The Washington bee., 1902-02-08
AN OLD FIGUREHEAD
1t Tells the Story of Wreck and a
Sailors Romance,
The Carved Bust of Edith Lorne stm
RESTS at Bakers Bay, Wash, Its
Time-WOrn Head Pointing
40 Scotland.

High up on a little platform in
'front.' of an old shack overlooking
Bakers bay at nwaco, Wash, is an
old tgurehead. It leans forward as
is characteristic with figureheads, and
points toward Scotland 1t is the
form of a woman, a strong-faced.
strong woman, with rugged
features and stern expression. The
figure is sawed off just below the
waist, and this, too, is a part of the
story.
More than 20 years ago, when tho
channel at the entrance of the Co
lumbla was less known and more dam
gerous than now, the alarm was
spread along the beaches at the en-
trance from the ocean among the
small population of fishermen that a
ship had gotten within the two-mile
limit, and was drifting merciIessly
to the sands. The people ashore
signaled frantically to the sailors,
and they, in desperation, signaled
back, but they did not understand
each other. and the ship went on to
its doom. 1t soon lost the course of
the channel, and a little later stuck
its nose in the sand, and the heavy
breakers drove it on and on until the
hull was almost buried and she was
filling with water The men dared
not risk, their small boats in the
fOamipC Cr bra.a lyarS apd 4bav, alma, &c,
the masts. The water rose higher
and higher, and the vessel sank her
nose deeper and deeper in the sand. !
The shipwrecked crew waved more
frantirslly to the people on the shore,
and the people on the shore waved
more frantically back. But it was
useless. At early dawn the follow
ing morning they were seen working
about the deck, which was now high
and dry above the water, but i'm
bedded deep in the sand. The fish
ermen went to their rescue. Their
cargo was principally ballast, and
they had but little to bring ashore.
1t was utterly hopeless to save the
ship. They are rarely ever saved
when once imbedded in these sands.
After the last load had been sent
ashore the captain began to work on
the figurehead.
Il must save this, at least" he said.
He worked at it long time. They
are put on substantially. But he sue
ceeded and brought it ashore. The
following day he sailed for Portland,
but before going he left the figure
head in the care of a fisherman, with
the injunction that he should take
good care of it until he called for it.
81 shall try to cake it with me on my
return, but if do not, Will some day
make this port and shall call for it,
he said.
But the captain took train to
New York and sailed from there to
his home. The old fisherman took
the fgurehead to his shack and kept
it for many years-until his death
but the captain of the vessel-it was
the Edith Lorne-never called for his
property. 1t became common prop
erty in the community. Its history
was forgotten by all but a few. In
the course of time it was carried
from place to place as some one took
a fancy to it. Then it was stolen.
The fishing industry was now on a
boom and a large number of men
were employed there. The old shack
used as a messhouse stood on high
eminence overlooking Bakers bay.
The fisherman stole the fgurehead
from it's last claimant and started to
place it on a little platform high up
in front of the shack. The figure was
too tall, and they sawed it off below
the waist, still giving it the forward
inclination.
One day upon the arrival of the
boat from Portland a gruff old
Scotchman came. He saw from the
wharf his figurehead adorning the
shack of an "onery" land lubber, as
he called il. A little closer, and he
discovered that his Edith had been
desecrated by land lubbers. She had
been sawed off below the waist. He
looked at the statue for a moment,
wiped away a tear, probably the first
for years, and turning without a
word went aboard the local steamer
and returned to Portland.
There was all kinds of speculation
there at the tiI2e about the matter.
Some people said they thought it was
the image of his wife; others thought
it was the image of his daughter. but
il was afterwards learned that he had
never been married, and that this
Edith Lorne had been the old salts"
sweetheart in early days, but no one
could learn the story.