The San Francisco call., 1896-02-22
| WRECKED IN
ST. JOSEPHS BAY,
The Cutter Corwin Picks
Up the Crew of the
Wanderer.
ADVENTURES IN A GALE.
Five Seamen Washed Ashore
After Their Vessel Was
Ground to Pieces.
THEIR PROVISIONS EXHAUSTED
One Is Weak From Starvation When
Rescued by the Government
Steamer.
THEIR PROVISIONS EXHAUSTED

VICTORIA, B. c., Feb. 21.-The United
her crew of five men of the Victoria seaIer
Wanderer, wrecked on the west coast of
Vancouver Island. near its northern ex-
tremity. The men were on the point of
starvation when Captain Munger came to
their assistance. The Corwin had started
| on an errand OF mercy in behalf of another
British vessel, the missing Cadzow For
est, of which, however, nothing was seen
The Wanderers S crew consisted of Harry
Parsons, master; William Keefe, mate /;
Julian Myers, cook, and Frank Rapper
and Frank Wilkes, seamen. The schooner
was the tiniest of the sealing feet, being of
but twenty-five tons register. It left here
on January 81, bound for Nootka, there to
take on Indian hunters. 1t was in diff
Guilty from the first, because of heavy
winds and seas, which resulted in the rud-
der and most of the sails being carried
away.
With great difficulty the Wanderer made
St. Josephs Bay, near the head of Van
couver Island, on January % and there
dropped anchor, but after dark the chains
parted and the schooner was driven ashore
SO hard that it's stern was almost imme-
diately carried away. The crew managed
to launch boat and, though it capsiZed
in the surf, ali were washed ashore. They
had saved nothing except chronometer
and portion of the ships papers, and
before daylight their vessel was COM
pletely broken up.
Some provisions were washed ashore
and also one of the sails, food and shelter
being thus providentially provided. A
little camp was established on the beach,
but the following night the sleepers were
aroused by rush of water to find that all
their stores had been washed away.
Higher up on the beach they recovered
some of the canned provisions. The cook
had brought off some matches, protected
/ by rubber sack. and they were therefore
able to kindle fire and cook pancakes on
a shovel, which had washed ashore.
| Thus they kept themselves alive for
more than a week, when, their provisions
| being exhausted and the weather having
moderated, they took to their boat and
made for Quatsino, some twenty-five miles
distant. A high sea filed the boat as they
| launched it, and Seaman Wilkes therefore
refused to risk the passage, and had to be
| left behind. At Quatsino they were taken
care OF by the llghtkeeper, until a week
later the Corwin came along and offered to
carry them back to Victoria. Captain
! Munger also volunteered to go to ST.
| Josephs Bay for the seaman who had
stayed there.
A surf boat, in command of the first
Geytenant, succeeded, with great diff
Guilty, in making a landing and taking
Wilkes Off He was very weak from starva-
ton and could not have survived much
longer.
That the whole crew has come safely
through the long series of misfortunes
seems miraculous. The circumstances OF
their rescue by the Corwin will add
strength to the demand being made upon
the Canadian Government to establish
means of communication along the coast
of Vancouver Island and keep in commits
sion at Victoria vessel ready to go out at
any time to the relief of vessels reported in
| trouble,