixim at- WILMINGTON, N. C. AT- 1lt)0 A YEAR. IN ADVANCE. 88S8S8S88388888S8 888888888S88S88SS 8S88SS88SSSSS8S8S SS38333ZSSSSg!32& 88888888888888888 moon 82888888288888888 qjooi- I 888888S8828888888 182888888388888888 S8888S8SS28SS9SS a X a.. n: j s :::: Hnered at the Post Office at Second Clan Ma dmtgton, N. C, u er.l SUBSCRIPTION P CE. TlS ubscriptton price of th We iingfe Copy 1 year Pa(e paid ly Star is as tioo H " montbi " cu ........ ... 0 j OUR FOREIGN TEADE. In addition to considering other matters in which the Southern Cot toa Spinners are interested they, at their meeting in Charlotte Thurs day, expressed their views as to what policies the government should pursue to foster, extend and Becnre permanence for our trade with other countries, but especially with the densely peopled East; for dominance in the trade of which European na tions are planning and working. Tljese views are expressed in the following resolutions: "Resolved. Tbat we urge upon the President of the United States and our Senators and Representatives in Con gress, the following measures: 1. The preservation of the integrity of the Chinese Empire, of all our treaty rights with that Empire and the main tenance of an open door policy in China with the commerce of all na tions 2 Vigorous prosecution of the Philippine war to a conclusion and the restoration of order in that territory by our government. 8Con truction, without delay of an isthmian ship canal. 4. Construction of a cable from the Pacific coast to Hawaii, Japan, China, and Philippines and -other Oriental points. "xesoivea, xnat we consider mat a large degree of the importance of the last three items lies in the' value of those measures in .accomplishing the first item and In protecting our trade in China and other Eastern countries ''Resolved, Tbat we recommend, if it be necessary, CO operation of our Government with England and Japan to preserve and protect a common trade interest and treaty ngbta lor unre stricted commerce in China and other Eastern countries. Resolved, That we recommend to CoDgress such revision of our naviga tion laws as Swill follow the develop. meat or our merchant marine servioe to an extent to handle our expanding comm-rce. "Resolvedi That we recommend to Congress such increase in our navy as will make it fully adequate to protect our commerce in all seas and in all parts of the world." There is ho politics in these; they are all business, and while they were presented by a man who believes in expansion territorial expansion they refrain from expressing any opinion on that subject. Item one is all right. This Gov ernment should do all it can for the preservation of the integrity of the Chinese empire, with a view to pre venting it from being dismembered and appropriated by other nations, wmca will close the doors upon us and monopolize its trade them selves, as Russia, Germany and ranee are' planning and working to do. No nation which happens ohave power enough to intimidate he timid ..Chinese should be per mitted to exercise that power to the detriment of other nations, which do not resort to such methods to secure a foothold for their trade. If trade ever I be worth fighting for then to prevent this, the nations that are interested in not being crowded out would be justified in combining to prevent by force if necessary what friendly remon trance or energetic protest failed to accomplish. The doors of China should stand open, and the nations which seek trade without land grab bing should insist upon that. ' Item two is right, for if war is to be waged in the Philippines it 'hould be vigorously waged. The more vigorously waged the sooner it will be over and the sooner and easier law and order and stable government can be established, and the better it 'ill be for all concerned. But it honld not be taken for granted that Tigorous war is the only way to ac complish this until other methods tave been tried and failed beyond Ration. Vigorous war is not inconsistent with such generous concessions as might obviate the necessity of vigorous war, and bring Peace, without dishonor and without nnnecessary sacrifice of life and ex Penditnrn rf Item i.hr 4, mir,0r,w so onnd that it has- been anticipated and endorsed by nearly every com mercial body in the country. It is sure as night follows - day that if j We are to build up a trade of any I magnitude in the far Eastern coun- ines we must have a short way to reach them, and a way over which ;nu Government will have a protect- m&t supervision and control. We nt Bend our goods across the Atlantic, and through the Suez tanal, and then successfully com- wun otner nations which are to me uanai ana have no 0ean to croBS. If one half tha w 1 oneyhad been expended on that VOL. XXYT " - i..m . ww i i . wi i v v i j i j ivi ' vr - -w ii u raa blj - .. . j 1 . vureipiB tnai nas Deen ex pended Jin the purchase and effort tO secure : possession of the Philippines; that waterway would have been opened before this and our exporters might now be ship-' ping millions of dollars worth an nually of their goods in addition to what they are selling. There is more in this for the commerce of this country and for the cotton manufacturers of the South than there is in all territorial expansion in the far East ever dreamed of. Equally sensible as this is, the resolution urging the revision of the