The San Francisco call., 1903-01-07
Mistake Of Captain
Costs Nearly Score
Of Lives.
Vessel Crashes Upon Rocks
Near the Cafmanah
Light.
Special DirDssch to The Call.

PORT TOWNSEND. Jan "a misin-
depreciation Of lights. heavy sea, THICK
fog and rain and a terrific westerly gale
prevailing on Cape Flattery during the
opening days OF the year accomplished
The total destruction OF a big merchant
snip and the loss OF eighteen lives On
January the Norwegian iron bark Prince
arthur was bound from Valparaiso FOR
1ri1lsh Columbia TO load lumber. The
Prince Arthur was commanded by Cap.
tain Ma-kUssen. an old-timer on the
coast. but Il IS evident that he uistook
the Umauna lightship for the Flattery
light ard was thus driven 10 destruction
by the very bescons intended to warn
him Of his danger
Rapidly wind and wave drove the yes
sci along until suddenly there was that
crash so feared BY shipmasters and Cap
tain Markussen knew his vessel had
struck Her position could not possibly
have been worse. She was fast among
the rocks Of the Ozette River, where
many a vessel before her had piled her
bones TO bleach in the sun.
Darkness and the tumuituous seas run
ming made the position OF the shipwrecked
men most preearious and u was soon ap-
mace
reach the shore through the breakers
one after another the boats were lowered
and the twenty men comprising the crew
of Vhe unfortunate Prince Arthur started
EhoreWard
SETTLERS INTER THE DEAD.
The experiences as narrated are meager
there being but few left 70 tell the tale
and these, when taken in charge by the
fronuersmen living I'm cabins along the
ocean beach. were for hours unconscious
and had not revived when the courier
brought the news twenty-five miles
through the wilderness TO the nearest
steamboat landing. whenceIyvord came to-
day in a private communication to a local
resident.
One after another the bodies Of the un-
fortunate victims on the wreck were
washing ashore The settlers had no
means OF identifying the bruised and bat
Tered corpses and dug graves for them
hack from the high water mark as randi
ly the human line into the surf was
able TO recover the bodies.
The vessel at the time the courier left
had broken up and the wreckage was
pounding itself to pieces in the breakers
furnishing additional dangers 10 the
heroic Woodsmen. who risked their lives
20 do a last sad service for their fellow
creatures.
CAPTAINS FATAL ERROR.
The fate OF the Prince Arthur does not
surprise shipping men, who aver that her
doom was sealed the moment her PROV
vas inside the Umatilla lightship. There
was no escape for the vessel, particularly
when Captain Markussen, supposing the
lightship 20 be Flattery Light, shaped his
course westward and was soon among the
Jagged rocks OF the reef The position
where the Prince Arthur struck is fden-
tically the same as that from which the
German ship Flottbeck was rescued two
years ago. but then it required the SER
vices OF three Of the largest towing ma
chimes on the Pacific Coast to release her
from her dilemma.
With the Prince Arthur the case was
different, the accident occurring late at
night during bowling gale from the
west when even stanch tugboats sought
shelter. The position is one Of the worst
on the Pacific Coast and the Government
has extensively marked the place 10 pre-
vent just such an accident as has over
taken the unfortunate Norwegian bark.
CONFUSION IN NAMES.
A confusion OF names I'm the original
report from the scene OF the disaster led
10 the belief that the vessel which had
met her fate in the breakers was the
Norwegian ship Prince Albert, bound 10
Puget Sound from Cape Town, South
Africa This vessel sailed on November
Is and a discrepancy in dates proved the
utter impossibility Of the original report
being correct
Further investigation Of the letter re-