The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1902-04-05
DISAPPEARING
PACIFIC ISLE
Located by Capt. LawIess on His
Last voysse-May Be
Eidorado.

SAN FRANCISCO, March .9.-Captain
Lawless of the steamship Australia,
which arrived Friday night from Tahiti.
thinks he has discovered Groupings Of an
island rich il phosphates, reported by
Captain John de Graves OF Honolulu in
1859. and for which Government vessels
been searching.
stormy weather and the fact that he
was in charge of mail boat carrying
passengers prevented Captain Lawless
from more thoroughly investigating his
discovery. He has reported the matter
to the photographic authorities and will
subsequently, do little investigating on
his own account.
The first report of the islands existence
was made in 1883
CAPTAIN John de Graves, who is still
living in Honolulu, sailed from Honolulu
in that year as mate or the schooner
General Wolford, Lola Montez. the fam
Gus actress, was aboard, and the schoon-
err was bound for Callao with the inten-
ton incidentally of exploring for guano
islands.
Champagne flowed like water on the
little craft. and between the wine and
discussions of the gold discoveries in
California the original SCHEME was chang
ed and the Woiford headed for San Fran
cisco.
Two days after turning north an island
was sighted. Captain de Graves and
some of the passengers landed and hunt
ed wild goats. De Graves took away
with him some samples of the island soil
and rocks. which analysis later on show
ed to be rich in phosphates.
The latitude of this island as calculated
by De Graves was about 17.50 north. The
longitude he had no means of calculating.
but thought it somewhere in i3s DE
Graves made several attempts to redis-
cover the island but without success.
Captain Lawless says he has often
spoken with De Graves about the island
and has corroborated De Graves story
far as dates are concerned. A man
named Peacock in Honolulu has shown
his faith in De Graves story by fitting
out two expeditions to search for the
missing land. Other expeditions have
gone out, and De Graves still lives in
the hope of some day sharing the wealth
of that mid-Pacific phosphate deposit.
The United States ship Albatross has
twice taken hand in the search FL the
interests of navigators. The Albatross
investigations, however, in the light of
Captain Lawless' discovery were con-
Quoted too far north.
1.-THE second officer called me at $40
a. L.. of the 17th,'' said Captain Lawless
yesterday, land reported two patches of
discolored water on the port bow. These
patches looked to be about 100 feet square.
There was big sea on at the time and
it did not break over the Shoal
should judge there would be over ten
fathoms of water there. Had it been
breaking would have investigated more
thoroughly. but as there no break
and the sea was very big ] did not con-
slider the shoal dangerous at all.
1.-THE position of this patch, which /
believe to be a cropping from De Graves
island. was 1856 north, longitude 136. 10
west. De Graves island as the old man
has often described it to me, was shaped
like saddle with hump at each end
about sixty feet high. The island was
about mile long and half as much wide.
There is man named MCGEE in San
francisco who is. L understood, inter
ested in an expedition either under way
or now out hunting for an island of this
description.
ut is in an unfrequented part of the
Pacific, and one could pass within a
couple of miles and never see it,