navigation laws to foster the devel opment of our merchant marine, for if we are td become a commer cial nation in the true sense and in dependent we must have ships of our own that we can send to and fro freighted with what we have to send abroad and what we want to' bring back, and not be compelled to hire the ships of other and rival "nations, paying tribute to "their foreign owners, to whom we have. already paid enough to build as fine a merchant marine as this or any country would ever njeed. As our trade expands and our in terests grow in other" countries we must, of course, have a navy suf ficiently formidable to command re spect, and to enforce respect where that might not be willingly accord ed, and this emphasizes the force of the item urging the construction of an isthmian canal, for that would be; equivalent to a large addition to our navy, because by opening such a waterway our naval force could be quickly massed for service wherever needed, and the ships in one ocean would not be forced to Bail four teen thousand miles of sea to coasts where they may be needed. The' key to the expansion of our commerce in the East and its per manence lies in the construction of that canal. WHAT EXPANSION COSTS. The following summary of the Re port of Adjutant General Corbin, will give some idea of what forcible expansion ccsta, and we are not through, with the business yet by a good deal. We clip from tho New York Sun: "Of the regular army there is a to tal of 61,586 officers and enlisted men, consisting of 10 regiments of cavalry, 7 regiments of artillery, 25 regiments of infantry and nearly 2,000 Indian scouts and recruits. The volunteer army, including the 24 regiments of infantry, 1 of cavalry and the Porto Uioo battalion, has 34.574 officers and men. This makes a grand total of 99 -160 officers and men in the service. Of this number 34 229 are in the United States, 3 363 in Porto Rico, 11,187 in Cuba, 32,315 in the Philippine Islands, 17 099 on the way to Manila, 499 in Alaska and 466 in Hawaii. It is ex pected that by, Dec. 1 next all the in fantry regiments of volunteers now in the United States will have sailed for Manila. Gen. Corbin says that these, with the troops now there, will give a total strength of 2,117 officers, and 63, 608 enlisted men, an aggregate of 65, 725. "General Corbin gives a statement showing the monthly losses from all causes in the regular army between May 1, 1898. and June 30, 1899. It shows 24 officers killed in action, 7 died of wounds, 51 of disease, 15 re signed, 1 dismissed and 4 from casual ties. Of the enlisted men, 8,887 were discharged by reason of expiration of service, 2 102 discharged for disability, 270 killed in action, 114 died of wounds. 1.524 of disease, 72 of accidents, 48 were drowned, 32 committed suicide, 3.036 deserted and 109 officers and 1, 686 men were wounded. The average strength of the army during this time was 60,000. A similar statement or the volunteer army shows 17 officers killed in action, 114-died of disease, 6 casualties, 1 suicide and 3 of wounds. Of the enlisted men 188 were killed in action. 78 died of wounds, 3,820 of disease, 177 of casualties, 20 of suicide. 88 officers and 1.178 men were wounded. Of a total of 62.175 men. exclusive of the Hospital corps, enlisted during the cast fiscal year. 53.0Z4 were na tiveDorn, 9,151 foreign birth; 56,154 were white, 6.001 colored and 20 In dians: 43.780 were new enlistments and 18,395 reenlistments; 147, 669 ap plicants were rejected; 3.177 were re iected as aliens and 5.174 for illiteracy. U-en. uoroin recommenas an increase of S3 per cent in the pay of all officers below the grade oi .Brigadier urenerai while on duty outside tne united States: the retirement of all enlisted men on their own application after a service of twenty-five years instead of thirty years; the extension of the juris diction of garrison and regimental courts ; the granting of increased rank and pay oi omcers wniie serving abroad as militarv attaches and in creased pay for non-commissioned officers. He says that the necessity tnr fiillv eaumoed camD grounds, one each for the North. South. East and West, is very great. He recommends that a soeciai appropriation for this purpose he made at an early day. A Texas paper says East Texas is the only section now in which pure cane molasses can be found, the reason assigned being that with the improvements in sugar making the refiners work all the saccharine mat- twiito sugar, leaving no molasses fit for. human jonsumption. Well, what difference does that make when the molasses manipulator can put - A . .. up a daisy article on short notice, ftnvfchiniy von want to meet the J a y . taste,, or the demand? One considerable item of loss to Wilmington merchants incident to the recent storm, during which the wharves were flooded, was injury by water to several hundred bales of deer toneue which were piled along the tA fmnt in different places. It was beine "put out to sun" by a number vPRtardav. There was also damage to a number of flat loads in x n. a ai ... JE w - i tfl It. Til WLV W U a UUU1WI ' I transit down the river. The SILK CULTURE. A short while ago we wrote some thing on the progress of the silk manufacturing industry in the United States, notably in Pennsyl vania, where the. industry has at tained large proportions, almost tak ing the place