The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-12-27
LURED TO DESTRUCTION.
Old Trade of shipwreeking Not Yet
Quite Died out.

From the Pail Mall Gazette.
The gentle art of wrecking is not what
1t once was. An one down the coast will
tell you that, but it is still carried on in a
modified form, often under the very noses
OF the coastguards who are stationed all
along the Cornish seaboard to prevent it.
"Cornishmen are born wreckers, sir" a
coastguard down Penzance way said re-
Gently, in reply to remark of mine. 1T
seems in their very blood. and so being.
they can't help themselves. But II YOU
want 10 know anything about the old
styie OF wreeking you should get chat
with Joel Tregenna. He was a good 'un
at it, from all accounts, If 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 cottage along the cliff, about a
town"
You say there's a deal more of this
general public suspect?"
Yes, sir, l do. II it comes dirty night
you'll ind good many lure lights swing
ing in the winders of the cottages on the
clin along the coast, and in those in the
holes (chines) also. Swinging? Yes, sir, -
he continued, repeating my question; you
see, its 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.
VI course Wnen 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
been several ships lured on the rocks that
way since I've been here, and that's only
matter of fouryears, come next Michael
mas. We have to be pretty sharp, / can
tell YOU. sir, when a wreck does come
ashore, for the people are down on the
cliff of rocks as the case may be, like
ants. They seem to smell a wreck like
bloodhounds do blood. Woe betide the
fal LOUIS ~H,T
They're stripped of every rag afore you'd
turn twice.
There was a three-master, homeward
bound, from Australia, came in on the
rocks just away down there two winters
back. She carried good many passen-
gers. For time L was the only coast
guard 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
L set off, too, running as hard as / could.
l wasn't mistaken. There she was, with
in half a 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 before we could
do anything the mainmasts Ito which
the line and black were attached) snapped
off almost close to the deck and fell,
fouling the lines. Before the rocket line
could either be cleared, or a new one
fired, a tremendous sea struck her lifted
her stern and broke clean over her after
having thrown her broadside to the sea.
We could see a group OF women gathered
near the mainmast as the next terrific
sea came up. When il had broken the
group was gone. The larger number OF
all on board, however, was eventually
got safely ashore Next day a good many
of the bodies of those drowned came
ashore at different points. Notwith-
standing the fact that most We're those
of ladies', they We're 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 sick child. It's in
their blood, that's what it is