The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-09-27
THREE ARE LOST.
disasters TO Ships in the
Arctic.
NIPPED BY AN ICE FLOE
The WhaIer Reindeer Abandoned
Near Return Reef.
TWO sCHOONERs ARE STRANDED
They Are the Silver Wave and Eme-
lie Schroeder of This City.
The Whale Catch.
TWO SCHOoNERS ARE STRANDED

Disaster has again overtaken the whaling
feet of James McKenna The whaling
bark Reindeer and schooner Silver Wave
have been wrecked in the Arctic and ara
a total loss. Both vessels were owned by
Mckenna.
The schooner EHilie Schroeder, owned
In this city and dispatched from here. is
also ashore in the ice at Point Hope,
Alaska. several hundred miles from where
the Reindeer was stranded. the Silver
Wave was beached only mile or so from
the Schroeder.
The steam whaler Jeanne arrived yester-
day morning, twentY-six days from
Herschel Island. and eleven days from
Ounalaska. She br Fought the news of the
disasters and also The report of the catch
of wales by the fleet up to the time of her
sailing.
The Reindeer was struck by heavy ice
foe on August /, crushed against the
rocks and totally destroyed. She was close
to Return Reef al the time of the accident.
which is half way between Point Barrow
and Herschel Island.
The great mass of ice that caused the
vessels destruction foated down upon her
so suddenly that almost before her crew
could man the boats to leave her she was
"nipped." VITA a cTunching of timbers
and carrying away Of rigging she was
partly lifted IN a cradle of ice, then crushed
like an eggshel.
The Jeanne and a number Of other Ves-
sells of The feet were not far distant at the
time OF the disaster. The bark Northern
Light was lying pretty close in and she got
her boats TO the rescue, as did the other
whalers. CAPTAIN Cogan of the Reindeer
and all of his crew were thus saved. but
not until they had climbed over ice hum
mocks and trayersed several miles Of foe,
dragging what property they had managed
TO save from their ship.
A distribution of The surVivi ug sailors
and hunters was made among the ships of
the whaling fleet. Captain Cogan re-
NAMED on the Northern Light and will
return to.San Francisco with her.
When the Jeanie left the north she
passed the wreck Of the Reindeer. which
had been released from the ice aud had
become a dangerous derelict. She was
wateTlogged and mastleSs. drifting aim
lessIy about in the Arctic Ocean.
Not many details have been received of
the loss of the Silver Wave. She is
stranded near Point Hope and her crew,
none of whom were lost, are working hard
to save her. Their e1foIt, L prove of no
avail. She, too, was owned by McKenna
and is a 2S-ton schooner built in Bandon.
Or. some years ago.
The wrecks of the Reindeer and Silver
Wave make six ships in all lost by Nc
keDDa, who has had most unfortun ate
experience in his whaling ventures. The
four vessels previously reported are the
Hunter, Sea Breeze, John Z. West and
James Allen. The Allen was wrecked on
May II last, 200 miles west of Alaska on
Atka Island. The Sea Breeze left San
Francisco December 10, 1893. and on Janu-
airy II, 1894, was burned TO The waters
edge al Madre Island, in the Gulf OF Cali
fornia. The John p. West was nipDed in
tie ice some time ago, and the Hunter was
jammed in the ice at 10" Pass in May
last. Her crew escaped, were picked up
by the revenue cutter Bear and landed / q
Alaska.
4 very short distance from where the
Silver Wave was blown up on the beach
at Point Hope. the Emile Schroedar's ere "
are laboIinG to get their vessel off. They
Will not succeed. the Jeanie's men say,
and her seamen will have to abandon her.
She is a vessel well remembered in San
Francisco, a schooner of eighty-four tons
register, built in this city In 1870. Her
managing owner is Peter Boyne.
Financial disaster seems t. be staring in
the face those whalers fortunate enough
not to be wrecked. from all accounts.
The seamen's whale catch is very light,
and as compared with last years 1t has
diminished at a most alarming rate. The
catch Of the fleet up to September L is as
. follows: Balena 4, Narwhal 2, Grampus
., Newport 5, Merm&il l, Mary d. Hume
2, Ksrluk 4, Orca 2, Rosario 2. jeanette L.
Last seasons catch up to the same date
is quoted for comparison. 1t will readily
be seen that The whale -chasers are not in
luck this year. The catch was: Balena
Sc, Narwhai 66, Grampus IL. Newport q,
" Mary D. Hume IA, jeanette IL and Kafluk
81. The catch Of '93. however, was an IN
precedented one.
Mr.. McKepna valued the Reindeer at
sos. 600. He bought her two years ago
from Frederick Swift of New Bedford.
She was built at that place in 1877. Her
tonnage was 357 gross.
The loss on the Silver Wave and Schroe-
der will reach $4,000.
There was very little insurance compar-
atively on the Reindeer.