of iron-making in some counties, where that industry had ceased to be profitable. Very little, too little to be worth mentioning, of the silk manufactured is nroduced . in this country, notwithstanding the efforts that have been made to stimu- lote an interest in it, the impression being that it is a troublesome and uncertain business in which there is little profit, and consequently offer ing little .inducement to engage In it. But it seems that silk is culti vated in South Carolina, and oavs well, too, as shown by the following, which we clip from the Charleston News and Courier: . " "In his letter, which is nrinted to. day, General McCrady reports the in eresting fact that a planter in St. Thomas' parish, near Charleston, has achieved a very notable success in silk culture, his annual income from that source amounting to from $6,000 toB.uuu, and that some of his neigh bors, instructed and encouraged oy his examnle. . have made as much as $800 to $1,000 a year from the same product as a , 'by crop,' and 'without neglecting other plantation work.' "Some interesting narticnlars re garding the quality of the product are added, which we need not repeat here as the letter speaks for itself, but it is worthy of especial note that that the industry is so far from exacting scien tific or skilled labor in all its depart ments, as is generally supposed, that it is stated that 'little negro children have been safely intrusted with the work of feeding the worms on the proper performance of which impor tant labor, of course, the success of the industry wholly depends. "Without going very far into the subject to-day, it may be suggested for the consideration of aay of our plant ers or farmers, who are casting about for new crops to engage their atten tion, that one which permits of the successful employment of the very 'cheap labor of little negro children. and which, even as a 'side crop,' not interfering with the other work of the arm, yields an annual return of $800 to $3,000, according to the attention that is spared to it, is not a crop to be neglected in these hard times. "Gen. McCrady explains, incidental ly, it is true, that the experimental crops which he reports were not made this year, or last year, but nearly "two hundred years ago, by U-overnor our Nathaniel Johnson and his near neigh: bors and contemporaries; but the fac remains the same that silk culture has been thoroughly tried, and proved eminently successful and profitable, in South Carolina in both Charleston and Abbeville counties and the con ditions are at least as favorable to its success now as they were in 1707. It might be worth while to try it again." If silk can be successfully and profitably produced in South Caro lina why can't it be in North Caro lina, where we should suppose the conditions quite as favorable ? We have already one silk manufactory in this State at X ayetteville with a prospect of others, and this should be an inducement for our farmers to give some attention to silk culture, because it will give them a home market for what they produce. The experiment is, as the News and Courier remarks, worth trying. Miss Frank, of Benson, Minne sota, on her way to church, thought she would save time by hopping over the bumpers of a freight train which was standing on the track across the street. About the time she got up the train started and Miss Frank took a thirty-mile ride on the bumpers, free, gratis and for nothing. She missed church but had an exhilarating ride. Among the youthful adventures of Uncle Paul Kruger was the strangling of a wolf and the rescue of his little sister, who had been at tacked by the wolf, and whipping a a lion in a stand up fight. The old chap is making it hot for the British lion now. Mr. Markham is now accused of cribbing " The Man with a Hoe," and from a woman, too Miss Cora E. Chase, who published it in a California magazine in 1893. NEW WHOLESALE HOUSE. Messrs. Cooper & Cooper, of Mulling, S. C, Will Open Grocery Business. Messrs. Cooper & Cooper, a firm of two enterprising young business men who have successfully controlled a" large retail mercantile supply house at Mullins, S. C, for a number of years, have decided to close their store in the last named place, and will at a very arly date open up a wholesale busi ness here. They have already rented the commodious and eligibly located new brick store house on Nutt street between the Worth building and that of the Armour Packing Company, and will open their doors to the trade in a very few days. Both members of the firm are brothers of Mr. W. B. Cooper, one of Wilmington's most successful whole sale merchants, and the Btar joins Uany friends in wishing them a long I ATiRtenea in their busi- and successful existence in their busi ness career in North Carolina's most favored commercial centre. Declared Dividend. The Board of Directors of the Wil mington and Weldon Railroad Com- declared a dividend of four r j per cent, on ' the capital siock oi me company for the six months ending October 31st, 1899. The dividend is due and payable at the office of the Treasurer on and after November 10th. Transfer books will stand closed from November 3rd to November 10th. WILMINGTON, N. C, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 10, NORTHERN CAPITALISTS v EFFECT A DEAL. Wilmington Gaslight Company to Change Hands sod be