Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-12-08
GHOST SHIP OF CAPE HORN.
Not a Phantom at All, Merely a Grea,
Barren Rock

| From the San Francisco Call
| Another blow against time honored ira
citions has been struck by the iconoclasts
OF science. The United States photographic
| Office has calmly declared that the phantom
ship seen in the vicinity of Cape Horn the
ghost ship Of lie Maire." is nothing moro
nor less than a rock which under certain at
mospheric conditions bears a deceptive re-
semblance to a ship.
Very often ships coming from Europe TO
the west by way OF Cape Horn have been
startled to see what seemed to be a derelict
with the water washing over her decks. IL
the sailors were of an imaginative turn OF
mind they would invest the unknown ship
with ghostly qualities and cali her the Fly
ing Dutchman or sometimes the ghost ship
OF lie Marie from the strait of that name,
where she was usually seen.
One of the stories which have been long
est remembered is that of the Inflated
Crown of Italy, which sighted the supposed
derelict and subsequently went ashore. The
Crown of Italy was standing close to the
Jagged black rocks at the entrance to the
strait of lie Maire when she sighted what
seemed to be waterogged bark drifting
on the rocks of the strait. Many other ships
rounding the Horn have seen a similar ap-
partition and the photographic office has re-
ceived many reports to that effect.
Not long ago the Norwegian bark Servia
came into Seattle with the tale of a phan-
tom ship which almost exactly corresponds
10 that given by the Crown OF Italy. The
second officer of the Norwegian vessel de-
/ ciared that he had seen a derelict with sails
set and decks awash drifting in through the
strait. 1t was this report which led the
photographic office to make public the dec
laratlon that the phantom ship was nothing
but combination of rocks and shadows.
1t seems that the numerous reports OF
derelcts or ghost ships always appearing In
about the same place led even the Argen-
tine government to bestir itself. A tender
was sent out from the nearby lighthouse
with the object of making an investigation
and 1t was found that the apparition
due to a strange freak of nature. Among
the black jagged rocks that lined both sides
of the strait of lie Marie there was in
particular which. under certain atmospheric
conditions. bore a deceptive likeness to a
ship. The formation of the rocks and the
shadows they cast combined to produce the
effect of bark running under short sails.
At n distance of five miles the place Will be
| marked with the words Rock bearing the
appearance OF a ship
The passage through the strait of lie
Marie is not often made. Steamers shorten
the route by going through the strait of
Magellan, while sailing vessels usually pre-
fer to be entirely on the safe side by going
still further south and rounding the Horn
itself. Only under tre-most favorable
weather conditions do they slip through the
strait of lie Marie on the outward trip. go
ing toward the southwest. but never when
bound for the north. For this reason many
old sailors have never met the ghost ship or
the rock ship.
Upon making inquiry among old sailors of
San Francisco, however, several were found
who could give minute description of the
rock and who testified to its striking re-
semblance to ship. 1t seems to be stand
ing head on, pointing to the south and low
in the water. The sails are shortened as
they would be in what sailors call half a
gale. The whole formation Is very dark, as
II the hull were painted black and the sails
weather-beaten. 1t has three masts and Is
higher the fore than on the main. Upon
coming the side of the vessel the illu-
sion vanishes and the whole thing resolves
itself into a conglomeration of black rocks
The perpetual fog of those regions. Of
course, helps to befudd'e the vision.
The rock looking like ship is by no
means a natural formation. Almost
every sailor has seen one in some part OF
the world. In the Clipperton Islands there
Is great white rock looking Ike a three
masted schooner. leaning on the wind with
her royals set and the sun shining on her
white sails About six seven miles west
of Honolulu there is rock known as
French Frigate Rock. because once upon a
time a French frigate went ashore on it.
The cliffs looked much like a ship that
the frigate was deceived and thought she
was meeting another vessel. St. Paul Is
land in the middle of the Atlantic, is said
to look very much like ship when ap-
preached from a certain direction, but II Is
Il place which mariners prefer to give
,vid