Daily Kennebec journal., 1898-06-16
POLLY, OUR OLDEST VESSEL.
She was Built in 1905 and Still Flies thu
Flag.
New York Sum-

craft IN port. InlS is tne schooner
Polly, built in Amesbury, Mass, in
1905, and now hailing from Portland
Vessels built here a dozen years ago
or later are now on the docks for re-
pairs, and there are scores of coasters
20 or 80 years old that have been new
topped or otherwise repaired exten-
sively one or more times since they left
the stocks, but the Polly, stubtoed
high sided and rolypoly, seems to be
as good as ever; all because, as her
master says, they used good white oak
in the days when she was built, instead
Of the shaky and snappy stuff called
oak now.
1t is not so much her long career as
a merchantmen, however, that causes
the chief fame of the Polly. She was
once q man-o'- -war-that is priVateer,
in the risky days of 1912, when the
United States had more of naval
fight on hand, proportionally, than it
has today. The men-of-war of those
times were not leViathanS, and, while
the Polly would be laughed at now as
a diminutive as we'll as an awkward
little tub for such business. she was
Is
craft. Capt Daniel Mcfarland. her
present master. who knows her history
pretty well, says that the Polly fought
scores of battles in the war of 1872, and
that she captured no fewer than IL
prizes from the British. once she was
herself captured when the captain was
lying sick in his bunk, her venture
some mate and crew tackling some
thing too stout for her, but it was not
very long before the Yankees captured
her back again. and she has been un-
der the American flag ever since.
Many are the stories told of the Polly,
the 45-ton privateer that chased Brit
ish vessels of twice her size and more,
and from all accounts she must have
been a terror. Her log is now preserV-
ed in the Portland custom house. and
Capt Mcfarland says it's better than
anything in the navy books. Her last
fight was with an armed British mer-
chairman. at a point half way be-
tween Mount Desert and the Duck ls-
lands in which she was victorious. ana
captured a rich prize. Since tnen she
has been constantly engaged III the
coasting trade. and she appears as
sound today as any of the fleet sailing
out of Bangor Only one other vessel,
so far as known, approaches the Polly
in age and length of active service
the schooner Good Intent. 90 tons, built
in Braintree, Mass, in 1878, and now
hailing from Bucksport. There was a
bark called the True Love, built IN
Philadelphia about the year 1163, FOR
many years engaged in whaling ana
afterward sold for English account, but
her name has long SINCE disappeared
from the lists and she is doubtless un-
der water or broken up. gl,
Those old craft were generally built
of the toughest kind of white oak. and
the quality of the timber put into the
Polly can be judged from the fact that
nearly all of her original frame Stlll
remains in her. while five strakes IN
her port bilge and part Of her gar
boards on the starbQard side rema n
to show the wearing qualities of the
planking used in Amesbury in 1903.
Today, the Polly is rigged as fore
and-aft schooner, with no foretopmaSt
and only three men--sOmetimes only
two are required to navigate her. But
when she was new there was no such
thing as an out-and-out fore -and-a after.
In those days all the smaller vessels
carried what is now known as the top
sail schooner rig-they had square top
sails and often square topgallants.
This rig is good for any weather. and
many old sailors think it a great mis-
take to have discarded it.
Up to 1875 or 1880 topsail schooners
were not uncommon in this port. but
now the last of that rig hailing from
these parts. the old Anna Elizabeth.
has long since gone under and the top
sail schooner is a curiosity, indee |.
Down in the maratme provinces. where
they are getting to be expert ship
builders, they still build topsail schoon-
ers and the Godfnch of Liverpool, n.
S. that recently came here to load for
Curacao, was declared by the old
timers to be one of the handsomest
vessels ever seen in Bangor. She was
further notable from the fact that she
carried double tOpsals.
The brig is also disappearing from
the American registry. There are only
two brigs the katahdin and the Telos,
now owned in Bangor, where formerly
there We're dozens and no brig mas been
built in this country since the Telos
was launched from Crosby's yard here
In 1888.
While all the coasters are of the
fore-andaft rig nowadays. half a CEN
tury ago it was just the other way.
Capt. Albion p. Neazie of Bangor, re-
calls the time, about the year 1910,
when he commanded the schooner
Economy. rugged with a square topsail
on the fore. and when schooners rigged
in any other way, except that the lar
ger ones carried not only square top
sail but also topgallantsail We're rare.
Old shipmasters say that the Sarah
Buck, built at Bucksport about the
year 1S43, was the first fore and aft
rleged vessel that ever came to Ban
gor. She was commanded by Capt.
Noah Rose of Islesboro. and when she
appeared here the old tars shook their
heads and declared that she would
never work in any weather She work
ed all right however, although she was
not as good before the wind as a square
topsail schooner. In those days they
built small vessels, the Sarah Buck
Which was considered to be of good
size. carrying only 125 tons of coal.
In recent years a lot of queer rigs have