Reorganized New , . Methods and Improvemeats. Northern capitalists have' con summated the deal, heretofore al luded; to, by which they secure an option on the plant of the Wilmington Gaslight Company. It is understood that onlythe details of the purchase re main to be arranged and that the pro perty is soon to be transferred to the new company. The Wilmington Gaslight Company is a corporation composed mostly of stockholders who reside in this city. and it operates both a gas and electric plant. The representative of the new purchase was here the past week to consummate the trade and it is under Stood that he has gone baclf North to close up the transaction. It is said that when the new pur chasers get control the company will be reorganized and the plant operated, on a scale that will revolutionize things. New methods and the latest improvements are to be inaugurated by the new purchasers. " Drowning of Capt. T. Q. Dixon. Capt. T. G. Dixon, master of. the Who was drowned during the storm Tuesday morning, reference to which was made in yesterday's Stab, was an uncle of Mr. E. F. Lewis, of this city. Capt. Dixon with his mate was attempting to go in a small boat to the steamer, which had been left by him Monday afternoon near the fork of New River about four miles below Jacksonville. The boat was capsized by the, breakers and the captain drowned. His mate latter drifted ashore in the row boat and was saved. Capt. Dixon lived at Newborn and was well known by rivermen here. Mr. Lewis yesterday received-news from Newborn that the body of his uncle had not been re covered. - s Schooner William F. Qreen. The schooner William Jrixreen, which has been detained in port on account of the hurricane sailed yes terday at noon in tow of the tug Jones. Mr. A. J. Flanner, of this city, was a passenger and in his honor Capt. Jonssen had his American flag flying at the mizzen-peak. In the rear of the office of George Harriss, Son & Co. several friends, including the two daughters of Capt. Jonssen, bade. adieu amid the waving of flags and echoes through megaphones. Capt. Jonssen is a regular trader to this port and is contemplating locating here and building a residence. His two daughters one of which was thought to have been lost with her father aboard the Green on its last voyage. will spend the winter here.' The Local Cotton Market. In sympathy with the New York and Liverpool quotations the local cotton market yesterday experienced an advance of one-eighth and the tone was firm. With the advance in prices comes increased receipts, 2,835 bales having been reported at the Produce Exchange yesterday against 3,988 bales on the corresponding day in 1898. The quotations last year on November 4th were on a basis of only 4-cents for middling a difference in favor of the producer of two and three-eighths cents per pound. The British steamship Slingsby, of 2,094 tons burthen, Capt Morck, was cleared last night by Mr. J. H. Sloan for Bremen, Germany, with a cargo of 10,094 bales of cotton, ! 5,022,941 pounds, valued at $376,720. Buoys Shifted. ' Capt Edgar D. Williams, wHo came up last evening from Southport said last night that the storm of Monday night and Tuesday morning had con siderably demoralized the location of the buoys off the bar at Southport, The bell buoy and the two outer buoys were shifted by the heavy seas incident to the storm, to the ex treme west side of the channel. Other minor damage is also reported to the buoys on the lower Cape Fear. Fry ing Pan lightship is known to be all safe. Fire at Greenville Sound. The residence and- kitchen of Mr. James T. Canady on Greenville Sound, seven miles from the city, was totally destroyed by fire yesterday morning about 6 o'clock. The origin of the fire is unknown. The house was one-story and was insured with Messrs. Walker Taylor & Metts, Underwriters agency, for $350. Mr. Canady's furniture was also destroyed, but there was no in surance on it. The local spirits turpentine t larket scored another, decided decline yesterday. Sales were not made higher than 47 cents. : SAVED BV A JUQ. The Crew of - the Schooner Charles S. Davis at Bogne Inlet. Star Correspondence. Swansboro, N. C, Nov. 1. Schooners Thomas M. James, and Charles S. Davis, bound from Savan nah, Ga., to Philadelphia, loaded with lumber, were wrecked on the oeacn near Bogue Inlet during the severe storm. The James will probably oe gotten off. ; The Davis is a total wreck: her crew was taken on oy me pilots from Bogue Inlet The crew of the Davis sent a line ashore by tie- ing it to a jug which floated to the beach and the pilots then pulled them to the shore. The crews of both ves sels stayed in the rigging all night O. S.. Pittman, the captain, reported several wrecks between Cape Lookout and Frying Pan Shoals. " ROUGH EXPERIENCE QN ZEKE'S ISLAND. Captain Brock of a Crew of Fishermen Tells of a Night of Horror Dar ing the Storm. riant .T w Rnwir rW with h;. party of fishermen consisting of three other men, were thought to have been lost during the recent storm oh Zeke's Island, arrived in the city yesterday afternoon from Federal Point all safe and sound. It will be remembered that on Tues day his trunk was found floating with the tide up the river; by J. E Howard, janitor at the Custom House, and this gave rise to apprehensions for his safety. The trunk was restored- to him upon