The San Francisco call., 1899-11-06
Captain Afraid They
Will Desert.
PREPARING FOR NOME RUSH
A BIG FLEET TO LEAVE THIS
PORT IN THE SPRING.
Russian Steamer Dalney Vostok Ar
rives From Eonolulu-Launch Of
New Schooner Lottie Ben
nett-Water Front Notes.

The men on the Coast and Geodetic
Survey steamer Pathfinder are protest
ing vigorously because they have not re-
ceived their last months pay. The vessel
is lying at Main street wharf getting an
overhauling, and the men assert that the
captain is afraid to pay them what Is
coming to them for fear all hands would
desert in a body. Said one Of them yes
terday:
Our captain has discovered a new way
to prevent desertion. Last pay day sew
eral Of the crew ran away as soon as they
got their pay, and the captain is pre-
venting a repetition of the exodus by
Withholding our pay. We asked him ves-
terday when we were going to get paid,
and he told us none Of US would get our
money until the ship went back to her
anchorage in the bay. Then shore liberty
is to bestopped and our pay will be no
good to us. Besides, it may be fort
night before we go out in the stream. If
we were only treated properly there would
be no desertions, and consequently, no
need for such measures as our captain is
taking. Instead of being aboard United
States vessel one would think we were on
q deepwater packet, where desertions are
the rule and not the exception"
A big fleet of vessels will be running to
Cape Nome next spring. Steamers are be-
ing chartered on all sides, and several
parties are trying to make purchases in
the East to meet the demand. The Tacif1c
Steam Whaling Company will put three
fine steamers in the run. 1he transport
Valencia will not go back to Manila after
making this trip, but, in company with
the Excelsior and Jeanie, will run to Cape
Nome. The Jeanie is sheathed with iron
wood and will probably be the first vessel
to reach the gold fields. She was built for
tender to the whalers and will have lit
tie difficulty in breaking her way through
the ice. She will leave here the last of
April or the first week in May.
The whaling company Is also building
a small steamer that will run between
st. Michael, Nome and GoloYin Bay. For
her they have secured the only boiler in
the world that was not contracted for.
New boilers cannot be procured for love
or money, and in consequence very eX-
pensiye repair work has been done on the
boilers of some San Francisco vessels.
The boiler procured by the Steam Whal
ing Company Is a Babcock & Wilcox, and
is being built in England, but will be in
New York April 8. Over fifty shipowners
were after the boiler, but the San Fran
cisco firm made the best offer and it was
accepted. The hull of the new steamer
VIII be built by Hay & Wright at Ala
media. She will be 115 feet long, % feet
beam and feet inches deep.
The new four-masted schooner Lottie
Bennett has been launched at Port
Blakeley and will begin loading to-day
for Hilo. She is a magnificent vessel and
principal owners are Captain Bennett
Captain Harry Goodall, Captain T. Wal
lace, Captain JepSen and Captain
Humphrey, all of this city.
The little gasoline crabboat Fra Diavalo
was nearly destroyed by fire yesterday
morning. She was UP on the ways being
cleaned and painted, and just as the fin
ishing touches were being put on some one
dropped a match into the oil tank. In a
moment everything was in a blaze. All
the upper works of the little craft were
destroyed, but the hull and machinery is
not seriously damaged
The Tennessee delegation is anxiously
looking for the Indiana with the Tennes-
see soldiers. The Fearless lay at the
wharf all day yesterday with steam up
waiting to take the members out to meet
the transport, but she did not put in an
appearance.
The Russian steamer Dalney Vostok ar
rived from Honolulu yesterday afternoon.
She broke down off the Heads and, as her
charter as a transport expired yesterday,
the captain accepted the services of the
tug Reliance and was towed into port
The damage to the machinery was slight.
but it would have delayed the arrival Of
the vessel. The Dalney Vostok went from
Kobe to Honolulu with a lot of Japanese
contract laborers. After discharging them
she sailed for San Francisco few hours
after the Ohio and made the run in al
most the same time as that vessel.