The morning call., 1895-01-07
Strange Course of the Ship Rock
Castle Among the Isles.
SAILOR PETERsON'S SAD DEATH
A Batch of Stories From the Steamer
China and Elsewhere-A
Quick Passage.

of the hulk of the British ship Rock Castle,
that was abandoned over year ago of
the island of Guguan. one of the Marianne
group. The Rock Castle loaded coaloil
at Philadelphia for zap, was dismasted
off Guguan and ner crew forced to take to
their boats.
Captain Mayson, a Hong-Kong trader,
sends word by the steamer China. that
arrived yesterday morning. that the ma
tives of suDdry isles of the South Seas,
from the Marianne collections to the south
| ernmost rocks of the Gilberts, have been
bartering coaloil taken from the Rock
Castles hold The derelict has. with the
greatest apparent solicitude for the South
Sea Islanders, visited Islands galore, then
drifted away for Tawara Reef, in the Gill
berls, where il has finally pied ND on the
coral and been turned into castle for the
u,e of the reigniDg chief.
The Rock Castle demonstrated hat
vessel can slide up current" as some
mariners express it, From Guguan she
drfted due south. All the currents in the
neighborhood of the Mariannes set to west
northwest, but this force If waters did not
defer the derelict's visit to the Carolnes a
few months later than the day that man
deserted her.
Natives put off to the drifting hulk and
soon discovered that valuable lot of oil
was stored below. A chief of one of the
isles of the group had his tribe board her
in canoes anu fetch several hundred cans
Of the Standard Oil Com pany's best ashore.
The remains of tie Rick Castle sported
around outside the reef lat exists some
dis ance north of the islands, for few
days, then suddenly took a notion TO leave
Tor the MarshaIls. II drifted through the
Car0lines in spite OF prevailing nortbeasl
winds and distributed coaoil at several of
the big trading stations of the Marshall
group. But Just about the time d chief
would commence to plan to empty the
queer ship. she wonld begin drifting to
leewar0 and make off for another island.
The OCEAN currents set to the east through
the Marshalls, but The bones OF the Rock
Castle seemed bewitched. Mermaids must
have had hold of her keel, for the wreck
skinned across the snowy tide and dur
ing westerly gale went high and dry
on Tawara.
Everywhere the white traders have
gone among the three groups mentioned
in the story, they have found the natives
literally bathing in oil. They could not
imagine where the islanders got so much
refuse petroleum until the strange tricks
of the Rock Castles derelict were made
known.
The notorious bark Hesper, made
famous by the fate of Mute Fitzgerald,
whc was murdered by Th0mas ST. Clair,
or ''Arcbfend Tom" as his shpma es
nuw call him, is in more trouble al Homo
lulu. precisely the same port where the
Hespei landed her mutineers three years
ago. Another mUtiny has occurred on the
murder BARK and tx men are in prison
at he Hawaiian capital. The names of
the men are John Jacobson, John GRAY.
T. Mitchell. A. Rocher. G. Jensen and +.
FredrIckson. Shortly before the Hesper
arrived at Honolulu her crew commenced
TO make complaint of their trea iment by
Captain Sodengren. When the anchor
was dropped 10 har5or the six men named
went ashore withonl leave and we're de-
clared 10 be mutlneers by the skipper. who
had them all arrested. The second NUT
inv on the Hesper is strange coinci-
dence.
Further particulars of the brutalities
p,acticed by the late Captain Best ana
mates Null6I duu ODISt VI tUS NuT WtRldD
bark Paul Isen berg on Seaman Charles
Peterson were received from Honolulu by
the China. Captain Best. 1t will DE re-
mem oered died al Hawaii from the effects
OF dose of laudanuD, taken with suicidal
intent. The story was published in full in
THE CALL a: the time the news was first
received here.
a seaman of the Isenberg testified that
Peterson was given a bucket of water and
told TO paint" the masts. He replied
that he could not paint with water. Then
Mate Spree laughed and sent the man to
the wheel. Captain Best claimed that the
sailor was not handling the wheel we'll
lie struck Peterson with a ropes end
Then he ordered the poor fellow hoisted
into the rigging.
While dashed in the rigging Peterson
begged piteously for water. but Spree said
that he could wait until it rained Peter
son said something that made the mate
angry and the latter, calling for help,
raised Peterson several feet above the
deck by means of running moose and
ackle. When the sailor was lowered
again he was dead.
The steamer China made a crack trip
from Hong-Kong to Yokohama and Hon
oulu. She was not expected until this
morning, but she astonished every one by
coming in at $3.50 A. NJ. yesterday. From
Honolulu the run was made in days IA
hours. The vessel brought 80 cabin, 8
Eurouean steerage and 100 Chinese steer
age passenger
The Nicaraguan bark Don Carlos was
a pretty badly battered-up looking vessel
when she got int port yesterday after
noon. Her siarboard and port bulwarks
abaft the mainmast were SMASHED in, and
her deckhouses looked as if they had seen
some pref hard usage. The Don Carlos
was seventy-one days from Newcastle.
The day before Christmas. when in lati-
tude 81 deg. north, 142 deg. west, the
bark found terrific weather. The cabin
was flooded, as was the galley and sea-
mems quarters forward. On January
another storm was encountered IF Point
Reyes, bur that pr ocular blow did no
especial damage to the vessel.
The tug Fearless has secured one of the
barkentine C. f. Crocker's lost anchors
and nded i at FoIsom-sfreet wharf.
nionatnbno from tina north rannrf ha