The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1907-10-22
CLAIM THEIR
CONSUL REFUSED
TO HELP THEM
Wrecked American Sailors Talk Bitterly of
American Consul at Vladivostok---
Praise Charitable Russians.

If the charges made by the officers
and crew of the whaling schooner Car
III rie and Annie. which was wrecked on
I# She Coast of Siberia in August, and
who returned through here yesterday
on the Asia, is investigated by the
State department, there may be new
consular agent in Vladivostok. The
charge was made yesterday by the Of
ficers of the Carrie and Annie, that
the American consul at the Siberian
port, Nicholas Gray, refused to give
them anv assistance and that if it
had not been for the kindness and
courtesy shown by the officers of the
Russian transport which had brought
them to the seaport, and also the kind
ness of the people of the city, they
would have been destitute.
The Carrie and Annie sailed from
San Francisco on a whaling expedl-
fion on March 90, of the present year,
carrying crew of fifteen including
her owner and Captain I. j. Thomas,
of Oakland, California, and First Mate
j. Bertoncini She stopped at this port
for several days, leaving here for the
waterS off the coast of Siberia on
April II.
She was schooner of 80 tons net
burden, twenty-five years old and IN
good sound condition.
When asked for his story of the
wreck First Mate Bertoncini said:
! Everything went well, though we
Ind only captured one whale, small
bowhead. which was killed by the
second mate on June IA, till the even
ing of August 27. We dropped anchor
that day in a small bay bordering
Shantarski Island, Siberia, about one
and a half miles from the rocks. We
had fifteen feet of water at low tide.
We were forced to anchor as there was
a dead calm and heavy swell at the
time
HEAVY SQUALLS.
cat midnigh5 it commenced to blow
in heavy Squalls, coming from the
northwest and settling about noon the
next dav into steady gale. The star
board anchor was out and we also
dropped our port anchor, as it was I'M
possible to work the vessel out. we
depended on the anchors to weather
the gale which was blowing.
"There was a heavy ground sweli
all day and night and our little YES
sci was plunging her bows under wafer
continually. We remained IN this posi-
fioon till Q o'clock on the morning OF |
August so. when either the chain or
the starboard anchor broke. The port
anchor was not heavy enough to hold
nd we were compelled to slip 1T.
.sWe tried our best to get out, hoist
ing the staysail and jib forward and
the mainsaiI aft, but there was too
much wind and the vessel was thrown
on her beam ends, refusing to tack in
the heavy seas. At IL O'Clock in the /:
morning we were driven ashore on
sandy beach, between two rocky
promontories. We built our camp IN
the afternoon. ,
.oThe Carrie and Annie pounded to
pieces during the first night. we re-
mained in this camp till September IL, ,
living mainly on fresh salmon and wild
ducks which we managed to KILL
though we were not short of provis- ,
ions. as we had managed to save the
ships stores. Finally we were picked :
up by the Russian transport Nitzun, +.
by Captain Nicholas Fogt
ard taken to Vladivostok. where we 8
were landed and naturally expected to .
be taken care of by the American
consul.
The consul stated that he had no .
place to put us in and that he would
s4ot care for us. Being unacquainted ?
With the Russian language. 1 had j.,
good deal of trouble with the legal
proceedings which were necessary, and :
n this aud other matters which had =
o be looked after. neither I nor Cap
ain Thomas received any help what Z
ver from the representative Of the :
american government. :
RUSSIAN KINDNESS.
"Our treatment on the Russian 90