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Adler
The Olga had 267 men, the Adler 128 men
and the little Eber 87 men, yet with
one-half the number of the American
forces.
and the little Eber 87 men, yet with
one-half the number of the American
forces.
The Apia hurricane took the lives of fifty-one U.S. Sailors and Marines,
forty-three from USS Vandalia, seven from USS Nipsic and one on board
USS Trenton. Among those lost with the Vandalia was her Commanding
Officer, Cornelius M. Schoonmaker. Over ninety Germans were also lost,
twenty on the Adler and about seventy-one on the Eber. Only one officer
and four men survived the loss of the latter ship. Adler, Olga, and Eber
were all either sunk or hopelessly grounded and torn apart on the sharp reef,
and together lost a total of 150 officers and crew killed.
forty-three from USS Vandalia, seven from USS Nipsic and one on board
USS Trenton. Among those lost with the Vandalia was her Commanding
Officer, Cornelius M. Schoonmaker. Over ninety Germans were also lost,
twenty on the Adler and about seventy-one on the Eber. Only one officer
and four men survived the loss of the latter ship. Adler, Olga, and Eber
were all either sunk or hopelessly grounded and torn apart on the sharp reef,
and together lost a total of 150 officers and crew killed.
On his return home he enlisted in the German navy as a volunteer and was at
once assigned to the 1st Matrosen Division located at the harbor of Kiel. After
the required training he was ordered to his Majesty's ship Adler
which was laying in Sydney, Australia, on detached duty, and was ordered
thence to Samoa, as an uprising had broken out against German property
owners. The Samoan Islands are probably identical with the Baumann's
Islands discovered by the Dutch Navigator Roggoveen in 1722. In 1768
Bougainville gave to the group the name Navigator's Islands. Christianity was
introduced in 1830 by John Williams, the missionary. Meantime the United
States, Great Britain and Germany had each acquired large commercial
interests in Samoa and the representatives of each of these nations took
different views of the troubles, and in 1888 interests hostile to Germany
brought about the capture of Malietoa, the installing of King Tamasese and
the uprising of Malietoa's first chief Mataafa, brought on Civil War. Mataafa
made himself master of Apia, and on December 18, 1888, an encounter took
place between the powers, but this was averted by a conference called to
adjust the difficulties.
On September 12, 1889, occurred the first big fight between the conducting
governments. The "Adler" lay within gun-shot of the lines of battle, and the
crew sought shelter behind the bulwarks of the ship as we were not to take
our part in the fight. The bullets were flattened on the heavy exposed bulwark
and fell in the water. Seaman William Peters of the crew of the "Adler," was
wounded while standing at the steerage stairway, his left cheek bone being
shattered by a bullet from a snyder rifle. Captain Lisset, of a small United
States gunboat, was instantly killed by a stray bullet. The battle lasted from
12 :30 P. M. to 7 o'clock the next morning, when Tamasese fled from Matuald
with part of his armies and took refuge on a cliff where they were pelted with
bullets from the force of Mataafa. Before the contending armies ceased firing,
the horses on each side were besides the innocent women and children that
came in the way of the musket fire which had discharged probably 30,000
cartridges. The cause of the battle at a festival of the natives who came of the
chiefs suggested giving King Tamasese the name of dethroned King Malietoa,
but met strong opposition and a quarrel ensued which grew into persistent
violence. The emnity ensuing was made worse by the formation shown by
Captain Bradeis who had been assigned as advisor to Tamasese. Through his
advice the rebels were driven out of the woods, and the chiefs, when ready
had quite a good following, fled to Mononi, a small island three hours from
Apia and near Upolu, lying directly across from Mulifanna. Here they gathered
and hid away.
At the request of Herr Becker, the German Consul at Apia, the "Adler" took
120 of the Tamasese warriors in their war regalia on board and with their
canoes steamed to Mononi, and with ten long range guns bombarded the
village and sent the Kenakerg in their canoes to trim the town of Monson.
