The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1908-04-14
SOME DOUBT
SEWALL STORY
From Saturdays Advertiser)

delphia published in the Advertiser yes
terday morning that Hawaiian sailor
a survivor of the lost Arthur Sewall
had arrived at Philadelphia, aroused
much interest in Honolulu.
The Sydenham which brought this
survivor of the Sewall to Philadelphia
is a Norwegian bark of $40 tons under
command of Captain Guthormsen. She
sailed from Newcastle, New South
Wales December q for africa, in
northern Chile. Newcastle and africa
are separated by about l3O degrees OF
longitude and twenty degrees of lati-
tude. The eabled account states that
the rescued sailor left the Arthur Sew
all and saw her burn soon after she
rounded the Horn. Assuming that the
Sewall had passed little to the north
ward of Cape Horn in the Pacific ocean,
it is quite conceivable that a sailing
vessel from Newcastle to africa might
be in the same locality and thus pick
up any survivor. The Sydenham reach
ed africa March 2, just little over
a month ago, and "A days out from
Newcastle. africa is an unimportant
town of 5000 inhabitants, so it is readi-
lv conceivable that news even of so
important matter as the loss of the
Arthur Sewall might not get to the
world from africa. nor until the Syden-
ham reached an American port from
africa, and Philadelphia seems to be
the first port she reached. Arriving
at africa March ., and allowing rea-
sonable time there to load or discharge
OF both would require pretty smart
voyage to have reached Philadelphia
by April 9.
From these deductions, however, 1t
would appear that the Arthur Sewall
must have made a very long passage
from Philadelphia to Cape Horn or
have been a very long time getting
around the Horn. She left Philadel-
phia April 3, 1907 AS the Sydenham
did not leave Newcastle until Decem-
Der 81, more than eight months after
wards. and as it must have taken some
time for her to get into the locality
of where the Sewall was, in order to
pick up the survivors who had been
out in a boat for three days only, it
must have been ten months at least
after the sailing of the Sewall before
she was lost This would indicate that
something had gone wrong with her
long before this survivor of her loss
parted company with her.
Of course the cable advices regard
ing the matter are yet meagre and in
complete. According to what was re-
ceived yesterday the Sewall took fire
soon after rounding Cape Horn, and it
soon became certain that the vessel
would have to be abandoned. In get
ting away from the ship Second Mate
Weinberg. and Charles Dixon Baker, a
Hawaiian sailor, were engaged in low
ering a boat The fastenings gave way
and they with the boat fell to the
water. They drifted free from the ship
and were unable to take any of their
fellow seamen aboard. They were with |
out equipment or provisions in any
quantity. Their boat drifted away and
they saw the ship burn. After three
days of helpless drifting they and their
boat were picked up by the bark Syden-
ham which brought them to Philadel-
phia. These two men know nothing
of the fate of their shipments.
The news that a survivor had reach
ed Philadelphia after so long time
was received with considerable incred-
ulitv along the waterfront yesterday.
1t seemed incredible that if there
should be any survivors they would not
have been heard from before this. 1t
was recalled that only a short time ago
a sailor appeared in New York claim
ing to be a survivor of the Tile +.
Starbuek and told a story of wreck and
hardship that while narrowing was
readily proved untrue. There was the
thought that there might be something
in the present case like that.
The records of the United States
Shipping Commissioner here, so far as
they have been searched, do not show
the shipment from here of any Hawai-
ian by the name of Charles Dixon Bak-
er. When the Arthur Sewall sailed
from here twenty months ago she had
four Hawaiians among her crew. These
gave their names as Charles Dixon,
Charles Kanikau, S. Sam, and Sam
John. Hawaiians are often known un-
der two different names, one Hawai-
ian. the other English, one often the
equivalent of the other. They do not
always ship under the names by which
thew are known. 1t does not necessari-
" follow that the Charles Dixon Baker
left here in the Sewall. There are
good many Hawaiian sailors scattered
about the world.
1t was reported yesterday that some
native had said that he thought the
real name of the Charles Dixon who