Saturday press. [volume] (Honolulu, H.I.) 1880-1885, 1881-09-10
Wreck Of the vigilant.

"ieOA vi eho VISiidnJ,
THE STORY TOLD ny THE EsoUIMos TO CAPITALS
HOOPER OF THE COMMUNICATING OF A
PASSENGER OF THE STEAMER ST. PAUL.
The Alaska Commercial Companv's
steamer 81. Paul arrived from the north nj
o'clock this morning, and the following
account of the narrative of the finding OF
the wreck of the lost whaling bark Tjgi.
ant by the Esquimos is furnished by pas.
senger
On the goth of May last Captain Hooper,
of the United States Revenue steamer
Thomas Corcin, while near Plover Bay,
on the Asiatic Coast, fell in with the whal.
ing bark RaiHbo,o, and was informed that
n wreck had been seen and boarded by ma.
tives last November westward from Cape
Serdze, near the coast. Captain Hooper n {
once sent out sledge party, under Lieu
tenant Herring, to investigate. It landed
on Kolutchin Island June I'd, and made its
way over tho ice westward to the mouth of
Waukerom River, about 100 miles from
Cape Serdze, where it fell in with party
of natives in whose possession were found
articles taken from the wreck. The Cor.
rims party also saw and talked with ma.
tives who had boarded the wreck. They
exhibited two piles of articles which they
had taken from her. They consisted prin.
cipally of carpenters tools, etc. The fol.
lowing articles were recovered and have
been brought to San Francisco, to be for.
warded to the United States Treasury De-
partment:
One whaling iron, marked 3. K. (poss.
bly, initials of the owners of tho TlgilanO,
with FIVE dots (supposed to mean boat No.
81; one pair of silyer.bowed spectacles and
case; one pair of massive glasses, and one
knife marked V. on the handle.
Tho natives said the wrecked vessel car.
ried pair of reindeer horns on the end of
her jibboom. The Tgilant is known to
have carried such an ornament, and is said
to be the only one in the whaling fleet hav.
ing such, which leads to the conclusion that
tho wreck was that vessel. Her cabin was
full Of water, masts gone; and four dead
bodies were found in heroine of them in
. BERTH, tbs others On the floor. The na-
tives said the dead men looked as if they
had been dead many moons; that the skin
on their faces was withered and drawn tight.
From this description it was surmised that
the vessel was wrecked as far back as the
winter of 1879-80, the first winter out.
The wreck subsequently drifted out to sea
and was lost sight of. The sledge party
being unable to 60 further westward on
account of the melting Of the snow, pro-
cecded to Cape Serdze, and were picked up
by the COr7oin on June Goth. They trav-
eled in all $50 or l4O miles. The cutter
had her rudder carried away by the ice on
June LIST, but repaired it in st. Lawrence
Bay with materials obtained from the wreck
of an old whisky smuggler ashore there.
Later she made q second landing on this
island, and sent parties ashore to visit the
scene of the destructive famine of 1879
in the Indian villages. Few changes were
discovered, dead bodies still lying about in
numbers. The surviving natives appeared
to be in no want. They were abundantly
supplied with arms and ammunition, and
also with goods plundered from the wreck
of the Lolita. The latest intelligence of
the cutters movements is up to July 9th,
when she sailed from Norton Sound for
Golovin Bay. Thence she was to proceed
northward to Kotzebue Sound and Point
Barrow, to look after revenue matters.
Then westward to Wrangel Land, before
the ice closed in, to search for the Jennnette.
The mildness of the previous winter, and
the lightnoss of the ice encountered by the
Co,wm, gave Captain Hooper strong hopes
of being able to reach and explore that land.
Whalers who were interviewed considered
the prospect favorable.
Fears are entertained that some whaler
has been lost, as curly in July large guam.
tity of whale oil was reported seen by the
native otter hunters on the sea about Sanak
Island Four casks of whale oil drifted
ashore there about the same time. These
signs gave rise to the apprehension that
some returning whaler was wrecked in the
fog on the outlying reefs or rocks about
that island. The fact that the packages of
oil found were unbroken is thought to indi.
cate that possibly one entire side of the un.
fortunate vessel was broken in letting the
cargo out. No further details of the sup
posed wreck had reached Oonalaska up to
August 4th, when the 81. Paul left. At
the Seal Islands, the sealing season closed
successfully on July 30th.