The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1899-08-02
MYSTERIOUS ISLANDS.
Little Dots In tho Pacific Tint Arc Herd
to Find.

w SntSSS 'S@HNS"
Little Dots In tho Pacific Tint Arc Herd
to Find.
Much attention has been given OF
late to what we may call the strange
case Of Clipperton Island. It is not
more than three miles in circumfer-
ence, and it lies in the western Pacific
something like 800 miles west Of
Mexico. In the wide e1panse of the
Pacific Ocean it shows like q mere
speck, 80 small as to be of no value,
seemingly, save as refuge for @ few
of the army of beach combers "who
have burst all bounds of habit and
have wandered far away in the course
of their downward progress. But the
ownership of Clipperton Island has of
late been claimed by no fewer than
four conntries-Me1ico, the United
States, France and Great Britain; and
when it is added that the island is a
favorite haunt Of sea birds, and that
many tons of valuable guano are wait
ing to be picked up, the reason for
this unwonted solicitude, even in an
era of land. grabbing, will be appar-
ent.
Clipperton Island is Of interest in
another direction. It IS one of those
numerous stretches of.land set in the
midst of the seas, sunny and other
wise, which, after their first discovery,
for many years elude all endeavors to
locate them again. It has now been,
as it were, nailed downin one partic.
ular spot in the ocean-that is to say,
its exact position has been finally de-
termined by warships sent out for the
express purpose of searching for it
and settling all doubts as to its ex.
istence-and the only thing remaining
now is that the question of ownership
should be settled. It happens that
there is another island about 400
miles southwest of Clipp erton, and
rich in the same deposits that make
that place worth possessing, for which
adventurous miners are at this mo-
ment looking.
AS late as July last vessel named
Moonlight left Altata, Mexico, on a
voyage in search of this latest mys-
torious island, and spent ffty-two
days of truitless labor toward this
end. Her captain failed to find the
place, and, fearing that his provisions
and water would run short, returned
home to report that either the rough
charts of old Captain Martin and his
associates were at fault or else that
some strange seismic phenomenon
had caused the lost isle to disappear
years ago, perhaps, for all that mortal
soul knows. Spice is added to this
romance by the fact that another
Frisco captain located the. place def.
initelya year or two before, and found
a small colony there, which colony is
still on the island, shipping guano in
their own schooners, manned by num-
bers Of their own party, to the lead
ing ports of the Pacific slope Of North
and South America.
Quite number of expeditions have
of late been made with the object Of
wrestling this valuable secret from the
handful of men in whose possession it
is, and of participating in the spoils;
and one of these days we will, no
doubt, hear of a sanguinary fight for
the supremacy between the present
colonists and a party Of mauraders.
Although the stories told about the
unknown island vary considerably,
they all agree that it exists somewhere
about 400 or 500 miles southwest OF
Clipperton, in a low coral atoll COW
cred with the richest phosphates. The
place also has its legends of pirates
treasures, which may or may not
have any foundation in fact. One of
the expeditions of recent date, which
have been fitted out to look for the
island, was the Vine expedition. That
vessels owner claims to have secured
his knowledge of the place from the
old sea captain named Martin, above
referred to, who died some years ago,
and who left on old chart among his
belongings, which told of small isl.
and in the South Pacific, not down on
the regular charts, enormously rich
in guano.