The daily democrat. [volume] (Anadarko, Oklahoma) 190?-1908, 1907-03-07
THE GHOST SHIP
OF CAPE HORN

traditions has been struck by the icon
oclasts OF science. The United States
photographic office has calmly de.
clared that the phantom ship seen in
the vicinity OF Cape Horn, the ghost
ship of lie Marie" rs nothing more nor
less than a rock which under certain
atmospheric conditions bears a de-
ceptive resemblance to a ship.
Very often ships coming from Eu
rope TO the west by way of Cape Horn
have been startled 10 see what seemed
to be a derClict with the water wash
ing over her decks II the sailors
We're Of an imaginative turn OF mind
they would invest the unknown ship
with ghostly qualities and call her the
Flying Dutchman or sometimes the
ghost ship of Lc Marie. from the
strait Of that name, where she was
usually seen.
one of the stories which have been
longest remembered is that Of the III
fated Crown of Italy, which sighted
the supposed derolct and subsequent
ly went ashore. The Crown of Italy
was standing close to the Jagged black
rocks at the entrance to the Strait of
lie Marie when she sighted what
seemed TO be a water-logEed bark
drifting on the rocks of the strait
Many other ships rounding the Horn
have seen a similar appariton and the
photographic Office has received many
reports to that effect
Not long ago the Norwegian bark
Seryia came into Seattle with the
tale Of q phantom ship which almost
exactly corresponds to that given by
the Crown of Italy. The second Of
tcer Of the Norwegian vessel declared
that he had seen a derelict with sails
set and decks awash drifting in
through the strait 1t was this re-
port which led the photographic OF
flee TO make public the declaration
that the phantom ship was nothing but
combination Of rocks and shad-
ows.
IL seems that the numerous reports
OF derelicts or ghost ships always ap-
pearing in about the same place led
even the Argentine government to be-
stir itself. A tender was sent out
from the nearby lighthouse with the
object of making an investigation, and
IL was found that the appartion was
due To a strange freak of nature.
Among the black. jagged rocks that
lined both sides of the Strait Of lie
Marie there was one in particular
which, under certain atmospheric con-
ditions, bore a deceptive likeness to
a ship, The formation of the rocks
. hn
to produce the effect of a bark run
ming under short sails. At a distance
OF five miles the place will be marked
with the words Rock bearing the ap-
pearance of 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 prefer to be entirely on
the safe side by going still further
south and rounding the Horn itself.
Only under the most favorable wealth
er conditions do they slip through the
| Strait of lie Marie on the outward trip.
going 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 sew
eral were found who could give mi.
mute description of the rock and who
testified 10 its striking resemblance
| TO "A ship. II seems TO be standing
head on, pointing to the south and
low in the water, The sails are short.
ened as they would be in what sailors
call half gale The whole forma.
tion is very dark, as II the hull were
painted black and the sails weather
| beaten. II has three masts and is
higher on the fore than on the main
| Upon coming on the side OF the vessel
the Illusion vanishes and the whole
| thing resolves itself into a conglom-
| Grafton of black rocks The perpet.
| ual fog of those regions of course
helps to befuddle the vision.
The rock looking like a ship is by
no means rare natural formation.
Almost every sailor has seen one in
some part of the world In the Clip
perton islands there is great white
rock looking like three-masted
schooner leaning on the wind with
her royals set and the sun shining
on her white sails About six or
seven miles west Of Honolulu there is
rock known as French FJigate
rock, because once upon a time a
French frigate went ashore on H.
The cliffs looked so much like a ship
that the frigate was deceived and
thought she was meeting another ship.
St Paul island in the middle of the
Atlantic is said to look very much
/ lllrn d uhIn. n,.L..r,