The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-06-02
Loss Of Collier Cyclops May Remain One of Many
 UnsoLOed Mysteries Of Sea
To Account For Disappearance of Ship With More Than 300 Persons Aboard Various Theories Have Been Advanced All Possible But None Entirely Plaus- ible-Navy Department Complies List of
 Missing Vessels of Past

acterizes the disappearance of the ship as one of the most mysterious in modern sea annals.
 Leaving the West Indian harbor on March f. the Cyclops was expected to touch at an Atlantic port on March Is. When attention was called to the fact that she was a few days overdue, no anxiety was felt, because it was known she had one engine out of commission. However, when a week passed and there was even no news that she had been sighted, feeling of great apprehension swept over the navy department. Every effort was made to find her, but on April II the department gave permission to pub lish the facts, which long had been with held.
 CLINICS TO HOPE
 Secretary Daniels still clings to the hope that the mystery will be cleared, but there are not many in the depart ment who share his view.
 The call of blue water always has stirred and will stir the blood of men. But just as much as in romance, the seven seas abound in tragedy. The ocean has taken It's annual heavy toll of human life from the time of the modern ocean liner and floating steel fortress, back to the days of the ancient Phoenecians, who braved the wild seas Of the Mediterranean in their frail craft and picked their way even to far-off England to barter for Cornwall tin.
 The loss of merchant shipping ever has been great-particularly in these days of the ruthless undersea rover-but for tunately the United States navy has car ried Americas flag over the worlds waters for nearly a century and half without particularly severe losses, due to the clements.
 From the records of the navy depart ment there has been compiled brief list of naval vessels which sailed and then went down in the oceans nav without leaving a soul to tell the story.
 The Saratoga, ship of IS guns, com manded by Captain John Young, was lost at sea with all on board in March, 17S1.
 A few years later, the General Gates, also a ship of IS guns, built in TIT or ITS, was lost without trace The Pickering, brig of 14 guns, weigh ing 1S7 tons, and carrying a crew Of 9O men sailed from Newcastle, Del, on Au- gust 20 1SO0 in command of Lieut.. D. Iirar. Bound for the Guadalupe station, she never was heard from that date, 1t being believed that she floundered 1n an eduinoctial gale in September that same year.
 The Insurgent, which had been cap tured from the French in 1779 by the u 5. S. Constellation, sailed from Hampton Roads on August 8, 1900, for a cruise in the West Indies. She also is believed to have gone down with her crew of 54o men in one of the equinoctial gales that caused the Pickering to go under.
 The Wasp with 140 men, under com mand of Com. Johnsvon Blakely, engaged and captured on September l. 1874, the British brig Atalanta. Swedish brig re- ported having spoken to her three weeks after that date, but no further news ever was heard about her. She is supposed to have foundered in a gale.
 The Hamilton, one of Commodore Chauncey's squadron on Lake Ontario, capsized on the night of August 10, 1913, while trying to weather the enemy squadron. "All hands," says the official chronicle, ''are supposed to have been at quarters"
 , The Epervier. ship of IS guns and a complement of 18 captured rom the British by the U. S. S. Peacock, sailed from Gibraltar for this country on July | 4 1915. She last was seen by merchant vessel on August l4 in mid-Atlantic. | The Lynx, a schooner of three guns l with 50 men on board commanded py Lieut.. J. R. Madison, sailed from St' Marv's Fla, for Jamaica on New l Years day. 1921. She last was sighted ] on January 22 that year. 1 The Wildcat, with three guns and I 31 man. commanded by Tiert. ! E. l3e- I s1 men, commanded by Lieut.. J. E. Le- | in 1924. She is supposed to have gone l ashore on Carysfort reef, as an arm chest and other wreclage from the
 vessel later were found there.
 1 Armed with IS guns and carrying a
 crew of 40 men, the Hornet With e q l foundered in a gale off Tamplco on September 10, 1929, with loss of all hands.
 The Sylph small naval schooner | also is believed to have foundered | few years later as she was never heard
 from after her departure from port.
 The Sea Gull, which left Orange Har- bor for Valparaiso in company With the Flying Fish on April 2S, 1929 lost
 her consort one night, and is believed to have sunk in severe gale, from which the Flying Fish took refuge l under false Cape Horn.
 The Grampus a schooner of 2 guns sailed from Charleston, s. C.. abou' l March 14. 1882, and was due at Nor folk Va. between the Sth and 18th oi l April In June, the navy department
 abandoned all hope for her safety. The Jefferson. a steamer engaged i''
 the coast survey, was lost near the
 Straits of Magellan in 1850.
 The Albany a sloop- of-war with 2lr | men under command of Commander lJ. T. Gerry sailed from Asrinwall cr
 September %. 1854 for New York. Aft
 CT long wait. the steamers Prince ton and Fulton were sent in search o1
 her, but no trace ever was discov- | cred.
 The Levant, also a sloop -of-war witt 210 men under Captain William Hunt departed from IIilo in the Sandwich Islands on September IS, 1860. Vessel. of the Pacific squadron searched fo1 l 'E''s - 11aza