The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1913-04-03
SAILORS STORES ON
LONELY SHORES,

Parsons Weekly: That all expedi-
tionS, whether arctic or otherwise,
place food depots within reach in case
Of need is, of course, we'll known, but
few people are aware that there are
certain rarely-visited islands and
desolate coasts where depots of pro-
visions and necessities have been
placed for the use of shipwrecked
crews. The most extensive supplies
of this sort are those existing on
some of the lonely islands in the
South Indian ocean. South of the
liner track to Australia, via the cape,
lie Crozet and Kerguelen islands.
In h jubilee yea of Queen Victoria
a French Warship placed in a hut on
one of the Crozets a good stock of
food and necessities, including two
spears and two hatchets. 1t is highly
probable that the bulk, if not all of
these stores, are still there, for the
warship in question found the pro-
visions left by a British warship eight
years before absolutely intact.
The h~andbooks furnished to all
British shipmasters indicate exactly
the whereabouts of these cached
stores. A seal hunter, who sought 10
find the depot on Kerguelen island,
wrote: at was as Easy as If we had
had a sign post"
The Kerguelen depot was fitted out
by the French. ship Eure, which, in
1898, left ""2,250 pounds Of preserved
beef in boxes of nine pounds, 1925
pounds of biscuits, twenty swanskin
shirts, twenty pairs of wooden draw
ers, twenty wooden blankets and four
packets of Matches Furthermore,
great trouble was taken to protect the
stores from the weather.
/ The beef boxes were coated with
ftaT, as were the iron-hooped barrels
containing the biscuits and clothes,
and the matches were in boxes paint
ed over with red lead.
l. Fourteen years afterwards Captain
du Baty, who spent many months
sealing on the island, examined the
depot. Even though the goods had
been buried beneath a cairn of stones,
the casks had rotted away, and the
clothing fell to pieces when opened
out. The biscuits had been turned to
sour pulp, and long, green strands of
moss were growing on the barrels.
The timed beef vas perfectly good
and was agreeable to the taste. He
failed to find the matches, but left
some Of his own, together with
needles and Irvine.
On Amsterdam island, farther north
the Board of Trades handbook notifies
the fact that the French supplies are
in q cavern where have also been left
a cooking pot, cots and dry wood. Or
this island the stranded Crusoe will
find, too, abundance of wild cabbage
and celery growing, and Holsters ant
fish are plentiful.
On the west coast Of Tasmania
there are some very lonely districts
At Rocky Point shipwrecked mariners
may find relief stores, and, in order t.
aid them to regain civilization, tracks
have been made for their benefit. will
iron index fingers every quarter-mile
pointing in the direction of the relic
station" And, on a river where ford
ing is necessary, a raft has been left
In readiness.
Similar provision exists on some O.
the outlying islands of New Zealand
and these are visited by a government
steamer ice or twice each year /,
case castaWays are needing rescue. Ii
Vancouver shelter sheds are erected
On some lonely shores, and thence thu
shipwrecked sailor can ring up ;
central station on the telephone.
Refugees in TERRA del Fuego learr
from the same source above quotet
that they can trust the Yaghans K
conduct them to mission stations OF
settlements" but the "Alacalufs ar,
aggressive and treacherous, though
however great their number, they will
not attack a combination of three OF
four persons, especially if they arc
aware that these persons possess fire.
arms or implements resembling them.'