Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-08-26

-S as the left over bal
ance of trust fund.
>~ Unhappily, those to
-@@- whom 1t Is owing
are mostly dead and
will never ask for
their shares. Their
bones have been scattered by shipwrecks
all over the world. Though the names of
all Of them are written in the govern
ment's books, with the amount in dollars
and cents due to each. 1t is only occasion
ally nowadays that applications are made
Tor awards OF cash from this deposit OF
treasure. Eventually nearly all of II will
be turned over by Congress to some other
purpose for lack Of claimants.
This money represents a part Of the great
vessels during the rebellion. Nearly all of
these craft were bic ckade runners and of
the latter nine-tenths were owned in Great
Britain. Some of the finest steamers ever
built were used by Englishmen for run
ming the Union block ade during the war;
British naval officers got leaves Of absence.
runners. Blockade running Is a very pecu-
liar business There is no penalty for 1t
under International law. except the con-
people on board of her are treated in all
other respects as II they were transacting
a legitimate mercantile business. At the
peace.
Admiral JOuett's Story.
Admiral Jouett tells an odd story Of a
blockade runner. He was in command Of
the Metacomet at the time. The blockade
runner referred to was a slippery vessel.
She was so swift that every attempt to
catch her had failed. Farragut declared
that she must be taken at all hazards and
delegated the job to Jouett. Jim" he said,
count on you to fetch me that bird,
whatever happens" So 1t came about that
the Metacomet lay In wait for the artful
QOdgor ha
reason to believe that she would come that
way before long. Meanwhile the COM
transform his craft in such a manner that
her own builder would not have recognized
her.
The first thing he did was to paint a
broad streak all around her hull. Then lie
hoisted spars aloft and arranged them so
as to look like double top-sail yards. such
such devices the vessel was made to re-
semble a Mexican trader. She was an
chored near the shoals, as II trying to
catch fish. So she was, but it was a very
big one she was after. The guns were COW
cred with tarpaulins for q further disguise,
and 1t was ordered that no uniforms should
be worn on deck. The commander put on
his oldest suit of clothes. In short, nobody
would have surmised that a warship armed
to the teeth was concealed beneath such
an innocent exterior.
When the smoke Of a steamer was seen
at the expected point on the horizon, Jouett
was confident that the game WAS in sight.
He even went so far as to interview the
steward in relation to a bill of fare. say
ing that he meant to entertain the captain
evening. The latter craft slowly rose on
the horizon. When she came within a cou-
pie Of nautical miles the Metacomet hoist
ed the Mexican nag. The stranger re-
sponded by running up French colors. She
had no suspicion of the true character Of
the foe that was lying in wait With the
her establishment must have been great
when the Metacomet fired a gun across her
bows. In moment the ship Of war was
revealed in her true character, her .iecks
crowded with men and her armament I'M
yelled. Her commanders invitation 20 din
ner for that evening was not refused by
the captain Of the blockade runner.
Claims for Prize Money.
From 1852 to 1874 no less than Il, 200 claims
for prize money were recorded at the treas
ury. These did not by any means represent
the number Of shares in captured vessels
applied for, inasmuch as many applications
covered several captures in each case. The
most successful chasers Of blockade run
ners were not warships. but merchant
steamers bought and armed by the govern
ment for this purpose; Among these the
quaker City; the RHODE Island; the
were conspicuous. Several OF the
admirals In the late war won fortunes Of
and iSa upward By such lucky strikes
resident Of Washington. who on two sue
cessivs days took two Of the most valuable
prizes captured curing the reDelnOn. They
were worth $4,000 his share of the pro-
ceeds being $751; Another rich capture
was the Stephen Hart, which was scOoped
in by a small sailing vessel In that in
stance each blue jacket concerned got 81 eco
But the most profitable prize of ali was the
Greyhound, which fetched $242. OO0 OF this
the ship which made the captures fairly
think.
According to law, when a United States
vessel lln
its own, the officers and crew of the captor
get one-half of the net proceeds obtained
half goes into the navy pension fund which
Will be spoken of later. When the vessel
taken is of force equal to or greater than
that Of the captor. the latter receives the
whole of the proceeds. An instance Of this
sort was that of the Northern Light
transport belonging to old Cornelius Van
derbilt which on a certain occasion was
bringing soldiers up the Atlantic coast. On
board of her was one officer Of the United
states navy: AS they passed sea,por5,
said that she was blockade runner, and
suggested that an attempt should be made
to frighten her. In pursuance Of this idea,
the Northern Light fired her solitary gun
gave chase. and hosted Union colors The
blockade runner. mistaking the comedy for
serious business, surrendered Cornelius
Vanderbilt got a share of the prize money
When vessel is captured. a prize master
and crew are put aboard Of her; her papers
are put under seal. and she is sent to the
nearest port in the country of the captor
International law does not permit a prize to
be taken into neutral port. To begin with,
the craft is libeed by an Information filed
against her. An admiralty court considers
her case and her owners have a right to be
heard. If their defence Is not good she Is
condemned and ordered to be sold The
court determines whether one-half or the
whole Of the proceeds shall go to the cap
tors. and also what ships are entitled to
shares. All vessels which assist to any ex-
tent in making the capture have a right to
an equal share with the ship which actually
takes the prize, even though they may have
been merely lying at anchor in such a posi-
ton as to prevent escape. Thus half
dozen vessels may divide a single prize. An
odd incident of the rebellion was the capture
and recapture of the Emile st. Pierre, be-
longing to the firm Of Trenholm & Co. Of
Charleston. She was taken by a United