Passenger Lists: San Francisco 1800s

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SS Isthmus

Arrive San Francisco

September 30, 1853
SS Isthmus 
Captain Harris
19 days From Panama via intermediate ports.

Passage

October 1, 1853, Daily Alta California, San Francisco

ARRIVAL OF THE STEAMER ISTHMUS

Four Days Later from Panama

The P.M.S. Co. steamer Isthmus arrived last evening from Panama, which port she left on the 10th.

She brings the mail, and passengers, of the steamer Philadelphia from New Orleans, which were due here by the Winfield Scott. The Philadelphia broke down, and was in consequence unable to connect with the Scott. By this arrival we have Panama papers to the 10th.

The Hearld says the repairs now being made on the Cruces road have almost entirely done away with the difficulties experienced by passengers in the journey from Panama to Cruces, and although this is generally considered as the rainy season, we have experienced during the last ten days but two wet days, with occasional showers at night.

We never knew the Isthmus so free from sickness as at the present time, and the Hospital report which we publish today will bear us out in this statement . . .

I have only to inform you that, despite the reports that have been circulated to the contrary, we have no sickness of any kind here, and the last report of the Physician of the American Hospital shows a decrease in the number of admissions and but two deaths. The railroad company are progressing rapidly, both with their own works and the repairs of the Cruces road; and all the bad spots are now either drained or filled in, and the general repairs going on, owing to the favorably weather we have enjoyed, have been done with more facility and rapidity than was at first anticipated.

DISTURBANCE AT THE CHINCHA ISLANDS

From Mr. Quimby, messenger of Adams & Co. Express, from Melbourne, we have received important information relative to an outrage committed by the Commandante in charge of the Peruvian guard-ship at the Chincha Islands on some American captains there. It appears that an order has been issued prohibiting the killing of pelicans and penguins, and subjecting any one breaking the law to a fine of one dollar. A sailor belonging to an American vessel, whilst going on shore, killed one of these birds with an oar, and the boat's crew were immediately arrested and placed in irons on board the guard ship. On the following morning, the captain of the vessel, hearing of the arrest of his men, sent on board the guard ship to pay the fine, and requested release of his men. The fine was received, but the release declined by the Commandante. (Images: Chicha Islands. Collecting bat guano: map 1856.)

The American captains then in port, some twenty-five, then formed a committee, and divesting themselves of every thing in the shape of arms, proceeded to wait upon the Commandante to induct him to deliver them. Instead of listening to their petition, the Commandante brought all his marines on deck, and having given the command to load with ball cartridge, he ordered the American captains peremptorily to leave his vessel. This they hastened to do, but owing to some slight delay in getting into their boats, the marines attacked them with their muskets, abusing them in the most shameful manner. Some of them were beaten severely with the butt ends of the muskets, others were wounded badly with the bayonets, and many were thrown over the side of the vessel into the sea.

One of the captains was very seriously wounded in the thigh, and it is feared he may not recover. After this affair, the Americans at the Island sent a deputation to the American Minister, J. Randolph Clay, at Lima, which was received by him with the utmost courtesy. We understand that Mr. Clay has taken immediate steps in the matter, and that he is determined to insist upon the Peruvian advancement rendering immediate satisfaction for this outrage. Mr. Clay has also forwarded to Washington, important dispatches relative to this subject by Adams & Co. Express.

Cargo

To E. Flint

Passengers

W. L. Williams
W. A. Benton
J. T. Webster
Adams & Co agent
Mrs. E. C. Eldredge and child
Elizabeth Gillen
Emily Burgen and two children
Catherine Latezein
Jas Johnson
Alexander Joseph
John Thomas
F. Massamino
F. Eusebio (or F. Euseblo)
J. Ramelli
A. Alvertovi
L. Mansalto
S. Simmons
C. Lombargo
B. Penny
P. Murry (As spelled in the Sacramento Daily Union)
E. Pigeon
J. Poulard
Hugh Byrnes
R. Gleason
Madelina Capdedeville
F. H. Foukert
Julio Belange

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The Mammoth Book of Life Before the Mast:
Sailors' Eyewitness Stories from the Age of Fighting Ships 
Jon E. Lewis, Editor
Firsthand accounts of the real-life naval adventures behind the popular historical sagas of Patrick O'Brian and C. F. Forester. Twenty true-life adventures capture the glory and gore of the great age of naval warfare from the late eighteenth to the early nineteenth century -- the age of the French Revolutionary War, the Napoleonic Wars, and the War of 1812 -- when combat at sea was won by sheer human wit, courage, and endurance. Culled from memoirs, diaries, and letters of celebrated officers as well as sailors, the collection includes accounts of such decisive naval engagements as Admiral Horatio Nelson's on the Battle of the Nile in 1798 or Midshipman Roberts' on the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 and also offers glimpses into daily hardships aboard a man-of-war: scurvy, whippings, storms, piracy, press gangs, drudgery, boredom, and cannibalism.

Life of a Sailor (Seafarers' Voices) 
Frederick Chamier
Chamier went to sea in 1809 as an officer in the Royal Navy. Like his contemporary, Captain Frederick Marryat, he enjoyed a successful literary career and is remembered for his naval novels. This book, his first, is usually catalogued as fiction, although it is an exact account of his naval experiences, with every individual, ship, and event he described corroborated by his service records. Told with humor and insight, it is considered an authentic account of a young officer's service. From anti-slavery patrols off Africa to punitive raids on the American coast during the War of 1812, Chamier provides details of many lesser-known campaigns. His descriptions of British naval operations in America, which reflected his objection to bringing the war to the civilian population, were highly criticized by his seniors.

The Nagle Journal: A Diary of the Life of Jacob Nagle, Sailor, from the Year 1775 to 1841
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High-seas adventures showcasing showcases the fiction of such classic writers as Daniel Defoe, Jules Verne, and Jack London, and also historic first-person narratives including Christopher Columbus’ own account of his voyage in 1492. Vivid tales of heroic naval battles and dangerous journeys of exploration to the stories of castaways and smugglers. The variety of works includes “The Raft of Odysseus,” by Homer; Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Mermaid”; “The Specksioneer,” by Elizabeth Gaskell; Washington Irving’s “The Phantom Island”; and “Rounding Cape Horn,” by Herman Melville. Eighteen black and white illustrations by Peter Hurd.