his arrival yesterday and. this with aamall boat in which he and party escaped to Federal Point, constitute all his earth ly possessions, the waves having de molished his houses on the island and 8 wept all his household goods, fishing tackle and other property up the river, on the occasion of last Tuesday morn ing's storm. On the island were two cottages in which he and companions lived. The tide began rising at 8 o'clock Monday night, he said, and reached a climax at. 4 o'clock Tuesday morning, when the entire island was covered and the breakers were rolling high over their heads. He and companions managed to hold a boat between them by steadying themselves with a few bushes, which were above water. They were then standing in water waist deep and re mained so until Tuesday afternoon, wnen tney managed to bail the water from the canoe, clear, it of sand; and by desperate effort reach the land at Federal Point. Besides houses and household be longings, Capt. Brock lost two, fishing smacks, five nets, and a large interest in betweeptwenty and twenty-five barrels salt mullets. He said it was the roughest experience of his life and ad given, up hope at one time of escaping alive. Capt Brock says that the jetties built from the island to Federal Point to throw the current in Cape Fear channel are cut in twain in nearly a dozen places. Zeke's Island is now a sand bar, not enough soil being left, as a member of the crew expressed it, "to raise a row on." Formerly vege tation grew upon the land and gar dens were cultivated by 'fishermen. The other fishermen on the island are reported safe' and there is known to have been no loss of life at this point. ' SCHOONER q0LD.LEAF. X WENT DOWN IN STORM. She Was About to be Driven Out to Sea and Was Abandoned by the Crew, All Hands Were Saved. " Mr. R. R. Stone, of this city, who with Mr. Jesse Wilson, of Supply, owns the two-masted schooner Gold Leaf, which has .been engaged in the coasting trade between Wilmington and points on the Brunswick county coast, received information yesterday that theschooner was lost in the hurri cane last Monday. The (fold Leaf left here last Thursday for Calabash with a cargo of dry. goods and groceries for merchants at that place, and was struck by the storm near Little River. She labored heavily and ship ped great seas, and, realizing that the vessel was being driven out to sea in the terrible storm despite their efforts, the crew took to a boat and suc ceeded in reaching shore, which was in sight. Her crew consisted of Capt A. D. Bessent and two men, and Mr. L. H. Wilson, son of one" of the pro prietors, was a passenger. After being abandoned the vessel was driven out to sea by the storm and no doubt foundered. The Gold Leaf was valued at $800 and the cargo at $1,000. There was no insurance on either. ' . ' Mr. Stone received information yes terday that the two-masted schooner Bertha M. T., owned by Stone, Rourk & Co., of this city, rodeout the storm safely about Point Lookout Mr. Stone says there is not the least hope that the schooner Stonewall weathered the storm. The Star yes terday morning stated that she was driven to sea from Shallotte river and the probability is tbat she went down with her crew, consisting of Capt. Wm. Williamson and two men. . SCHOONER STELLA LEE LOST. Two Masted Vessel Belonging to Mr. J. W. Brooks Destroyed by Storm. Mr. J. W. Brooks, of the firm of Brooks & Taylor, left yesterday for Southport to look after his interest in two masted schooner Stella Lee, the which it now definitely appears was lost with all on board during Tuesday's storm. The Lee is owned by Mr. Brooks and is laden with-cotton and naval stores from Tubbs, Brusn wick county. for this port She was in charge of Capt. Willie Williamson, of Tubbs, and the crew consisted of two other men, one of them named Sommerset, also of Tubb's. The last seen of the schooner was by the life saving crew at Caswell Mon day evening. She was evidently attempting to put in at Southport but was unable to do so on account of the tide and wind. She anchored off Caswell after despairing of getting into port and her lights were seen from the shore until 9 o'clock, when they were extinguished and the schooner passed out of sight Mr. Brooks will probably not return to the city for several days. v 1899. STEAMER WRECKED. The Catherine Whiting Destroyed by the Hurricane Last Tues day Morning. I MIRACULOUS ESCAPE OF CREW The Vessel aad Cargo of Lumber a Total . Loss No Insurance On Either The Rescaed Captain Saw Admiral Viilamil Die. : The American steamer Catharine Whiting, Capt. F. C Miller, of New York, was wrecked during the -hurricane last Tuesday morning at Goss beach, Brunswick county, about forty miles below Sutb port and twenty mites south of Fryingpan Shoals light ship. She was bound from Satilla River, Georgia, for New York, with a cargo of 350,000 feet of lumber. The vessel and cargo are a total loss. The crew of the ship, -consisting of eigh teen men, were saved in a miraculous manner. The vessel was owned by Capt Mil ler, and was valued at $20,000. There was no insurance on her. She was a wooden hull ship, and was built at Maiden, New York, in 1868x She was 890 tons burthen, 190 felTlength, 32 feet beam, and drew"l6 feet water. The cargo was valued at $8,000, and was not insur . The steamer Seabright, Capt W. A. Sanders, of this