The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1896-10-02
REVENUE CUTTER
COMMODORE PERRY
Arrives Prom Behring sea With Col
Ors FLYING, and Anchors Off
Playel Dock.
STAR CATCH OF THE SEASON
The Ferry Takes Three Sesiers Iato Fort
on her hakser at the Same Tine
Catches Light and POOr
Season

With flags and pennants flying. the
staunch revenue cutter Commodore
Perry steamed up the harbor yesterday
afternoon The Perry is under COM
mand Of capt H. d. Smith. who. Il viii
be remembered. was the naval officer
to meet Miss Frankie Folsom In New
York City and escort her to the White
House at Washington when she was
married tosPresident Cleveland. Capt.
Smith is one OF the best-respected and
most widely-known officers in the reve-
nue. or naval service. A man OF high
education. polished and refined in
manner and a perfect gentleman, he
cannot fail to make friends wherever
he goes. The Perry. under his COM
mand. has made a record TO be proud
or In conversation with an Astorian
representative yesterday. Captain
Smith said:
we have had altogether an event
full cruise. and a somewhat unfortunate
experience although We represent the
finest vessel in the service. We left
San Francisco April Is. and met with
extremely heavy weather two days
from port, when We were 50 unfor-
nate as to lose our chief non-commis-
stoned officer. Mr. Haverly, who was
-
IN washing down decks at the time and
exposed himself unnecessarily during
the heavy gale which was throwing
big seas over US very frequently.
Immediately took personal charge Of the
bridge and lowered a boat with volun-
teers. enxious to make the effort to res
cue him. The unfortunate man. how
ever seemed to sink right out OF sight,
and while was maneuvering to yet the
Perry in better position. the boat sent
out TO his rescue was capsized, and the
I've men sent to his assistance were
soon floundering in the water clinging
to the bottom OF the boat. For mo-
ment my heart fairly stood still.
found that II was almost impossible to
get our head up TO windward so as to
be able 10 near the capsized boat and
throw out lines to the men. We finally
succeeded in saving them, but had to
work over them four or five hours with
the surgeon before bringing them
around.
From there IL was a succession Of
gales all the way to. Behring Sea, and
It has been gales and gales ever since.
Had not had as fine a crew of men
and officers as ever wore the blue and
gold Of the United States revenue ser
vice, We would have had anything but
OunalaSka, we went in to Behring Sea.
We obeyed every order We received,
and have never been over twenty-four
hours in any one port. and l am sat
isned that the Perry has made as good
a record as any vessel that has been
connected with the Behring Sea cruises
within the past ten years.
THE present season has been an ex-
tremely disastrous one. In fact, 1t has
been one succession of gales which pre-
vented the sealers from securing good
catches. For weeks and weeks the
sealers have been unable TO lower q
boat, and think that this accounts for
the failure of 1896, and the inability OF
the sealers to secure the usual supply
of skins. From information that |
could gather during the past winter,
the winds from the south have failed to
materialize. and consequently the bad
season set in much earlier than usual.
I'VE made the star catch of the sea-
son. We seized three vessels in one
day for being in the prohibited zone,
and the fourth one only escaped from
our surveillance because of our inabil-
ity to manage the three we already had
in tow and catch the other fellow. I'm
der the circumstances we were lucky
to be able to tow the three vessels on
cur hawser into port at one time.
THE average catch of the sealers
this season will not exceed three hun
dred skins to the vessel, although In
isolated cases some vessels have secur-
ed as many as 700 skins. These in
stances have been very rare. The sea
son can be safely put down, in point OF
pecunlary value, in contradistinctior
to 1895, as dead failure. In fact,
do not believe that the sealers will in
ma ny cases be able to pay their eX-
penses. In conversation and interviews
with some Of the members of the mixed
commission sent out by England and
the United States, l learned that in
their opinion the seals are not receiving
the protection that they deserve, and in
all probability precautions of a widely
different nature from what have before
been used will be adopted during the
coming season. President Jordan, Of
Stanford University, who is member
of this commission, is much interested
in this subject.
1--WE left Ounalaska September 21st
and had nothing but southeast gales
all the way to Astoria. We would have