Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1913-02-11
ABANDONED
VESSEL IS
A MYSTERY
Steamer Finds Ship, Undamaged,
but Entire Grew is
Gone.
NO CLUE TO RIDDLE
Bark is Taken in Tow; But
Later is Lost in

Newport News, Va, Feb. 6.-An
other mystery of the deep, practical
ly paralleling the unexplained dis.
appearance Of the crew of the
schooner Marie Celeste several years
ago, has been reported here by the
British tank steamer Roumanian. On
Jan. 10, churning along ten days GU,
from Port Arthur and near the Az
ores, 1t picked up the Norwegian
bark Remittent, seaworthy, provis-
Toned and fully rugged, but without
a soul aboard and no indication of
the crews fate. The Roumanian,
after towing the Remittent to with
in 100 miles of Cape Henry, lost it
in a violent gale.
The Marie Celeste was found at
sea with a pot boiling in it's galley
and its captains papers on the cab
in table and every indication that it
had been abandoned within few
hours of its discovery. But nothing
ever was heard Of it's skipper or
crew.
The story of the Remittent is
scarcely less strange.
The Roumanian sighted the Re-
mittent in latitude 40 degrees 80
minutes and longitude n degrees 80
minutes, riding heavy sw ell with
out hand to guide 1t before a
freshening breeze. The big tank
steamers lookout Immediately re-
ported 1t as ship out of control
and Captain Claridge set out in pur-
suit.
While the Roumanian was coming
up on it, the Remittent, with tiller
banging to and fro, was running
wild, first to one point Of the COM
pass and then to the other. The
Roumanian lowered boats to take a
line to the bark. After more than
an hours jockeying, during which
the Remittent sailed in swoops and
dashes, now stopping dead, atremble
in the eye of the wind, and then
bounding away to the cracking of
what canvas was not furled, the pur-
suing small boat finally caught and
boarded 1t.
It's deck planks, once swabbed and
holystoned to a glistening white.
bore the marks of many feet, but
there was nothing to explain the
disappearance Of the master and
crew. In the cabin, some odds and
ends rolled and clinked in the corn
ers, but the lockers and drawers
were undisturbed and the charts and
papers were quite secure. In the
water tanks there was full supply
Of fresh water; and the stores Of salt
horse and biscuits. were not depleted.
A mainsail and two jibs were furled
snugly and the life boats swung at
the davits.
The Roumanian's boarders bent a |
hawser to their prize and took it In
tow. A few hours later the vessels
ran into gale which lost the tank
er its prize. after gallant fight had
been made to save 1t.
The steamer and it's tow bowled
along together in fairly favorable
for several days, but in a
gale met 100 miles of Cape Henry,
Captain Ciaridge lost the Remittent.
AS the sea arose the bark plung-
ed Ikea wild thing at the long
hawser and finally snapped the
strands that bound 1t to the steamer.i
Twice the Roumanian attempted to
launch boats to carry another line
aboard the derelict, but each time
they were dashed against its sides
and crushed against the iron plates
by heavy seas. The boat crews es-
capped drowning by the narrowest
margin. Captain Claridge finally
gave up the attempt and made for
port. leaving the Remittent at the
mercy of wind and sea. No ship has
it since.