The San Francisco call., 1905-03-17
Liner Has IRtGP-
GSting Crowd
on Board.
CARS SERVANTS
Port Arthur Or
fiCidlS Among
Passengers.
MENFROM MIDWAY

The liner China. which arrived yes
terday from the Orient, brought from
that region of rapid history making
some of the people who have shared
in the activity upon which the interest
of the civilized world for the last year
or so has been centered. Among the
liners passengers were men who lived
in Port Arthur while japanese shells re-
duced that fortress and humbled Rus
sia's pride There were on the China
officers of some of the many blockade
runners captured outside y1adivostok
by the Japanese A few of these saw
Vladivostok. Most of them didn't. and
all. eventually. were captured by the
enemy of the Car Captured, well
treated and sent homie feeling kindly
toward the little brown tars whose Wig
ilance had prevented the men that nav
igated the contraband-lcad vessels
from adding a liberal bonus to gener-
GUS wage. On board the China was a
little army of skilled mechanics who
for more than a year have been iso-
lated on lonely Midway Island, build
ing homes and offices for the men in
charge of the cable station. Another
passenger is a member of one of the
worlds greatest shipbuilding firms.
There was a Wall street man, home
from a hunt after financial bargains,
ard japanese doctor, recently mar
ried and returning to America to find
that his pretty bride may not be al
lowed to land on American soil because
one CT Uncle Sans eagle-eyed sur
geons finds in her eyes traces of trou-
BILE that is classed officially with the
mot wanted
Five captured blockade running
/ steamers We're represented among the
China's passengers. All the captains
of the captured vessels are still in Ja-
pan acting as representatives of the
1 underwriters and awaiting some mod
/ ification Of the prize courts order of
condemnation. Those who crossed the
ocean on the China were deck and en-
gineer officers.
The ships they left behind them are
the British steamers Oakley, Rosalie,
Lexington and Bawtry, Dutch steam
er Wilhelmina and the M. S. Dollar,
under the British flag, but owned in
San Francisco.
/ The WIlhelmina, with cargo of coal
from Barry, and the Bawtry, with coal
from Cardiff, succeeded in getting into
Vladivostok early in November The
Russians paid well for the cargoes and
all hands received a liberal bonus. The
Wilhelmina returned to Shanghai, the
Bawtry. Il don't think much of Rus
1
and foodstuffs, essayed to enter the
Russian port once more. BY this time
the Japanese blockade was in good
working order and both vessels were
captured.
Chief Officer de vries of the wilhel-
mira says that the Russians treated
them with scant courtesy. This dis
courtesy ranked in the bosoms of the
Hollanders and all hands were delight
ed when the Japanese gunboat barred
/ their way on the second trip.
We were in Vladivcstok in 4sovem-
ber," said Chief Officer Edwards OF the
Bawtry. L don't think much of Rus
sian manners, but their money is good
and I'm going home to England to
spend a rice little pocketful. Food was
scarce in Vladivostok when we were
there and prices very high Flour was
selling at fourpence pound. The
stores and foodstuffs we tried to take
in the second time would have brought
about $500, ,000"
The Oakley, Rosalie and Lexington
all belonged to w. r. Rea Of Belfast,
whose steamer Allanton was captured
early in the war by the Russians. The
Allanton was released later.
Chief Officer NJ. Ridley was the repre-
sentative of the NJ. S. Dollar on the
China He and all the other captured
blockade runners speak well of the
treatment they received from the Jap
anese and TO hear them tell il being
captured by the little brown men must
be quite delightful experience.