The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1897-10-08
CREW Of THE NAVARCH
WHAT OLD SALTS IN SEATTLE
THINK OF THE CHANCE.
Old Whaling shippers Give Their Per-
sonal Views Upon the Arctic Cur
rents. Weather and Ice Floes.

/ The probable loss of the crew OF the
steam whalcr Navarch in the Arctic
ocean early in ugust, as reported in
/ the dispatches. continues to be much
discussed among those who are inter-
ested i'm Arctic whaling.
| Captain William Lewis, agent of the
/ Navarch, says: Il think that all of
| the crew will be heard from. 1t is
Just as reasonable to suppose that they
could get ashore as Captain Whiteside
and his party. In my opinion their
chances of being rescued were better,
for there must have been ships in the
vicinity. and | have strong hopes that
the next news will bring tidings Of
the crew. In all the reports which
have been printed there has been no
definite knowledge of loss. of life"
Captain John \. Cook of Brockton,
who wintered in the Arctic as master
of the Navarch during the season of
1894 and 1895. while discussing the
subject with Captain Lewis remarked:
! 1T is hardly to be believed that any
of the men froze to death at that sea
son of the year. and there are good
reasons to assume that the crew must
have been picked up by other ships of
the fleet
William II. Wing, whaling agent and
a heavy owner in number of whal-
ing vessels said: 81 am not yet ready
to give an opinion. for the reports we
have received up to date are not en-
tirely clear. | think it is possible
that some of the crew, if not all, may
have been picked up by other YES
sells, which must have been in that
vicinity at the time the Navarch was
abandoned"
Leander Brightman in speaking of
the mishap. states that the officers
and sailors who assemble at his place
of business have frequently discussed
the situation. and while "A majority of
them are inclined to accept the belief
that the ships crew is lost he is not
ready to think so. believing as he now
does that at that season of the year
everything favored rescue.
Captain Frank c. Smith. a retired
whaling master of many years eXpe-
rience in the Arctic, gave his views.
Captain Smith has commanded the
James Allen. Eliza Adams and Janus
on different voyages in the Arctic wa
tiers. and while the vessels did not
cruise as far eastward as they do now
his knowledge of the conditions of the
region is worth something in discuss
ing this question. Captain Smith was
in command of the William Thomp-
son, burned by the Shenandoah in the
year 1865. Said he: "The ice is
fearful thing to get into | assure you,
but it is a mystery to me how so many
could have been lost at that season of
the year. Unless the boats after leav-
ing the ship got into large body of
ice and were crushed. and then had
drifted far away in the current. which
is swift one, the men should have
been saved"
Captain James Dowden, who was
one of the first to venture into the
Arctic ocean in search of whales, and
who perhaps is as well acquainted
with the conditions of the weather
and action of the currents in that lat
itude as any other man, says: ''If the
ship was abandoned in August, when
the arctic weather is at its best, those
men are not lost. unless their boats
have been crushed and the current
has swept them so far away from the
| land that it would be impossible TO
reach them. The chances of their be-
/ ing saved are just as good as Captain
|