The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1881-04-27
Alleged Abandonment of Crew in Mid
Ocean

Ocean.
sailor named John Lawson, who arrived
at New York last Wednesday on the ship
Ophelia from Yokohama and who went to
Japan as seaman on board the ship Charles
Dennis of Bath, Capt. Carney, charges Capt.
Carney with abandoning boats crew in mid
ocean and leaving them to perish. According
to Lawson when the Chas. Dennis was in the
Southern Indian ocean between Cape of Good
Hope and Australia. John Thomas, sea-
man, was swept overheard by wave. A life
buoy was thrown him by the mate, but further
than this no effort was made to save him until
an hour and half had elapsed, though the
captain came on deck Immediately after the
occurrence Then the captain apparently
feeling that he had not acted right in the
first place, ordered boat to be lowered and
manned and sent in search of Thomas. The
men were very 10th to go because they deemed
the search useless and because the sea was run
ming very high rendering the undertaking ex-
tremely hazardous. They obeyed however,
and five men including the second mate
manned the boat and pulled off, After the
boat left the captain put the helm up and
stood to the southwark and then hove to. The
ship remained so for two hours when the cap
tain suddenly came on deck and called all
hands aft and proceeded to address them He
said the ship was 1000 miles from any land,
aud argued that it would be of no use to wait
longer for the boats crew who very likely had
persisted. and advocated proceeding without
any further delay. Some of the men favored
the captains view and those who did not
were afraid to protest. The captain then gave
the order to square away the yards and the
ship was soon got underway and in due time
reached Yokohama. After reloading he made
ready to sail for Iloilo in the Philippine Is
| lands. AS the vessel was about to start the
| captain approached six of the crew including
| Lawson and threatened if any of them re-
turned with the vessel to lash them up to the
ships side. They dared not go and found
themselves adrift in Yokohama without any
money.
The Charles Dennis was next heard from at
| Iloilo, where she took on board valuable car
| go of sugar for New York. She was next
| sighted by the Ophelia in the straits of Macas-
| sar, in the China sea, on Nov. 81, $780, and
again by the Opelia in the Alias straits, the
entrance to the China sea eastern route, on
Dec 2, on the way to New York This is the
| last record of the ship. No one has seen OF
heard anything about this vessel, which IS
| now month behind her accustomed time.
| The surprise among shipping people at her de-
lay is very great as she is very fast vessel and
| could outsal any craft that sails this route 1t
forty days ahead of the Ophelia, and no expla-
| nation of the delay can be surmised by her
agent, James W. Elwell of 81 South street,
| New York, or the owners of the cargo, Messrs.
| Willet & Hamlin, in Wall street. Captain
Efford of the Ophelia says that the actions of
Captain Carney were the whole talk of Yoko-
hama when he got there. Sea captains met
and protested against his cruel treatment, es-
pecially at the way he deserted some of the
men and left them behind him without cent.