The Yellowstone journal. [volume] (Miles City, Mont.) 1893-1901, 1893-01-18

"a u. -.Is>..si.
FIRST Mate Thorndike. Of the Brit
,sh ship Masllona, had IA little talk
with a reporter yesterday. and i'll the
course of the conversation inciden-
tally referred to the fact that he was
on the Mcrionethshire when that
vessel made the quickest passage on
record to San Francisco from the
United Kingdom. The trip was made
four years ago, and the time was
ninety-six days.
And now" said Mate Thorndike,
Il am going to ask you a question.
How many schOOlmarms in Califor-
MA know for a fact that there are
two ways of coming to san Francisco
from Nav York or Europe by way
of South America without rounding
the Horni Ask them. | would al
most wager everything l possess ON
the proposition that without prepare
ton they would tell You that the
only way 10 avoid the Horn is by 60
ing through the Straits of Magellan.
Now | am not teaching geogra-
ply. but every sailor knows of the
Straits Of LIE Marie. but how many
presumably well informed people in
San Francisco, or in London for that
matter. know that there is another
short cut through the South Ameri-
a continent!
The Merionethshire did not come
through the Straits of lie Marie when
she made her uinetysiX days pas
sage. but sailing ships have passed
through those straits. and if ali the
conditions were favorable the trip
might be thus shortened nearly seven
days. 80 that theoretically a modern
sailing ship might reach this port in
eighty days n ever less. But sal
ing ships very rarely indeed come
through these straits. Time is not
so much an object as it was in the
days of the fifties. and in addition
the vessel that undertook it would
forfeit her insurance. No insured
sailing vessel eve comes through the
Straits of lie Marie. ! have sailed
through those straits once, and would
not rare to do it again.
The Straits of Magellan and the
Straits of lie Marie represent two al
ternativ9s as against rounding the
Horn. Neither of them is at any
time beset or blocked by ice. The
ice foes travel from west to east
around the Horn, many degrees to
the south of the Straits of LIE Marie.
which lie between the southern end
of Terra del Fuego and Staten island.
By going through the Straits of lie
Marie a ship can save 1000 miles.
but you will readily understand that.
as the northern summer is the ant,
arctic winter. no vessel would ever
attempt the passage in June, July or
August.
The Magellan passage is only pos
sible for steamboats, anyhow. The
reason is that a sailing vessel must
find an anchorage on the way
through. ard there are five of these
anchorage. But none of these can
be made. he 'H5!se the current is very
strong. ~eSpeslly at full moon. and
because there is no wind. On the
average the Mag n straits arc not
more than four lniles wide in the
thirty miles Of their length. and
often the width is only N mile.
The Straits Of lie Mare are FIVE
degrees farther soutl.. They are
about thirty TALES through and as
many miles across, but the trouble l.
that when You get to the Pacific side
there is a current dead against you.
and northwest gales setting ia dead
on a rockbound coast.
just take up a good map of the
south of South America and have Il
talk with an old seaman" said Mate
Thorndik6 as be babe the reporter
goodby. 1T is a part of the world
that is going to become interesting
very soon, and the events OF the las,
two years are going to lead ZIP to
others that may make a knowledge
Of the ~crosscuts of the southern N
tinent very interesting to statesmen
before very long."-S.a Francisco
Call.