The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1895-03-16
"DERELICTS."
VESSELS DRIFTING
OET TIE ATLANTIC COAST
Dangers tc Navigation-Strange ana
Weird Stories Of Their Object
less Voyages-Burning
For q Year.

=; U23lNG the last Eve years 95G
| vessels were wrecked on the
| y Atlantic coast of North
America. In the same region
and period 957 derelicts-i. e., floating
and abandoned craft--were reported.
The worst derelicts are coal-laden and
lumber-ladcn ships. The latter float
the longest, while the former are
particularly dangerous because they
ire so heavy and solid. The average
lerelict floats thirty days.
Two years ago the Navy Depart.
nent sent the Yantic to destroy twelve
wrecks which lay along the Atlantic
coast. She found them all and blew
them into kindling wood. The usual
method is to approach water-logged
hulk in steam launch, drop over the
stump Of mast hoop of iron with
;orpedoes attached and then fire the
iorpedoes from q safe distance by
Electricity.
The North Atlantic is the chosen
drifting ground of such floating periis.
Timber traders bound from this coast
to Europe encounter cyclones on the
way and are deserted by dozens. The
7essels used in that traffic are COM
monty OF an antlquated type and SO
:otten that only good luck keeps them
"a top OF the water. Happy are the
crews to be taken off when they meet
with disaster, before they are drowned
sr forced to cannibslism, as in ths
,ase of the Thekla, OF Philadelphia
exported few months ago.
Now and then it happens that some.
body finds defelict with a valuable
cargo and tows her into port, netting
large sum in salvage. The mostre-
narkable instance Of this sort was that
of British ship called the Resolute,
which was one of three vessels sent to
ind Sir John Franklin. During the
winter of 1851 she was nipped in the
ce of Melville Bay--the great sheet
Of water crossed the other day by
Peary-and was abandoned. Four
years later she was found by New
England whaler, frozen in foe and
practically uninjured. She was brought
10 New London and Congress bought
her for 100000 from the salvors.
After being thoroughly repaired she
was sent to England as gift and
token of amity to her Majesty. Years
ater, when sne was finally condemned
I'D broken ua. the Queen hea q desS
present to the President Of the United
States. Mr.. Cleveland uses it for his
york every day at the White House.
When 9 ship strikes derelict the
occurrence is rot reported, usually,
because no witnesses are left alive to
tel, the tale. But there have been
CASES where vesse els have had the luci
to hit such huiks and to escape de-
struction. Only last year the deserted
erred B. Taylor" was cut squareiy
in two by the North German Lloyd
steamship "Trave." For many months
;he bow and stern of the abandoned
craft foated about separately IN the
rack OF commerce, the former pre-
,enting an extraordinary appearance
With bowsprit standing almost perper.-
licular. Thus two derelicts were made
out Of one. In April, 1889, the steamer
ssCuban," of Liverpool, ran into a
vater-logged hulk, cutting into 1t
thirteen feet. Happily, she escaped
with small damage.
More than tbree-fourths OF all dere-
icts along the Atlantic coast OF the
United States are created by storms of
Cane Hattcres, and from that neigh
borhood most of them start on their
strange and obiectless voyage. Usually
ther drift eastward until they get
about half way across the ocean, when
they pause and swing aimlessly about
in circles. Out in the middle Of the
wide seas it is everybody's business to
destroy them, aud therefore nobody S.
| So they float about until they sink.
Many of them find their way into the
sargasso Sea, which has been described
as graveyard of ships" That vast
field of growing marine plants, IN
which many queer species ofishes and
other animals dwell, lies in a sort o!
eddy made by the great revolving
ocean current. Finding their way IN
to this vortex, the wrecks 90 round
and round until they no longer have
sufficient buoyancy to keep them on
he surface. Then they disappear.
Nobody can tell how many of the
great numbers of good ships which
have sailed away, never to be hear>
from again, have been victims OF derc
licts. For several months during the
early part of this year an aoan :tone'
hulk called the Agnes Manning lay IL
the very track Of the trans-oceanl'
| avers. She was q four-masted schooner
from Philadelphia carrying $40 ton
of coal. On February 25th she wa
deserted with her masts standing ant
sails furled. Her crew was rescued
but the floating yes i remained
menace to thousands of lives. Their
would have been very little hope ID
the strongest steamship that struc]
such an object.
An extr ,ordinary instance of tn
burning of a vessel was that of tn
Ada Iredale, bound from Scotland t.
San Francisco with cargo of coal
She was abandoned in October, 1876
nearly 1000 miles east of the Marque
sas Islands. Her crew took to tn
boats and succeeded in reaching tn
Marcuesas. Meanwhile the wreck
still burning, drifted westward in TIA
equatorial current to Tahiti, dlstanc
Of 1923 miles. Finally she was towe
into port and her cargo continued t
n-,o.,ldor for more than q Hear How