city, which left hereWednesday for Calabash, picked ip the Catharine Whiting's crew at Little River, S. G, and brought them to the city yesterday afternoon at 4 o'clock. In the party were Captain Miller and his father, Capt C. F. Miller, who was mate of the vessel and who is 84 years of age a hale and hearty man, however, for one of his age. Captain Miller and his father are guests of -Captain Sanders at his home, No. 415 Grace street, while the crew of the vessel were taken care of elsewhere. The Wreck of the Whiting. Captain Miller last evening gave a Stab reporter the following account of the loss of his ship: "We left Satilla River at 2 P. M. last Saturday with a cargo of lumber, shipped by the Hilton-Dodge Lumber Company. We had good weather till Sunday, when a gale struck us off Cape Romain, on the coast of South Carolina, near; Charleston. The wind was , blowing steadily from the northeast at the rate of 20 miles an hour. The ship, however, made good headway, but the gale increased steadily and the sea got so rough we hauled in under land twenty miles north of Cape Romain. We finally anchored for harbor in six fathoms of water thirty miles below Southport. The gale was blowing from the north east, and under land the ship had very good harbor. All day Monday the wind kept' increasing in velocity and the barometer steadily went down till it registered 29.90. The wind in creased from the northeast and was blowing at the rate of 50 or 0 miles an hour. We still had comparatively smooth water under thelee of the land and thought we were safe. Awful Experience. "About 12 o'clock on Monday" Capt Miller, continued, 'there was a dead calm for fifteen minutes, and then the wind shifted to the east, coming directly from the ocean. Then I real ized that instead of a northeast gale, we had a hurricane on hand to deal with. It began to blow with equal, if not increased severity, as when the wind wis northeast. The wind then shifted to southeast and caused the ocean to sweep right in towards shore. During Monday night the sea got so rough that both chains were parted and we lost both anchors. We at tempted to steam off shore but could make no headway against the force of the hurricane and the rough sea com ing in from the same direction. The ship began to drift rapidly towards tho land which was some two or three miles away.as we judged only from soundings, as the heavy rain squalls prevented us from seeing the shore. About 4 A. M. Tuesday the ship got in the breakers and struck bottom with a heavy thump, in four fathoms of water. She began to pound heavily and be gan at once to go to pieces in a tre mendous surf. The stem of the ship was the first to be hammered to pieces. Quickly the mainmast, the smoke stack and the foremast came down in the order named. Timber was crash ing in all directions, and it is a wonder that many of the crew were not killed. The second officer, Frank Johnson, was struck by a piece of timber and was knocked from the bridge to the deck, a distance of twelve feet It was a wonder he was not killed, but h escaped with a very severe cut on his hand, as the result of his terrible fall. Everything was smashing, and the crew wanted to take to the boats, but I ordered them not to launch a boat, telling them that they would be smashed to pieces with the timber from the breaking ship, and the whole of them would be lost I told them to do as I said, and, as they had confi dence in me, they obeyed my order not to touch a boat "In the meantime," said Captain Miller, "our three boats were smashed to splinters. Lines were tied around the pilot house and the crew lashed themselves on top and awaited their fate. The ship broke all to pieces un der us, but if our rescue had been planned beforehand it could not have worked v out more successfully. The pilot house with- a portion of the upper deck finally broke loose from the ship and was driven through the surf to the shore where we stepped NO. 3 out on the sand, without the loss of one of the eighteen. Our deliverance was miraculous." Captain Miller says the men lost everything they bad, except the clothes they had on their backs. They were wet and cold and as soon as they got on the beach they ran up and uown to keep warm. Thev were not only cold, but were desperately hun- kji """ii nunuQuuni i or honours, as the ship had such a rough experi ence it was impossible to cook any thing. He says it was about daylight when they got ashore J and when yJe inhabitants found them in distress they came to their relief. He was loud m bis praise of the hospitality of Mr. George Brooks.of Seaside, and the peo pie of the neighborhood. The crew of the Whiting fell into good hands when they were-picked np by Capt. Sanders, of the SeAbright. While -he was asleep in bis cabin yesterday morning he was awakened by Capt: Miller who told him of their plight, . saying there .were eighteen hungry men in i the party; that they didn't have a cent and wanted to come to WilmingtonJ Capt. Sanders told them to come right aboard and that if there was any mortal thing he could do for them it would be done. Capt. Sanders called up his cook and told him to go to work and cook till he fed every one of the shipwrecked men. Capt. Miller's cook joined in and they soon had enough for all hands. Capt. Miller says Capt. Sanders entertained him and his men with