Middletown transcript., 1872-03-23
n rlsgids Wrsaksrs.

lives Of Cosasstieut. Ths toWs x uys-
tie seeas 70 sspply . lssgs psopostioa.
The 1absmss have supplisd sens oe the
vrssksrs of this coast. They srs called
eouks. .ssd ere sot - sslisbls. sutsrpsisisg
o. iatslligsst. The Florida wrsetss.
spsakise o. The vessel pssd, y mpeh Ike
the seboonsr Of The northsrn 0sbssmen.
Probably no vessel Goats that equals these
10 safety and spced. The pilot boats srs
like then, bat usually larger. A captain
and six men constitute the uspal grow. 10
most instances two vessels work 10 compa-
ny. Az Il oilsn hsppeus that several YES
sells are owned By one eompany they take
stations 20 n 70 coycr tho wrccking ground
to good sdvsntsgc. From Cape Florida
to Key West u about ono hundred and al.
y miles; on this ground. which il fatal
one for shipping. the wrceking vessels are
stationed within sight Of each other. aud
signals passed on the discovery Of wreck
From Cape Florida northward the coast is
open the the ocean and no shelter 10 sf.
fordcd the wrecking craft. For this req.
son the wrecked vessels arc often not Wis.
tied for several days after they 60 ashore
There il such . harvest Of wrecks in fact.
after . storm on this coast that the wreck.
ers are obliged to coninc their duties to
the ground they have been wstching.
Indian Key. about midway between
Florida and Key West. is the recognized
rendezvous Of the wreckers. In former
days. when there were great numbers Of
ships laden with cotton passing out from
tho Gulf to our own ports and those Of the
Old World. wrecks were, Of course. more
common. A vast amount Of wealth was
carried BY even one ship. and IL the vcs-
sci became hopclessly stranded rich har.
vest was enjoyed by the wrcckcrs. This
harvest, let Us show plainly, is a purely
Legitimate matter Of business. The wreck
crs dt out and man their vessels, or thcy
are fitted by companies, and are legally
allowed the license to pursue the calling
As We have shown. they station their
crafts on certain ground. and thereby nc,
as watchful sentinels. Should life be in
danger when wreck is discovered. aud
should the vessel happen to go ashore in n
heavy storm. il is fortunate for the sailor
traveller these vigilunt. fearless watchers
are a. hand. When life is saved. then a
goodly number Of stout men are ready to
bargain for the restoration of the ship aud
cargo. This may be done by private ar
rangement. or by the action Of tho United
States Marine Court at Key West. The
owners Of the vessel are obliged to pay
certain amounts to each member of the
wrecking-vcsscl Ms salvage. The vessel
has its share. the captain or chief wrecker
his. and the crew their portion. To fully
appreciate the services of these men wc
need only imagine them removed from,
these places. What loss Of life would
there bc in timc Of hurricane. What suf-
fering from hunger and ,hirs. upon unin-
habited wastes. where almost insurmoant-
able barriers prevent an escape inland.
These wrcckcrs Of Florida, far from BE-.
ing laudsharks and pirates. rs many have
imagined them. arc known a. . class. to
be huma9c. kindly aud honest. l have
known some of them personally. and hav.
ing regarded them oply As noble and up
right men.