The Portland daily press., 1883-03-01
DEATH OF AN AGED sR1PMAsTER
The Last of the Dartmoor Prisoners Of
Portland

To the Editor ef the Press:
Your paper of to-day brings the announce
ment of the death at Lisbon on the 26th inst
of Capt. James B. Moore, aged 81 years.
l thi be was the last but one of the Port
land master mariners, who were born in the
last century.
Capt. Moore was born at Vassalborough
July 1st, 1891. His first voyage at sea was
made in 1905, in the ship Frederick" of Port
land, of 230 TONS She took a cargo of 'ton
timber" to Liverpool. His second voyage was
in the same trade, in the ship Franklin-both
ships were owned by John Taber. In 1914 he
was second officer and sailing-master of the
private armed ship Invincible of New York
She had been British prize to the privateer
Teazer, which brought her into Portland. She
was sold to French merchant of New York
who fitted her out. and she sailed from Port
land iu September. She was of 450 tons. She
was built in France to cruise in the English
channel in the winter, and was there captured
by British man-of-war. Her armament was
fourteen eighteen-pound carronades and four
long nine-2ounders. After sailing from Port
land as privateer, the Invincible was within
a month (Aug. 1Sl4) taken and carried into
Halifax. Her crew were imprisoned six
weeks on Melville Island. when they were
taken in the frigate "Akbar" to Plymouth,
England. OF the 260 prisoners in the frigate,
ten died on the passage. Those remaining
were marched eighteen miles through the
sleet, to the infamous Dartmoor prison, situated
in an unhealthy region in Devonshire. With
in six weeks every fifth man was dead. This
prison was mile in circumference composed
of seven separate buildings, three stories high,
and in April, 1916, contained 5000 American
prisoners, of whom 1000 died before being
released. Capt. Moore's account of their
treatment there was horrible, often producing
revolts. He was in the yard playing ball when
the prisoners were fred upon by the garrison
of 200 troops, under Capt. Shorthand. Five
were killed and SO wounded. The offence was
this The prisoners who had formerly had
their ball thrown back to them by the sentry,
dug hole under the gate to get it.
At the time of the massacre the treaty of
peace had been signed and it was three
months after the signing, before the prisoners
were permitted to know the fact Passports
were given in April to those who had the
means TO get home, of whom Capt. Moore was
one. He had been in prison six months.
Capt. Moore's first voyage as master was in
The big Edwin of Portland in 1918. He con-
tinned in the command of several different
vessels for two years, when ne left the sea and
formed partnership with his brother-in-law,
Moses 1. Plummer. Many will remember the
grocery and shoe store on the north corner of
Fore and Market streets, kept by Plummer
and Moore, where they continued twenty-four
years. The firm was dissolved in 1914
In the great fire of 1866 Capt Moore was
severe sufferer. Until within two or three
years, he has gone regularly 80 his sons store
on Fore street every morning. His appearance
drew attention, from the circumstance that he
wore his long white hair queued up in black
ribbon, after the ancient mode, and was the
last in the city to adhere to that fashion. For
the last few years he has lived with his son in
Lisbon, where he died.
Windham, Feb. 9th. W.