the most open handed heartiness and hospitality, and he could not find words to give him the thanks and credit due him for what he so nobly did for them. He and his crew expect to leave for New York as early as possible. Saw Cervera's Fleet Destroyed. During the war between the United7 States and Spain Captain Miller wit- nua.fi ti ji. f til i ril nessed the destruction of Admiral 9er veras fleet in the great naval battle at Santiago, Cuba, on! Sunday, July I 3d, 1898. He was in command'of the I yacht Wanda, which was one of the Associated Press dispatch boats, car rying dispatches from' the blockading fleet to Kingston, Jamaica. The Wanda was the flagship of Col. Chas. H. Diehl, New York manager of the Associated Press, who was in charge of the war dispatch service. ' Saw Cervera.otning Oat. Last night Captain Miller talked in terestingly of his' experience at San tiago. , It had been 'customary for the Wanda to land a correspondent dur ing the night trad take him back on board nextmorning after he had ex ploited on shore for mews. One of the newspaper men had gone ashore Saturday night, July 21, and 8unday morning abou-9 o'clock the Wanda went in towards the entrance to the harbor to take him off. When. Cap tain Miller was waiting along the shore for ihe newspaper man, he looked up the harbor and saw Cer vera's fleet coming put. The news gatherer was where h could not see andhad told Capt Miller he would stay ashore a while longer. When Capt. Miller saw the Spanish coming out he yelled to the correspondent and he hastened on board. Before the Wanda could get away the Spanish fleet came around and the great naval battle be gan. The little yacht was in the firing line and when the Spanish torpedo boats Pluton and Fuifor were blown up she was within four ships' lengths from them. While the Pluton was sinking, Capt Miller: was sitting on his cabin with a camera taking a pho tograph of her, but a shell from some of the Spanish or the American ships shot away, the Wanda's fore topmast, causing the captain to lose his camera and his picture of the sinking Spaniard. How Admiral Viilamil Died. Capt Miller says the j WanOa and the converted yacht Gloucester were the only American ships that rescued the Spaniards from the water. The Wanda picked up twelve officers and men of the Pluton and Furror, including the executive officer of the Pluton, the chief engineer .of the 'Furor, the tor pedero (or head torpedo man) of the Pluton, and two quartermasters. Af ter their ships went down, the Wanda launched her boats and picked up the Spaniards while they were swimming in the sea. . j . The Spanish prisoners told Captain Miller that Admiral j Viilamil, who was in command of the torpedo boats, had been wounded and was ashore. They requested him to send a boat for him. Capt Miller took one of the Spanish officers and With two boats went ashore, for the admiral. He took a sddan chair on which to carry the wounded admiral and the Spaniard went along to identify him. They found Admiral Viilamil, and Capt. Miller says he had almost bled to death from his j wounds. They placed him in the chair and started down to the boat but fa number of Cuban Idiers fired into the party, endanger ing the lives of the Americans as well as the Spaniards. While they were carrying Admiral Viilamil he died, and being pursued by the Cubans they placed the chauj with his body among the crags and got back to the Wanda. Word was sentto Santiago that Admiral Villamil's body was on the shore, but it was some time before it was discovered. It will be remem bered that his skeleton was afterwards found in the chair and was identified by the insignia of his rank. Here it the story of how the ill-fated admiral's bleached bones happened to be found in the chair j ' Expected to be Butchered. CaDtain Miller states that when the Spaniards were taken oa the wanaa butchered. In- they expected to be stead they were fed and clothed, their wounds were dressed, land they drank the best i liquor ' the Americans had.. When they were eating the Spaniards were overheard expressing wonder at their treatment Capt Wain wright, of the Glouces ter, demanded the Spaniards from Capt. Miller, but he refused to give them up. Finally a boat came over from the Gloucester and a nofe ad dressed to the officers on, the Wanda ' was handed to Cpt Miller. It or dered the Spaniards to report on the Gloucester, and was signed "Ceryera. Capt Miller then sent the Spaniards to the Gloucester, but now he wants to kick himself for not pocketing Cer vera's order as a souvenir. One of the Spanish officers, after reading it, put it in his pocket The Gloucester had picked up Ad miral Cervera and a large number of his men. Capt Miller says the Glou cester sank the Pluton una' Furor, and, " singular to relate. Capt. Wain right, her commander, was executive officer on the Maine when she was blown up. He "remembered the Maine." but af ter capturing the Spaniards he treated mem with great civility and kindness. DECLINES TO PUBLISH. Smithfield Herald. For several months the Herald' has occasionally received an offerfrom an advertising agency relative to running an ad in our columns from a "manufacturing concern." A conditton of the proposition was that the matter should "be set in7 the regu lar reading matter type of your paper, with headlines in the uniform style of the