The Portland daily press., 1899-01-31
Amsslcasw Will ossr SPOT. 3
Desoiase Re gion where the Paul Jones
Was Lost.

yacht Paul Jones of the Louisiana
marsh has ca He'd attention to the fact
that this region, within sight Of the larg-
est city In the South. IL perhaps the wild
est and most desolate part Of the United
States 1t Ia like world in process OF
formation. TIE coast line Is constantly
changing. islands are arising and disap-
pearing, bays are altering he outlines,
and II is almost impossible 10 tell what is
land and what is water.
Thousands of lives have been lost In
wreck ana Good along the Louisiana
coast, and the problem whether anything
can be done to make this region hsbita-
BILE and protect passing vessels from the
shores is n serious one. 60 far. the Gov
eminent Ihas been able to do nothing, and
disasters like those at Lost Island, John
sons Bayou. Sabine Pass and Cheniere
Caminada have come at intervals of q
few years with great loss OF life. Half
dozen years ago, in order to avoid the
danger resulting from having the yellow
fever quarantine station Immediately OPP
posite the pleasure resorts Of Mississippi
Sound, the Government established
station on Chandelier Island and expend-
ed large amount Of money to make 1t
perfectly safe: but with the first storm
the station completely disappeared. IL
was decided that it could not be to ship
Island, Immediately facing the prosperous
towns of Biloxi and Ocean Springs, TO
which fact the yellow fever epidemios OF
1897 and isgs are Iattributed. The .propo-
sition was strongly urged by the people OF
Mississippi ana Louisiana after these
epldemics that the quarantine station
should tie returned to the Chandeliers,
but the answer was made that lie was
impossible there. II 1t is true that a
mum GER of fishermen live In this region,
or rather fish there, but IL is ut great risk,
and thousands are drowned-2, 300 in the
single Disaster Of Cheniere Caminada,
n few years ago. The fisherman seek the
Chenieres and higher plnces in their
small boats, pirogues and skins on tine
approach of the storm, but even then they
do not always escape. for the sea sweeps
over the ridges.
The Paul Jones was small yacht
using her sails ipfrequently and depend
ing mainly ON q Daphtha engine power.
She steamed down the Mississippi on a
pleasure trip The members of the party
ernmost settlement on the Mississippi
River, against the trip along the Louisi-
ana coast but the warning was d1sre-
gnrded and on Jan. the yacht steamed
out Pass "a POutre. Had IL been an ordl-
nary yachting party this is the last that
would ever have been heard OF 1t; but
the host happened to be prominent mer-
chant of st Louis. the owner of the yacht
was wealthy resident OF Louisville, and
one of the young ladies in the party was
a daughter of the Mayor Of indianapolis
Ii was only by Investigations conducted
by friends ana relatives of those on board
that the fate of the yacht became known.
1t took dozen expeditions to get the
fact IL was almost by accident tn II tbs
seachers learned that the wreck OF the
Paul Jones had teen seen and visited by
fishermen =, moro than week before, ana
all the yalushles removed. The fishermen
thought 50 little of wrecks that they did
not deem 1t necessary even 20 report H.
But for the extraordinary measures taken
by Messrs. Jones and laggart, the fate OF
the yachting party would have remainen
"A mystery.
The dozen or so parties of friends, ANA
teur yachtsmon and others who assisted In
the search returned to New Orleans
thoroughly Impressed with the wildDess
and desolation OF the region they visited,
and they all agreed that nothing like II
exists anywhere else on the American
coast. Around the mouth of the Mississ-
ippi, from jhe fringe Of islands facing the
Mississippi coast TO Grand Isle, distance
of 2nO or 800 miles, is region of which IL
is difficult To say whether II is land or
water marsh or island. There are times
whom it is all under water. times when 10
Is mud, and times again when IT is lanu
Its conflguration Is constantly changing.
Here in countless centuries the Mlsslss-
ippi has poured It's millions of tons OF
Ila4xF a
SO filling up the Gulf bottom that the en-
tire coast is shallow sound. In this
sound what are called mud Jumps arise
from time to time. They are young vol
canoes due TO the gas produced By ths
fermenting matter In the mud, which
forces ur the mud In the form OF cones
above the sea level.
The mud Is baked hard in the tropical
sun, and a few reeds or little marsh
grass grow on it--and II is then dubbed
an island. But 1t is a most dangerous
island. Sometimes IL Is called prairie
trem blante. With the water still lying
beneath 1t, Ii is a mere superstructure OF
debris. wood, canes, etc. upon which the
earth rests, u floating raft, as IL were an
chored by the roots Of the marsh grass.
Somtimes 1t is mere auckland, some
times "a pilG Of sticky mud, giving out
foul, intoxicating gases. 10 be lost on
one OF these islands means death, not the
death that threatens castaways from star
vation, but death from being swallowed
up in the quick sands or poisoned by the
gases. And even "a boat Will avail little.
The land is too SOFT TO walk on, the water
too sh allow to row in. More than one
am steur fisherman who has been caught
| In his boat in the chaotic land has had to
| wait for a favoring tide TO enable him to
escape de dared not leave his boat and
the water was too shallow TO allow the
skif 10 move,
Then too. no maze was ever invented
more labyrinthian than the bayous and
| Is ands OF the st. Bernard coast All the
| islands are / ieatical-mud and sand splits
with saw grass growing ON them. All