After the "Adler" steamed back to Apia, Mataafa went to the German Consul
asking recognition for the new king, stating that the natives were not satisfied
with the contract of Tamasese or with the taxes exacted by Captain Bradeis
his advisor. To this request the German and English Consuls said that they
could hold no conference with a rebel king. The United States Consul or
commerical agent Clark addressed the new king as "--------------" and praised his
conduct, urging him to prevent and if possible to defeat King Tamasese, and
then the English and German Consuls would recognize the new king. This
advice resulted in the battle of Mataafa and at the time the "Adler" was the only
German warship at Samoa as H. M. A. had in August been ordered to the
Marshall Islands to punish the natives there for the murder of a German
planter. The watch which the "Adler" had placed at Malinun, a German
possession occupied 3,000 Tamasese warriors, was for the protection of their
warriors, and had they been attacked the "Adler" crew would have been
defended by the German warship which lay in the small harbor with open ports
and guns with their men at each, the ship being cleared for action. The
Germans were in full accord with Tamasese and his warriors, and when
Mataafa wrote to the commander of the "Adler" demanding that the Tamasese
flag at Miliniem Port be taken down, the German commander suggested that
he should come himself and take it down. Notwithstanding that both their
armies and the English consuls had advised him to do so Mataafa let it remain.
Early on a Sunday morning there appeared several of Mataafa's warriors near
the point and Matesese at once sent out his warriors to attack the invaders.
The attacking party came to a hut in front of where the American flag was
flying and by some accident the flag staff was thrown down and the occupants
of the hut complained to the American consul who wrote to the commander of
the "Adler" that if he wanted to protect Tamesese he ought to be responsible
for his acts and that he must punish him for insulting the American flag.
Tamesese subsequently removed his 300 warriors to Atua and the German
commander withdrew his watch and placed a consul watch of 20 men and one
officer to the port building of the German consul and Mataafel leaving a few on
Matinau Point.
By the act of Berlin, June 14, 1889, the independence and neutrality of the
islands were secured and full liberty given to the inhabitants to elect their own
king. While the "Adler" was anchored on the roadside at Apia, Samoa, on
March 16, 1889, the great tidal wave accompanied by a tornado, lifted the
assembled fleets of Germany, England and the United States, and carried
them from their anchorage, and the receding waters left the ships that did not
sink, many miles inland, dismantled by the storm, and the crews decimated
by the fury of the waves. The United States lost the Trenton and the Vandalia
which were sunk, and the Nispic cast ashore, and their crew, fifty-two
officers and men perished. Germany lost the Adler and the Eber and also
the Olga went ashore. Upon reaching home, a cordial reception was
accorded the survivors of the Samoa disaster by Prince Henry and the
Princess, high officials of the city, officers of the army and navy and citizens
generally of Bremerhaven and Kiel taking part.
once assigned to the 1st Matrosen Division located at the harbor of Kiel. After
the required training he was ordered to his Majesty's ship Adler
which was laying in Sydney, Australia, on detached duty, and was ordered
thence to Samoa, as an uprising had broken out against German property
owners. The Samoan Islands are probably identical with the Baumann's
Islands discovered by the Dutch Navigator Roggoveen in 1722. In 1768
Bougainville gave to the group the name Navigator's Islands. Christianity was
introduced in 1830 by John Williams, the missionary. Meantime the United
States, Great Britain and Germany had each acquired large commercial
interests in Samoa and the representatives of each of these nations took
different views of the troubles, and in 1888 interests hostile to Germany
brought about the capture of Malietoa, the installing of King Tamasese and
the uprising of Malietoa's first chief Mataafa, brought on Civil War. Mataafa
made himself master of Apia, and on December 18, 1888, an encounter took
place between the powers, but this was averted by a conference called to
adjust the difficulties.
