The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1913-03-29
OWED IN SAN FRANCISCO BAY
Been a Sailor Since He Was
Is Years Old.
Put Up at Most Ports, Now He's
1,5OO Miles From Sea.

Here's a man who ran away when he
was a youngster in knickers, went to
sea, has risked his life to save his fell
low men, been in five wrecks encircled
the globe in man o'war, been sub
marine for five years, scared $500 feet
in the air, and sailed 2s3 feet under the
sea. lie is W. H. Essig, recently sta
toned in Topeka federal building a
naval recruiting officer but anxious TO
ride the high seas as soon as his term
OF office expires He's nearly 1900
miles from salt water, and that's too
far.
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under
the Sea" sounds like primer after the
tales Essig tells. And he declares,
with a slap of his fist, Jules Verne has
nothing on me-.
Essig began his nautical career when
he was fifteen, shipped from New York
for SO a month on the U. S S. Illinois"
and only escaped court martial after a
stormy scene with his parents who
didn't approve of his salty vocation.
Now he's one of the bravest and best
informed men in the service, and in line
for a Carnegie medal. but asserts he
was next door to good-for-nothing
finally allowed to depart for realms I'M
known. He felt the call of the rolling
waves, and answered it swiftly. The
Illinois was stationed with the Ger
man North Atlantic fleet, and later to
China. the West Indies, and the Canary
Isles, far famed in ballad. Essig
cruised as far south as man has gone,
and skirted the northern coast of
Alaska.
Il guess I've seen about all there is
TO see,'' quoth Essig, sticking his hands
in his pocket. He is a jovial as Old
King Cole, and bellies his name which
is Dutch and means vinegar"
Essig had had a brief electrical edu-
cation at the Newport Training School
1t was in May, 1907. that he began his
career on a submarine-took his life in
his hands with every dip of the boat,
and enjoyed the excitement of it. He
had become chief electrician on the L.
S. S. Pike
You see," he explained, 1.-The first
submarines We're all named for fish
Sure sign of the old type. u. S. S.
'Grampus' was sister to the Pike
They've anged it all now, though
Some of the boys objected to trotting
around with Z. S. s Lobster or U.
s. S Devilfish' in gold letters across
their caps. The land lubbers laughed
at 'em. Nobody wants to be lobster
So the government changed the system
Now they're all named by numbers, U
S. s y. l. or B. 2
He Loves the Sea.
Essig loves the sea as Kansan
loves the prairie, and wasn't even
startled d
marine. The weird little craft skated
along half out of the blue waters near
the Golden Gate, the pilot twisted the
diving rudder, and the ship shot
down.
Essig looked through the periscope.
The water was emerald green, clear
as a bottle, full of floating jelly fish |
like a rainbow fleet of capsized bal |
looms Fifty feet under the bay a |
school of porpoises padded along by |
the ship, wondering what kind of fish |
the pike" might be, and whether II !
ate porpoises. The water grew black. I
The boat plunged down Two hun |
dred feet under the sea- EssigS ears /
rang. The pike" danced along at Y |
knots an hour. Then she turned, shot |
up, and landed among the tugs and 1
ferry boats serenely sailing the harbor. |
A tug took her in tow, and the ap |
pearance of the bobbing craft, half in,
half out of the water so alarmed /
watchers on shore that they spread |
the report of wreck: when the
"'Grampus" appeared several minutes
later the landlubbers were bewildered.
And it was nothing to scare them"
said Essig, fonly a queer little sub
marine"
He Only Had One Love.
Essig, unlike the proverbial sailor boy.
didn't have a love in every port He had
a love In one Danny Cupid unsIung his
wicked bow and hit the electrician hard
So Essig left the Pike and went to San
Francisco to get married He returned to
on the i'll fated Santa Rosa that pounded |
to pieces in the surf near Cape Concep- |
ton 1t was here that the runaway !
mariner earned his name of the life saw
ing kid He did the work of a dozen |
men, His name was sent to W ashiugton,
and recommended for a Carnegie medal !
Essig won't talk about his heroiSnl. He'll
show you big scrap book full of news
paper clippings. ''Essig Does Fine Work =
"Lirer Agent Lauds Essig,'' stare at you
In double column heads.
The seaman was on the submarine FL,
manned by Lieutenant James r. Howell, J
when it broke the worlds record and
dove to depth of 2S3 feet The story Is
q great one crew of twenty three
their fingers at death. and faced
him bravely for SIX long hours under
San Francisco Pc.
The descent was made in the Pot
Hole " said EsSig. a rocky bed in which |
the Rio Janerio was lost fifteen years
ago If we'd gone five feet further, 1
guess we'd be there yet.
III never forget the deep sea dinne-
We mad went on Essig. after we knew
we'd broken the record made by the