The New York herald., 1878-11-18
WILLIAM BUDER'S WONDERFUL ESCAPE.
An Exhaustive Examination by Sec
retary Thompson.
ONCE MORE ON THE ROLLS OF THE NAVY.
Pay and Bounty Of the Rescued Man
Paid to an Impostor
[By TELEGRAPH TO THE HERALD

WASHINGTON. nov II, 1910.
The resurrection of William Buder, the Norwegian
seaman who supposed to have been lost ON the
United States corvette Huron year ago is still
theme of wondering talk among the officers and sail
ors at the Navy ard here The incident is without
parallel in our naval history, and the circumstances
are so extraordinary that his story is yet received
with doubt in some quarters. private investigation
however, which was made last evening on sudden i'm
pulse after business hours the Secretary of the Navy
and Commodore Shufeldt chief of the Bureau of
Equipment and Recruiting. settles beyond contro
versy that he is the identical William Buder who en-
listed at the Philadelphia Navy Yard in August. 1877
and was ordered to the Huron while she at the
Brooklyn Navy Yard in November. 1877.
OFFICIAL ACTION TAKEN
1t appears that as soon as the circumstances mar
rated by Buder yesterday to the commanding officer
Of the receiving ship Passaic at the Navy Yard here
were communicated to the commandant of the yard.
the latter addressed letter to the Secretary Of the
Navy, setting forth the details of the mans
story Secretary Thompson receipt of the letter,
sent for Commodore Shufeldt. in whose bureau the
rolls of seamen and their descriptive lists kept,
and asked him to accompany him to the Washington
Navy Yard and overhaul this suspicious individual.
whom the records of the Navy Department positively
showed was not only lost the Huron. but was.
far as the inscription tombstone testified buried
dore had the files Of his Office searched copy
of the descriptive list Of William Buder made out as
well the descriptive list Of Jesse Roll the ordinary
seaman who shared with Buder the spar on which
both sought to their lives and which fortu-
nately supported Budcr for twenty -four hours With
these documents the officials prepared to deter
mine whether the man who reported was actually
William Buder not
BUDERs MONEY PAID OUT.
1t may be said here that there was unusual care
taken to ascertain the truth Of the mans statement
for the that the chief clerk Of the Navy De
partment reported to the Secretary when he heard Of
Buders return, that man claiming to be the father
Of this had applied to the department for the
back pay. the bounty appropriated by Congress and
the proportion Of the survivors, fund allotted him,
and" had been paid the entire amount. nearly 800.
Now, il the department had been imposed upon as
appeared the from Buder's story, might not
this man. by personating the reported lost seaman,
also lay claim to the money already paid to fraudu
lent claimant Z
THE sEcRETARYs Suspicious.
Secretary Thompson thought over the particulars
of the stealing OF the remains Of A. T. Stewart the
object which the perpetrators Of the deed undoubtedly
had in robbing the tomb, and asked himself the
great government Of the United States to be victim
lied by the ingenuity of crafty sailor educated per-
conviction that he. too, could trade upon dead mans
name and occupation II this man, who said he was
William Buder. not the seaman who shipped
on the Huron. he would claim the sum already
disburscd to the putative father Pondering this
problem. the Secretary proceeded directly to the
receiving ship Passaic. which is anchored at the
lower end Of the Navy Yard and squared himself for
first class effort in examining the sailor Buder.
The afternoon being pleasant. the Secretary
cludcd he would proceed with the investigation on
the deck. but before summoning Buder before him
he got him to give, nearly possible. descrip-
ton of the seaman Roll, who Buder said had drfted
out to the same spar with him. Comparison
with the copy in Commodore Shufeldt's possession
satisfied both the Secretary and the Commodore that
Buder not an mpostor
EXAMINATION
BY this time the officers Of the yard and Of the
receiving ship had congrega.ed the deck and
formed Gordon about the Navy Department officials
A number of blue jackets--od salts in ordinary
were assembled about the sides OF the vessel and,
with hard aport, were taking in the words of
their illnsti Gus chief. in whom they were not slow
to discover that it true of his predecessor he
was u great constitutional lawyer among sailors.
Buder after his introduction to the Secretary told
his story substantially narrated in the HERALD to-
day. The Secretary carefully examined him by his
descriptive list and found that he six feet high.
light hair. light blue eyes. bcardess. with fair
complexion. genuine Norwegian accent with enough
of the accent to indicate that he really wrestling
with the English language. and had mark on his
left arm This mark the description furnished at
first did not enumerate but it found subse-
auently on another list in the Bureau Of Equipment
and Recruiting.
PECULIAR EVIDENCE IDENTITY.
Secretary Thompson says that In the examination
he fact which settled in his own mind.
from that instant that the the genuine
Buder This that he could not give the slightest
account OF the circumstances of the Hurons
accident His story this point
as devoid Of information ~ was that
OF the seamen who saved
from the wreck. and among whom the champion
sailor who had more experience in shipwrecks than
any sailor In the navy. and who had been rescued
from watery grave iess than nine times.
..weil,' said the Secretary proceeding with the
animation. ''you are put down . stone mason. IL
that your businessr'
Budcr replied that he had no trade.
Have you any relatives in this country
"A sister" said Buder to whom he wrote after his
arrival In Norway, and who. he thought. living in
Washington His father had died when he was a mere
lad.
..Odd circumstance" thought the Secretary. IF
this sister had received the letter she would certainly
have informed the department Of his safe arrival
home. but then she may be dead or the letter may
never have reached its destination You cannot tell
about these things and looked the fellow straight
in the eye during the questioning. I could not dis
cover the least indication of preyarication In his
answers or confusion IN his looks. On the other
hand he impressed with his honesty and candid
manner. and. while whole year seemed long time
for missing man to report his existence in the land
Of the living, had to consider his sicky condition,
caused by his exposure and suffering in the water.
All this could apprecate very clearly. having had
near relative who was twelve hours In the water of