The morning call., 1894-07-31

ance men, ship-owners and masters are
scratching their heads and looking over al
the shipping lists availa bic TO determine
he identity of the ghost ship" that has
aroused an interest something akin to that
excited by the marvellous exploits of the
phantom sea voyages of Clark RusselPs
imagination.
Is the stranger the long-lost Crown OF
Italy? No. it cannot be, for he Italy was
a ship-rigged craft, and besides she was
partly dismantled when she drifted on the
rocks.
None of the New York or San Francisco
bound fleet is known TO have been in the
vicinity of the alleged wreck at the time
the olympic first reported 1t. None of the
Brtish-Australian carriers are overdue.
The strangeSt part OF the story Is that a
dozen vessels have passed within a short
distance of the location described in the
Olympic's log, but none of them have seen
the "what-iS-t."
When the Olympic first made public the
circumstances of the tack in shore that
brought her within a mile of the wreck
seafaring men laughed at the story and
declared that the vessels skipper must
nave been dreaming. The skeptics took
another view of the matter when, five
weeks later, deep-water ship verified the
yarn spun by the Olympic's men.
All then did little guessing. but ended
by saying. with nod of thea head and a
wise look at the downeaster, There's
something funny about that yarn. | can't
find any record OF vessel that might fit
the derelict's description. l think the
story is hoax"
What have the croakers to say now that
for The third time the self-same bark,
with painted ports, tall spars and intact
hull, has been seen by ships company?
This much has been said already in an
swer: That the fact OF stranded bark
remaining uninjured in sucn position as
that ascribed TO her. and in a locality
where the storms seldom cease to howl
and the waters to roll high, is something
almost unheard of III the memories of The
old salts Of San Francisco at least
About the Tock-imprisoned ghost OF the
Horn the sailors OF the Olympic have
already tangled a mass OF superstition.
When one hears their side of the story it
does sound a trife like a chapter from
Kingsley or Russell, but the men have an
earnestneSs born of conviction in their
style of Oratory that wins converts to
their idea that the mysterious unknown"
is none other than wrath of the winds
and fogs that play queer tricks with the
shapes of the bluffs that rise out of the
southern seas
Can it be possible that by some hereto
fore undiscovered atmospheric delusiOn
rock is made ship-shape and to misinform
Can il be that when vessel heads In
certain direction from the shore near LIE
Marie the fogs weave a wrecked craft
from their dense folds and cast 1t upon
the Patagonian shore? Perhaps it is, for
one of the Olympic's sailors thought he
saw a full-rgged vessel passing seaward
Just before the apparition near the cliff
loomed up through lifting mist.
The second officer of the Olympic Is con-
fident that his captain made no mistake
when he reported the derelict to the Ex-
change.
81 saw it myself" said he when asked
about the report, land we were so close
ton of the hull and the rigging.
The vessel was on an almost even
keel, her bow we'll up on the rocks and her
rigging apparently undamaged.
mo, / could not make out her name, for
the fog was closing down. and then you
must remember We were in a dangerous
position and had 10 get away as soon as
possible.
There were no sigDs Of life on board,
nor could we tell whether all the boats had
been lowered away. The craft was Just
Graded in the rocks. like model in a
ship-builder's Office.
1.-The sky grew a bit sullen as we hauled
away Oh another tack, and I'm sure the
gale that overlook us must have kicked up
an angry sea about the spot where the
wreck lay. l cannot understand how it
could have weathered the storm and re-
NAMED as unmoved as ever"
One of the Olympic's men said he saw
the stranded bark, but he whispered
something about it suddenly lifting its
spars out Of the water and startling the
crew.
I'VE were on an inshore tack" he said,
land | suppose must have been a good
three miles off land. looked carefully at
the coast, but did not see thing until the
steward said to me, Look at the wreck on
the starboard bow / looked and could
see nothing at first. but in few moments
yard appeared, then mast. then the
hull.
II could see that it was bark and that
she had painted rorts. Then the tog
wrapped around her and l couldn't see
her any more.
Just before the cook spoke to me
foremast hand told me he thought he saw
a vessel coming toward US under full sail
like an American packet He told me it