The Republican journal., 1915-05-06
A Maine Captain.
:, Young, Native Of Hancock, Tells
Pau of War Time Trips.
Ellsworth Americana

Ellsworth American.
r.. following from the Galveston News
w. ,I.rcb 18th, is of interest to the many
49,. of Capt. Frank A. Young, who
N'' ,orp in Hancock about fifty years
We ,s5 who for more than twenty years
W .,mmanded Mallory line steamers.
ea' last command, before the Neches,
.be Denver, which, after he had
.., his new ship, foundered at sea.
~s galveston News says:
ip Tss new Mallory steamship Neches,
5sparted for New York yesterday
t sa with one Of the largest gen.
,.rg0es ever taken on a coastWise
ga Err out of the port, has had crowd
;5gnT7 the brief span of six months that
e. -. has been out of the hands Of her
'u' rs enough exciting adventures and
'. -.,g4s to last the average ship life
- She has made two trips to Rotter-
s.,-oue with food for the Belgium re-
' committee and one with cotton
W. ..,n9 through mine-strewn waters,
~, riding North Atlantic storms, and
r. made trip through the Panama
Us pal fa the Pacific coast. 1.-The Neches
as fast she looks" said Captain
@ge we're chartered by the Rockefel-
-ruraatIon to carry cargo of 5000
M. -four in bags and other supplies
B- yum relief committee at Rot
..ga.. Holland, during the latter part
XIV. mver," said Captain Young,
a. If MS trips and referring to his
. rr 1a.es, 1--WE were very deeply
.ag North Atlantic winter trip,
gssu q few hundred miles east of
F., s ra We ran into seven days of
r.s aUest heavy gales and seas,
rrss Of hurricane force. 1t was
mr. rough on those of US aboard,
-. N7ches went through all right,
,t 81. .ery often looked like half
h ledge in storm. 1t was heavier
r.s.re. than | have ever experienced
1gglere, except off Cape Horn in sail
mn ship days, when | was youngster.
ave were very fortunate in the Eng
isr channel and had fine, clear weather.
toos every pilot available-even went
n,t of my way to get them-as thought
t,4 Rockefeller Foundation could stand it,
end needed them all. We went through
wrtou. special incident. We were very
much surprised at the shipping activity.
Fsgs OF every nation, with the exception
ii The German and Austrian, were to be
.esa liz the harbors, with British naval
vessels of all kinds, torpedo boats and
,D.naynes, the latter skimmlng about
-st submerged.
" Al Rotterdam, surely spotless
u'a- town, was surprised at the gen.
rsops Even the little boys and girls
ngug about the streets-and therewere
ags..eis Of appeared healthy,
s=srg and happy. Despite the fact that
tier was lighting but forty miles from
Us ~, heard no more about it at Rotter-
qa .ran at home. Our entire informa-
toa as was the informa ton of all the
r-s1sgLs, so they told US, was from the
newspapers.
"H- returned to New York in Jan
asD Va the southern passage and the
A2jrHs and had good weather. On arrival
W found We were chartered by Capt. A.
I .aurcniii of the Churchill line, Savan-
5a9 to cad cotton at Savannah to Rot
;e-1an, We departed on February 7th
with ,9o5 bales, at SIS per bale freight.
With orders to make time or bust We
ls5 the former alternative, and went
@Aoueriam from Savannah, distance
4 1851 miles, in eleven and one-half
lays. about IA 1-3 knots average speed.
lI-sve :hls establishes new record.
"17my first trip had forty-two hours
-s.sHron On account of pilots-taking
them and putting them off-but on
'a -5nI trip it was but four hours,
a0t 9a 4verage speed in the English
Gme. and North Sea of fourteen knots,
a' IN Rotterdam at midnight, Feb
g-r. >.s, on the day that the German
announcement that all British ships would
.t st.acseQ went into effect.
u.Hl home from Rotterdam we
"- al Midnight. In two trips each
9s. have not yet seen the Holland coast
g sa-. Between $50 and 8 a. m. in
~- s.r'a Sea we passed three floating
47-= quite close. They look like
Dug a.S umbrella, spread, and just
-.ll Z uto the water, handle down,
'-g- Three or four feet across and foot
amy. Wafer at the highest part. Their
4.st aa0aL foot apart, are scattered
4.es ne surface. These fingers are
aO9. t1 inches long and one-half inch
DO diameter, 1t gives the mine the ap-
.afa.e5 of a gigantic prickly pear. The
lyaa.Ig mines can be seen by daylight a
la'- m.e away, or in plenty of time to
s'. tom, If they are in the steamers
paul. We hurried back to New York,
sAF--'As o take another cargo abroad,
pI. io0ul that the British embargo had
care led The deal.
OF Irst trip, after our maiden trip
5aFrston, was to San Francisco via
VIC rs1ama canal, under charter to Sud-
-'I Darlstensen for trip from Balti-
J J. with 5000 tons of coal. We left
ga''iI'oFe on September 23rd for Colon,
- cur passage through the Panama
. ,'. was one of the most interesting
. %.t TIPS that l have ever made. On
FpIoaahing the locks the canal authori-
M 'aAe charge of handling the ship.
.aee electric engines, called mules.
, rae- last on each side by wire to the
'F enl the ships engines are also used
a -s.'silng the mules.
'Ae snip IS drawn at once into the first
s %oS ana is hardly in place before a mas
S NV. 'gcR gate closes behind and the water
s s.''s N. Up you go thirty feet, almost
44'tNy as you can tell it. When your
ra1' 10 .siaed to this level, the next lock
tg T's ana The mules get busy again. In
m, I manner .n1n your ship is taken up three
ys '' d distance of eighty-five feet from
cs,l you steam out into the artificial
N i'l' lake This is about twenty-five
S r,-.' across to the Pacific locks and for
1T and scenery it is hard to beat.
Inc w m started across early in the morn
All. Inc water was calm and the huge
ana Mountains coming down shrunt-