Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-12-18
LURED TO DESTRUCTION.
Old Trade of ShipwrecI&ing Not Yet
Quite Died Out.


From the Pail Mall Gazette:
The gentle art of wrecking is not what IL
once was. Any one down the coast will tell
you that. but it is still carried on in modi-
fed form, often under the very noses Of the
coastguards who are stationed all along the
Cornish seaboard to prevent 1t.
"Cornishmen are born wreckers, SIR" a
coastguard down Penzance way said re-
Gently in reply to a remark Of mine 1T
seems in their very blood, and so being,
they can't help themselves. But If you want
to know anything about the old style OF
wrecking you should get a chat with Joel
Tregenna. He was good un at 1t, from all
accounts, il you like. Where is he? Oh, you
| won't have much difficulty in finding him
out: everybody round about here knows
Tregenna, He's living in a cottage along
the cliff, about mile and half to the west
ward of the town"
You say there's 4 deal more Of this sort
OF thing goes on nowadays than the general
public suspect?"
Yes, sir, do. If it comes a dirty night
you'll find a good many lure lights swinging
in the winders of the cottages on the cliff
along the coast. and in those in the holes
(chir -es) also. Swinging? Yes, SIR" he con-
tinued, repeating my question; you see,
It's this way: They hang the lamps so as to
look like riding lights. as if they belonged
to ships at anchor in a bay" he added, in
further explanation.
"Of course. when we see them we make
short work of the trick. going in and making
the fishermen either douse the light or pull
down the blind. But there's been several
ships lured on the rocks that way since I've
been here, and that's only matter of four
years come next Michaelmas. We have to
be pretty sharp can tell you, sir, when a
wreck does come ashore. for the people are
down on the cliff or rocks, as the case may
be. like ants. They seem to smell wreck
like bloodhounds do blood. Woe betide the
poor fellows who come ashore dead. They re
stripped of every rag afore you'd turn twice
There was three-master, homeward
bound, from Australia, came in on the rocks
just away down there two winters back.
She carried good many passengers. For
time was the only coastguard there, and
in the end there was only about half dozen
of us to some three hundred fishermen and
quarrymen. 1t was late in the afternoon
and l saw several people running for the
cliff, so set off, too, running as hard as
could. l wasn't mistaken. There she was
within half mile of the shore, all her head
canvas and most of the rest gone We got
the rocket apparatus to work as soon as she
struck, but almost afore We could do any,
thing the mainmasts Ito which the line and
block We're attached snapped off almost
close to the deck and fell, fouling the lines.
Before the rocket line could either be clear
ed, or new one fired, a tremendous sea
struck her lifted her stern and broke clean
over her. after having thrown her broad
sue u lne sea. we coulo see group OF
women gathered near the mainmast as the
next terrific sea came up. When it had
broken the group was gone. The larger
number of all on board. however, was even
tually got safely ashore. Next day a good
many of the bodies of thos drowned came
ashore at different points. Notwithstand-
ing the fact that most were those of ladies',
they were in many cases stripped stark.
And yet" resumed my informant, after a
slight pause, I've seen the very men who
probably did the deed as tender as a woman
over a sick child. It's in their blood, that 8
what 1t is"