New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-07-18
SECRETS or The SEA.

On the Goth Of last January the good clipper ship
Farragut Captain IIardwicle, sliled from Calcutta
homeward bound. From that time nothing has
been heard of her. for the report that her wreck had
been seen some twelve hundred miles from Cilcutth
does not appear TO have any solid foundation She
PASSED away into the ocean like so many stanch
vessels before her, and the probability is that her
fate will never be known. Already she has been
struck of the maritime list. which means that she
is defnitively given up lost The records of ma
rinc disaster contain many more cases of this kind
than landsmcn would be apt to suppose. ship
leaves port apparently in good condition, her cargo
well slowed, her spars sound, and generally well
found. After that nothing is heard of her, and
conjecture is vain. sudden squall may have taken
her aback and sent her TO the bottom stern foremost
or she may have foundered in a gale after all hcr
boats had been destroyed her boats may have got
away and persisted one by the wide ocean
plains Sometimes, but rarely, there has been a
mutiny and massacre and the survivors may have
made their way to some tropical island there to live
as beach-combers" or turn savage with the saw
ages.
When fire occurs at sea on merchant vessel
unless the weather is very bad at the time the crew
generally succeed in getting away. mutiny may
be followed by the burning of the ship as means
of destroying eliminating evidence. In the China
becalmed in the neghborhood of some Of the
islands scattered in groups there might incur the
danger OF attach by the wiclled-looCng iunks that
are usually concealed in the passages between the
islets In such case if there were firearms on
board it might 60 hard with the ships company,
but good supply of shot-guns rifles in the hands
of white men is usually a guarantee against Chinese
pirates Still, many vessels have met their fate III
that unlucly region, and nothing has remained to
tell the story. Typhoons, too are doubtless respon-
sible for not few mysterious disappearance OF
vessels and once in a while probably a waterspout
bursts over ship and sinks her suddenly with all
hands In the Indian Ocean furious squalls often
come up at night with a swiftncss very mcnaclnS
to any heavy-Sparred clipper slipping along with
studdingsals set allow and aloft, and here again Is
a possible cause of destruction, and one which
might overtake the most cautious skipper if his OIL
GERS were less sedulous in consulting the glass.
Occasionally the mysteries are presented IN
| the most bewildering way. Such case was
that of q vessel which, several years ago, was
found drifting with all sail set and not soul
on board. All her boats were on the davits,
| the materials for meal were in the galley cop
pers. the chronometers, compasses, charts and in
struments were in the cabin, but no ships papers
The name on the stern was painted out; nothing
|
these precautions had been taken deliberately,
while the final evacuation seemed to have been
| effected with suddenneSs suggesting mortal
panic The mems things were all in the top
gallant forecastle; the captains and officers ef-
fccts were all in their respective cabins under
| the poop The whole appearance of the vessel
indicated that her people had left her on the spur
| of the moment. driven by some overmasterlng
| impulse or fear. She had encountered no bad
| weather since the descrton. Her yards were
braced up as for a trade wind and there was no
disorder on her decks or down below. No line OF
writing was found to give a clew to this dark
secret of the sea- and to this day it has remained
an insolube puzzle to every seaman acquainted
with the facts. Sad and mysterious as are dis
appearances such that of the Farragut, it must
be admitted that there is something even more
| perplexng in the discovery of derehcts aban-
doned so incomprehensibly as was the vessel here
referred TO- 1t should be added that she was
not leaking nor were her spars sprung or strained
and no reason could be perceived in anything
about her for the disappearance of her crew and
| offiperS