Iditarod pioneer., 1915-12-04
HEROIC FIGHT OF ABLER
 BEFORE THE END CAME

rosl, the former Iditarod men who were passengers on board the iI.-fated power schooner P J Abler when she was destroyed by fire off Juneau, Alaska, on September 50 last, will have an interesting tale of adven ture to relate concerning their experiences. 4 special cable to the Seattle Post t-Intllli- gencer, dated Juneau, September 28, two days before the destruction of the vessel, iS as fellows.
 It k a sturdy breed of sa;lors that handle the small often shabby and battered two masted power schooners which carry tie mail and supplies two CT three times d year to the frontier outposts of Alaska, and this afternoon, with the arrN al of the r. J AbIer from Seattle fer the kuskokwinl, and other thrLng chapter was added 10 their colorlLI history
 This is the same schooner Ablar and the same master, Captain E. B. Hoffman, that was stranded high and dry few years ago CD the Alaska coast and buried deep in the sand thrown up by the storm. On that oc casIon, before the freeze set ln, Captain HoH man conaived, by means of q scoop ,hoEti made from al oil drum, to dig his schooner out and get her to sea.
 Fight With Gales
 Today Captain Hoffman brings to port story Of fighting against the terrlDle odds of a succession of gales, while his deeply laden schooner, disabled and helpless, was tossed Ike chip in huge seas which threatened at every moment to overwEelm her
 The AbIer left Seattle September 13 with the badly needed winter supplies for the min CTS on the hu>kokwlm. The schooner uses both sail and gasoline engine.
 No sooner was the Abler out of Puget sound than engine trouble began The v5s- ael was anchored olt IimekiIn point and the engine room force turned to at repairs A gale arose and the schooner bucl;ng against the anchor, parted her cable With the anchor left behind the schooner was started northward. Then leak deyelgp ped but the gascliLe-drlyen pump was capable of caring for this
 Dangerous Seymour Narrows
 At Seymour narIows is one of the most dangerous bits of the inside passage Only at one stage cf the tide the moment after its food when the VIZ CT Is quiet do vessels push through the tyrt;0us rock strewn Iaby- rin.h.
 In -ho narrowS, five minutes after the Adler had chugyed past Nipple rock, the
 eerlg gear broke, To stop at that point for rc: a.rs W4s suicidal. yet to push on without means to steer seemed equally haz- &cc.cus. Captain Hoffman chose to push on, matching the shove of the engines against the tiGal eddies as best h. could, and even tuaIly bringing his rudderless vessel safely into wide waters.
 Temporary repairs to the tiller were then made, and the schooner pushed on to ketcAj- han. there the crew promptly deserted, claiming that the ship was overloaded and the water in the hold vas up to the floor of the forecastle
 Another Crew Found
 Another crew was found and the schooner went cu next day That same evening the bilge pump broke aid the AbIer put in to WrangeII for repairs. At o'clock on the morning of September 23 the Abler passed Cape Decision and entered the open ocean. The weather was fine and the sea smooth.
 By evening fair wind had switched into the southeast and freshened into a gale. By midnight seas were sweeping the schooner fore and aft. Captain Hoffman ordered all sail stripped, except storm Tb. Oil bags were put out to prevent the seas burying the schooner.
 Wallowing through the blackness threat ened with annihilation by every topphng comber, it would have seemed to the lands man that the little schooner had no chance for life. The vessel was leaking, but the pump was caring for that and did its work we'll until 8 o'clock in the morning, when it suddenly stopped The water commenced to flood the hold
 Overcome by Gas
 Assistant Engineer E. Born was over come by gas collected in the engine room. Captain Hoffman ordered all hands on deck to jettison cargo That is the shipmaster's last desperate effort to save his vessel, by throwing away his freight and Tightening his burden.
 The water pouring into the hold crept up about the fywheel of the engine Then that faithful heavy-duty slave hesitated in it's grunting, coughed weakly and gave up he fight.
 "All hands-set the foresal" roared Captain Hoffman Look lively about it."
 With headway gone, the schooner was the sport of every joStling wave. The seas broke waist deep across her as the crew fought to break out the canvas When this was done the foresail steadied the ship and gave her headway again. Captain Hoffman headed northeast
 Then they set to bailing, bailing with the ,f ,,,In