The San Francisco call., 1899-08-20
ABANDONED
VESSEL OFF
VANCOUVER
She Floated Out of the Fog
and Back Into 1t Like
a Specter.
AN OCEAN MYSTERY
Salvage Parties Could Not Get
Near Enough to Ascertain the
Name of the Barkentine.
Special Dispatch to The Call.

VICTORIA, B. c., Aug. 19-According
to story brought by the steamer Will
apa, which runs along the west coast of
Vancouver Island, another disaster has
in all probability occurred in that ocean S
graveyard where so many wrecks have
taken place. The story as given to the
Willapa's officers by the residents of
Clayoquot tells of a wandering derelict
barkentine, which came from the smother
that enveloped the Pacific, swung about
among the reefs off Clayoquot Sound,
with--aceording to the belief of the resi-
dents of Clayoquot-not a soul on board
and then, when small boats hurriedly
formed salvage expeditions and went out
to her, drifted with an off-shore wind fill
ing her canvas. back into t:s-e fog and was
swallowed up, as was the famous phan-
tom ship of Captain Vanderdecken.
This was the strange story which all
Clayoquot was talking of when the steam
er Willapa reached there. According to
her officers, salvage expeditions galore
were being promoted, but as. until the ar
rival of the Willapa, the only available
craft with which to salve the derelict
were small boats, the would-be expedf-
tions were handicapped
1t was on Sunday last according to the
story told by the Willapa's officers, that
the barkentine was first seen. She came
out of the fog and drifted in past the
reef well in shore. She stood right in off
the land and at one time was inside the
breakers off vangos Island, and had not
the, wind shifted she would have then
gone on the rocks. She was blown off a
few miles, however. by a shift of the
wind. Her -gallantmaSt and miz-
Zentopmast were gone. Her lower top
sails were set, also her mainsail spanker
and three jibs. The foresail was clewed
up but not furled One man is positive
that her foretopnlast was gone, but if her
headsails were set this, of course, would
be impossible. All are agreed on one
hov n & he
entine was evidently abandoned, not
sign of life being seen anywhere aboard
her.
Numbers of white men went out to her
in boats and many Indians in canoes. The
boats got within a mile of the mysteri-
ous stranger and their occupants declare
that everything about the vessel pore eVl-
dence to the fact that she was deserted.
There was no one at the wheel. the bar
kentine continually flying up in the wind
and then paying off again as her Jibs
filled. The daVits were plainly dlscerned,
but 10 boats hung from them.
Before the men in the boat could ap-
proach any nearer the fog came down
again like curtain and it was with con-
siderable difficulty that the white men
and Tn0ians regained the shore. Heavy
fog has prevailed along the west coast for
several days past, so much so as to make
a search for the supposed derelict very
difficult and hazardous
The fate of her crew, presuming that
they have left her. can only be guessed
at but there is every reason to hope that
thew will have landed safely at some
point along the coast, as the weather has
been fair lately with the exception of the
fog. She was small vessel barken-
tine, with three masts, square-rigged on
the foremast-a vessel of about 400 or 500
tons.
scripion that are in any likelihood of
being in that vicinity so far as known
here are the following: The American
barkentiEe Katie Flickinger. which left
Pisa glIna on June 9 for this port, and the
American barkentine Leslie D, which left
San Pedro on July IS for Port Blakeley.
Opinions differ as to whether the bar
kentine was heavily loaded or water
logged. Up to date she is a marine mys-
terry and further news Of her will be
eagerly awaited.