The Republican journal., 1915-07-01
The Old Bark Matanzas,
Coal Laden, Founders at Sea. Only Three
Survive of Her Crew.

The old Yankee barkentine Matan-
zas, which has succumbed to the god of
storms in her twenty-sixth year, had
picturesquely adventurous career. She
had more bad luck and more good luck
than almost any other vessel along the
coast. She left Newport News for Cadiz
on her last voyage, and nobody thought
anything could sink her.
A hundred miles to the eastward of
Bermuda she ran into heavy gales that
plucked out her masts. She foundered,
her cargo of coal, 400 tons-shifted,
and Capt. E. H. Nuss and his crew of
nine had just time to get into the long
boat.
On the second day in the drifting long
boat death took its first victim. All
hands bailed night and day. Ten days
were passed in that unspeakable long,
boat without food or fresh water, At
the rate of about man day they per-
ished. The absence of their weight
providentially, perhaps, for Capt. Nuss
made the boat more buoyant. Four
men died on the fifth day and three on
the ninth.
Then the schooner Bayard Barnes
rescued those that We're left, Capt. Nuss.
the steward of the lost Matanzas and
one sailor. They were taken to hospi-
tai in Para. Capt. Nuss left the two
men in the hospital at Para. He came
to New York on the steamer Rio de
, Janeiro and has gone to his Connecticut
home.
This vessel was an unofficial smuggler,
prize of war, tanker (molasses, water or
oil, according to charter,) blockade rum
ner, mail packet in time of war and
drougher. She was repaired and re-re-
paired, rebuilt, refastened, new spared,
new rugged, surveyed and specially sur
veyed, and was still good risk.
Bill Rogers, the shipbuilder of Bath,
| did an honest job when he showed over
board the Matanzas. During the Span
ish war, w. D. Munson & Co. owned her,
and she was once sailing packet be-
tween Havana and New York.
Before the Munsons bought her she
carried clandestine cigars, which, how
ever, were handled by her thrifty crews,
not by her owners. A sailor who had a
speculation gave away the smugglers to
the collector. He said she brought in
Is, 900 cigars at time. Her mate was
caught trying to smuggle cigars ashore,
and in the gallery were more smokes.
Two years before the Spanish war
she had been equipped with tanks of 3d.
900 gallons capacity for bringing mo-
lasses.
In the early days of the conflict in Gu
ban waters the Atlantic Fleet had to
turn back the Matanzas to save her hide.
So when she got along to about the lati-
tude of Key West and found that Ad-
miral Sampson wanted fresh water,
what more appropriate than that she
should take government charter to
carry Schuylkill water from Philadel-
phia to the fleet?
Next she fitted out as mail ship to
carry code dispatches from Florida for
the Cuban revolutionists. On her first
trip in this new character size bore Joa-
quin AlOin, the representative in Costa
RIGA of the Cuban party, landing him
safely on Cuban soil.
Pendleton Brothers were her next
owners. The epileptic of the coast was
next reported flying signals of distress
while making trip from Brunswick,
Ca, to Philadelphia.
On another trip she lost her rudder off
Body's Island on her way from Whining
ton, N. c., for New York. Again she
had to display off the North Carolina