The Hawaiian gazette., 1909-12-10
NUUANU HAD
A ROUGH TRIP
Captain Josselyn Reports Worst
Time OFF the Horn for
Fifty Trips.
(From Thursday's AdvertIser.l

Battling with gales rounding Cape
Horn, the American bark Nuuanu,
which arrived In port yesterday fore
noon, had no easy voyage this trip.
Captain Josselyn brought his trim
looking craft around from New York
in good shape, after what he describes
rs the worst trip of the fifty he has
made through the storm belt of the
Horn, Some of his cargo Of stoves
may be found broken when the steve
dores commence discharging the yes
sci, and Captain Josselyn said he only
wished the owner of the cargo could
have been aboard for week or two,
or only for FIVE minutes, just to hear
the racket the cargo made when the
ship rolled and twisted, for then they
would not expect stoves, for instance,
to come out whole. Captain Josselyn
gives very breezy account of his
voyage, as follows:
"We sailed from New York July
Il, and had pleasant weather to the
equator, which we crossed August 81,
in longitude 25 west. This weather
continued to Staten Island. which we
sighted September 90. A moderate
gale from the southwest drove us back
| behind the island, where we spent
uuN WIN emoOlu WdttI anu
| the land only Ave miles off. We en-
! joyed looking at the land, for though
kthe mountains were covered with snow,
land looks good after two months Of
water only. NY intention was to take
the Straits of lie Marie, as usual, but
when breeze came up from the north
it was so foggy that L went around
the island, and when we got to lee
ward the fog cleared, and we had
delightful sail to Cape Horn, with all
sail set and the water as smooth as u
pond.
| "We passed Cape Horn on September
% sixty-eight days out and passed with
in five or six miles of the cape with
the wind still from the north. A large
full-rigged ship was in company, but
steered away to the south and east.
wards of the Diego Rameriex Islands,
while / Rugged the coast as long as I
could until the wind came out north
west and headed me off. But / was
then one hundred and thirty miles to
the westward of Cape Horn and thought
all my troubles over, and began to
think of q quick passage and glad
surprise to my New York friends, for
they had bid me goodbye with eau
tion to take care of myself for they
all new ] had hard cargo to handle.
They did not know what l knew for
it was impossible to stow it without
having the vessel too stiff. Only my
self and the stevedores knew that, but
they had lost so many friends the last
good ships have disappeared lately, that
they said goodbye as though it might
J be for the last time.
IfTha dav wp paaqeJ tba emma k,yo
large steamers passed us bound east,
and with the fine weather and smooth
! water and steamers-I never met one
J off Cape Horn before-it was like q
} yachting cruise. But old Neptune was
only fooling. The next day it was
bowling gale from the northwest, and
all we could show were close reefed
sails. We passed the English bark
; with signals, IN. P. II. L., eighty days
out from the Tyne river for Callao. AS
we passed her we signaled all the fore
noon. What seemed to puzzle them
was when they asked me to spell my
name or rather the bark g name. They
could not believe that 'Nuuanu' would
spell anything, and said they could
read the signals but could not make
T out what they meant. Evidently they
had not been to Honolulu. Then 10
} came on to blow. never knew it to
continue so long. From September 25
, to October 3 it was a bowling gale.
, We ought to have been under a goose.
winged main topsail only, but we roll
, ed so fearfully / was afraid the masfs
, would go over the side, so ! kept both
lower topsails and the fore topmast
staysail on her until the two latter
blew away, and also blew away the boat
| NO ohinna1 hoA
the decks, washing away the tanks and
ladders. All that kept the main top
sail on was hemp sail We had by
this time drifted down to 81 south lati-
; tude and we found il was cold and
freezing During the height of the gale,
we heard a crash and found the truss
of the foreyard broken. That was a
bad job as we had Just had new truss
made in New York. We spent several
Q hours with chain and lashings securing
it, but we did ii all right, although the
4 yards almost touched water as we roll
ed. The gale continued until Sunday,
0 October 10. Then il moderated and the
: sea went down and the sun came out,
Y but we were n sight. The whole ship
: was coated with ice from truck to deck,
. and we also had bad list TO port for
the cargo had shifted. We could scarce
\ ~ stand on deck which was slippery
with ice. We made sail as fast as we
could with everything frozen, but at
ten o clock the sun melted the ice from
the deck so we could stand and we had
, all sail on her.
But Neptune was not yet through
/, with us. BY two o'clock the wind was
out northwest again and blowing gale,
continuing for three days but NOT so
bard but we could cnrry n little sail
and hold our own.
Zone day. IN the height OF these
gales, large f0ur'masted ship passed
US on the other tack, heading north.
Two weeks afterwards we were again Ia
company, but had reversed our position
lie was five miles to leeward aud dis.
, appeared, We still had hard fight
/. until October 81 when We passed the
: leland Of Mnsa'Fnera aud had another
! good look ~ the land, Then Neptune
J lot up On Us, The wind cams southeast