On September 12, 1889, occurred the first big fight between the conducting
governments. The "Adler" lay within gun-shot of the lines of battle, and the
crew sought shelter behind the bulwarks of the ship as we were not to take
our part in the fight. The bullets were flattened on the heavy exposed bulwark
and fell in the water. Seaman William Peters of the crew of the "Adler," was
wounded while standing at the steerage stairway, his left cheek bone being
shattered by a bullet from a snyder rifle. Captain Lisset, of a small United
States gunboat, was instantly killed by a stray bullet. The battle lasted from
12 :30 P. M. to 7 o'clock the next morning, when Tamasese fled from Matuald
with part of his armies and took refuge on a cliff where they were pelted with
bullets from the force of Mataafa. Before the contending armies ceased firing,
the horses on each side were besides the innocent women and children that
came in the way of the musket fire which had discharged probably 30,000
cartridges. The cause of the battle at a festival of the natives who came of the
chiefs suggested giving King Tamasese the name of dethroned King Malietoa,
but met strong opposition and a quarrel ensued which grew into persistent
violence. The emnity ensuing was made worse by the formation shown by
Captain Bradeis who had been assigned as advisor to Tamasese. Through his
advice the rebels were driven out of the woods, and the chiefs, when ready
had quite a good following, fled to Mononi, a small island three hours from
Apia and near Upolu, lying directly across from Mulifanna. Here they gathered
and hid away.
At the request of Herr Becker, the German Consul at Apia, the "Adler" took
120 of the Tamasese warriors in their war regalia on board and with their
canoes steamed to Mononi, and with ten long range guns bombarded the
village and sent the Kenakerg in their canoes to trim the town of Monson.
After the "Adler" steamed back to Apia, Mataafa went to the German Consul
asking recognition for the new king, stating that the natives were not satisfied
with the contract of Tamasese or with the taxes exacted by Captain Bradeis
his advisor. To this request the German and English Consuls said that they
could hold no conference with a rebel king. The United States Consul or
commerical agent Clark addressed the new king as "--------------" and praised his
conduct, urging him to prevent and if possible to defeat King Tamasese, and
then the English and German Consuls would recognize the new king. This
advice resulted in the battle of Mataafa and at the time the "Adler" was the only
German warship at Samoa as H. M. A. had in August been ordered to the
Marshall Islands to punish the natives there for the murder of a German
planter. The watch which the "Adler" had placed at Malinun, a German
possession occupied 3,000 Tamasese warriors, was for the protection of their
warriors, and had they been attacked the "Adler" crew would have been
defended by the German warship which lay in the small harbor with open ports
and guns with their men at each, the ship being cleared for action. The
Germans were in full accord with Tamasese and his warriors, and when
Mataafa wrote to the commander of the "Adler" demanding that the Tamasese
flag at Miliniem Port be taken down, the German commander suggested that
he should come himself and take it down. Notwithstanding that both their
armies and the English consuls had advised him to do so Mataafa let it remain.
Early on a Sunday morning there appeared several of Mataafa's warriors near
the point and Matesese at once sent out his warriors to attack the invaders.
The attacking party came to a hut in front of where the American flag was
flying and by some accident the flag staff was thrown down and the occupants
of the hut complained to the American consul who wrote to the commander of
the "Adler" that if he wanted to protect Tamesese he ought to be responsible
for his acts and that he must punish him for insulting the American flag.
Tamesese subsequently removed his 300 warriors to Atua and the German
commander withdrew his watch and placed a consul watch of 20 men and one
officer to the port building of the German consul and Mataafel leaving a few on
Matinau Point.
By the act of Berlin, June 14, 1889, the independence and neutrality of the
islands were secured and full liberty given to the inhabitants to elect their own
king. While the "Adler" was anchored on the roadside at Apia, Samoa, on
March 16, 1889, the great tidal wave accompanied by a tornado, lifted the
assembled fleets of Germany, England and the United States, and carried
them from their anchorage, and the receding waters left the ships that did not
sink, many miles inland, dismantled by the storm, and the crews decimated
by the fury of the waves. The United States lost the Trenton and the Vandalia
which were sunk, and the Nispic cast ashore, and their crew, fifty-two
officers and men perished. Germany lost the Adler and the Eber and also
the Olga went ashore. Upon reaching home, a cordial reception was
accorded the survivors of the Samoa disaster by Prince Henry and the
Princess, high officials of the city, officers of the army and navy and citizens
generally of Bremerhaven and Kiel taking part.