Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-02-11
SKIPPER REMAINS
ON WRECKED SHIP
British Captain Refuses to
Go With Grew, Dis
patches Here Say
SECOND SHIP FOUNDERS
American Bark St. James Bat
tered by Pacific Cyclone, but
All on Board Are Rescued

Foundering OF the American bark st.
James, its crew. escaping in open boats
in the Pacific ocean. and the plight OF
the storm-battered British schooner
Charlevoix and It's plucky captain are
told in dispatches received at the branch
photographic Office in the Bourse Build
ing
The st. James was pounded to pieces
on Il bar. The Charevoix waterlogged
and dismantled, is believed to be drift
ing somewhere on the Atlantic Ocean
with its captain aboard to prevent sal
vagng vessels from claiming the
schooner az prize. The CharlevoiX
captain refused to abandon the ship
when his crew was rescued by another
vessel
The bark ST. james. with Captain r.
ID. McRae in command. sailed from Van
couver. British Columbia. October G
with general cargo consigned to Cape
town, South Africa.
Ran Into Cyclone
Nearly one month from sailing the
bark ran into cyclone, one of those
ripping. whirlng storms that scud over
heroically at the pumps and had a
chance to save the vessel when the
cyclone hurled II against n bar near
Oeno Island. in the south Pacific.
Tho St James, shattered by the
pounding surf foundered November G.
captain and crew escaping in open boats
and reaching the island. There the men
remained for more than n month, un-
aware that the armistice had been
signed. The shipwrecked men finally
signaled the steamship Port Agusta.
bound for Sydney, Australia. They
were landed at Sydney last Thursday.
The bark 81. James was three
master of 1886 tons and was built in
1888 at Bath. Me. The Alaska Barge
Company was the owner.
Three Masts Snapped
The Charlevoix ran into a gale on the
Atlantic Ocean that snapped off three
masts and swept deckload Of lumber
into the sea. The schooner, commanded
by Captain Roberts, sailed from st. An
drew, Fla, for Macoris. San Domingo
with hold and deck piled with lumber.
For three days Captain Roberts and
his screw battled with the gale. But
as one by one the masts bent and snap.
ped under the gales intensity they al
most gave up hope. The CharlevoiS
had no wireless.
Bade skipper Goodbye
After the gale died down and the
violently pitching schooner had righted
itself the crew sought rest for the first
time in nearly seventy-two hours. They
set distress signals and waited for the
first vessel to hove in sight.
The steamer J. A. Bostwick from Port
Arthur was the first ship sighted The
crew believed Captain Roberts would
follow them into the Bostwicks life
boat. But as they were about to go
over the side Of their helpless schooner.
tho master announced he was going to
stick nv It. He did not want 1t to fall
a nrize to some salvage tug or steam-
ship, he told them.
So the crew shock hands with the
nlucky skipper. wished him luck and
clinbed into the lifeboat. Captain Rob
erts told the officer in charge OF the
lifeboat TO report to the Charlevoix
owner M. Griecf, Bridgeton, N. s., that
the schooner was filling with water and
drifting about in latitude ~ north, long
itude 1885 west
The seven members of the schooner's
crew were landed yesterday at Key West.
.rhe story of the vessels mishap and
lis masters daring was sent by wireless
from Key West to the branch hydro
graphic Office in the Bourse.