The daily morning journal and courier., 1897-08-31
WORST OF MODERN PIRATES.

| racine Ocean-One or the Most bal- l ing Criminals of Modern Times, He is | Now in Mexican Prison After a | Lively Career-How He Stole vessels.
 The doors of a Mexican prison have just swung shut on as daring pirate as ever troubled the high seas. For year or two those who go down to the sea in ships will have one danger the less to guard against. Then oscar Bartels will be free again, to cheat, and murder and steal, and terrorize the wide Pacific to his hearts content,
 For years Bartels had carried on his plundering with insolent boldness His craft was neither low nor rakish, and carried no black flag to give his prey honorable warning. He wasted no time in making his enemies walk the plank, but flung them promptly overheard when he was done with them. He would steal vessels, crew and all, If need be, and carry them off under the very noses of the harbor guns. He was as bold and interruptions as any free booter that ever sailed the Spanish main, and will be again when the doors of the Mexican prison once more swing back.
 Bartefs nativity is uncertain. To some he claimed to be of German de- scent, while others who know him say he is Norwegian by birth. He is now about forty-three years of age. The first that Is known of him on this coast was in 1890, when he made his appear ance in San Diego, coming from nobody knows where. He formed the acquain- tance of Captain William Behn, an old sailor who was always ready for any enterprise that promised adventure and profit The men became fast friends, and soon set about the seizure of the schooner Dawn that was lying at an- chor in the bay, their intention being to undertake most hazardous raid on the goat herders of Guadaloupe Island, one of the largest in the Gulf. of Cali fornia.
 Bartes had met two men who had recently arrived from the island on a schooner carrying as cargo two thou sand goatskins, which brought a hand some price. Bartels and Rehn surrep- titieusly stocked the Dawn with provi- sions, and one dark night hoisted an- chor and set sail for Mexican waters. Bartels had learned from the men who had sold the skins that two men had been left on the island, we'll supplied with provisions. They were to con tinue the work of procuring goatskins until a large number had been pre- pared, when vessel would be sent down after them. Bartels and Behn determined to make those skins their property.
 Arriving at the island, they found the two men with sixteen hundred skins ready for shipment The pirates sur prised the hunters, made them captives and loaded the booty on their vessel, besides helping themselves plentifully to the supplies left for the men. When everything was in readiness to sail, Bartels liberated one of the captives, but warned him not to set the other free until the Dawn was well away from the island The two men subsist- ed on goat flesh and pine nuts until, nearly two months later, they were res cued by a Captain Porter, who touched at the island for water
 Meantime the Dawn was headed for Santa Barbara. There the cargo was disposed of at tidy figure, but Barrels and Behn quarrelled over the division of the proceeds, and in the fight that ensued Behn got decidedly the worst of it. Bartels was arrested for battery. but secured his release on writ of ha- beas corpus and sailed away on the Dawn before any action could be taken against him for piracy.
 Again the Dawn was headed for Guad- aloupe Island, with one man before the mast, whom Bartels had secured before sailing from Santa Barbara Arriving there, he found another party of hunt CTS who had large supply of skins on hand ready for shipment. Bartels of- fe1ed to carry these to San Diego for a sum that was ridiculously low His of fer was accepted, and the work of load ing the Dawn was begun.
 Bartels kept his sailor carefully hid den from sight. One of the hunters was to go with him to help handle the schooner and dispose of the hides at San Diego The task of loading the Dawn was completed toward night, and Bartels sent the hunter ashore with water cask to fill. It was to be brought on board the following morning, but during the night Bartels sped away with the little vessel, leaving the hum ter on the island. That cargo of skins was disposed of at San Pedro, and again Bartels fled before he could be prosecuted.
 For the third time he steered for the island that had yielded him such rich returns, but the Mexican warship Dem- ocrata was there searching for poach- CTS, and Bartels and his schooner were taken to La Paz. For nearly a year he was confined in jail, when he succeeded in bribing some of the guards and made his escape.
 Nothing was heard of the daring free booter until early in 1893, when he and his brother Julius arrived at Seattle from China. They immediately set ] about providing themselves with ves- sel. Captain Elmer of South Bend, Washington, had been a seal hunter for many years, and owned a little schooner named Achilles The Bartels brothers offered to charter this for a year, and after the customary haggling J over terms the papers were drawn up When it came to signing them, Oscar Bartels cleverly substituted a bill of sale, the old skipper not discovering the fraud until after they had put to sea, which they did as soon as they had mortgaged the vessel to a Port Town send man for $2,400.
 The Achilles hunted along the Japan coast, working well up into Behring Sea, but met with poor success, and they ran into Sitka harbor in June with