paper, and appear without classification or advertising mark of any kind," We declined to publish it They increased the consideration and came at us again We declined a sec ond time. Finally we wrote them that we absolutely refused to publish any thing unless we jjhould be informed of the identity of the "manufacturing concern." Wewere then informed that the same was the American Cot ton Company Why 'this attempt to deceive the public? We assure our readers that the "manufacturing con cern" has no unmarked ad in our pa per. SCHOONER CARRIE A. LANE. Three Her Crew Drowned in the Storm 7 Last Monday Night. By TeletfraDli to the Mornlnn Star, y Norfolk, Ya., November 2. The derelict schooner Carrie A. Lane, of Bath, Me., from Beaufort, N. C, to Nank, Conn., arrived to day in tow V .the, Mf" F- Luckenbach, which left Beaufort with the schooner laat Sunday- 0a Moaday the tU(? ea. countered stormy weather which de- veloped into a hurricane that night, WhiJb washed the derelict, putting ou t the fire in the donkey . boiler which ran the pumps. The seas which washed the decks of the schooner drowned three of the crew Harry Kay ton, of Pictou, Nova Scotia, Frank McCover, of Brunswick, Ga., and Christopher -, a relative of the owners of the tug boat Luck enbach. The remaining two of the crew survived the night. Owing to Jtbe gale the tug could ren der the crew of the Lane no assistance, but on Tuesday morning the survivors were taken off and arrived here to day. Kayton became wedged on the deck of the schooner and was mashed. He was drowned like a rat in a trap. His body was buried here this afternoon. After being temporarily repaired the Lane will go to Bath, Maine, for a complete overhauling. FINANCIAL STATUS. Planters Compress Company. Topics of the Week. . "Planters Compress has been one of. the weakest stocks in the Boston mar ket for several weeks. Last April this Stock was selling at 185. The capital stock at the time was $7,500,000, but it was shortly afterwards increased to $15,000,000, holders of one share in the old corporation receiving two shares -in the new. A fair quotation for the new stock on the basis of the old, . therefore, : at the same time would have been 92 The par value of the shares was and is 100. I remarked at that time that these figures were pretty high for stock which had been only recently exploited, which had not yet aid a dividend, and which was not ikely to pay a dividend for some time to come, i That this' view was a correct one has been proved this week by the fact that the stock has sold at 20. It Las been -sliding downward for a long time, in- volving some very heavy losses, which have not tended to foster a very kindly feeling towards the man agement, from whose glowing repre sentations the public was led to infer that, with the business in sight, the company could easily -distribute 6 per cent on a caoitalization of $15,000.- I 000. They (conservatively) estimated that the company, or rather the sub companies, would bale 1,750,000 bales of cotton during the following or the current " cotton year, which would mean $1,750,000 gross .receipts. . And as 38 per cent of the gross receipts ' went to the parent ' company, and 51 per cent, of the dividends paid on the . shares of the sub-companies, the in come for the Planters Compress Com pany was conservatively estimated at $977,885, all of which would be prac tically applicable to dividends on the stock of the Planters Compress, as the latter had no indebtedness of any kind, and no expenses except office rent, a few salaries and incidentals. I remarked at the time tbat all this looked very well on paper, but a busi ness as profitable as this would surely invite competition, and as the machine was one which could doubtless be im proved upon and was not a difficult one to make, other contrivances would be sure to be invented. Since then an- -other one has come to the front with a caDital stock of only $100,000 at the start, The Ginners, as it is called, to manufacture under the Beson nette patents. The anticipated com petition, from the new company-and the present very active competition from the : American Cotton Company; whose system is preferred by many well known practical mill men, the, failure of the business of the Company to - materialize to the extent which many anticipated, reports of some trouble with the machines in the break ing of knives, etc., and the reported liquidations on the part of a prominent New York banker, all these circum stances combined Jiave tended to weaken the stock which weakness has been further accelerated, of course, by the tightness of money and the dis crimination against such securities as collateral. A prominent New York stockholder is said to have liquidated . within the past few weeks 2,100 shares of the Planters Compress." By a score of 38 to 0, the University of Michigan defeated the University of Virginia at Detroit, Mich. Virginia'a light line was no match for the heavy weigma i rum ana -ixruur, aim xu uio second half it went all to pieces. Cures all Throat and Lunar Affection. COUGH SYRUR V Getthe genuine. Refuie substitute. J KlSJ SUREST Dr. BuTTt PUU curt Dytpepsia. Trial, to first. 'KIM' V i ;
The Weekly Star (Wilmington, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Nov. 10, 1899, edition 1
1
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75