The Union daily times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1918-current, 1921-06-23
ARE PIRATES AFLOAT
IN NORTH ATLANTIC?
is QUESTION Asked

Washington, June 21.-A world
wide search for the missing crew tof
the schooner Carroll A. Deering, Iof
Bath, Me-, which piled on the No4th
Carolina beach last January with hn
sails set, but not a living soul aboafd,
has been started by the state depaTt-
ment through American consuls.
The mystery is being investigaH ed
by the department of justice and ahe
department of commerce as is also
the unexplained disappearance of fhe
American steel Freighter Hewitt,
out of Sabine Pass, Tex, for Bostfn.
This craft disappeared about HE
same time the Deering came ashSSe.
The summary of the history of Lie
| Deering case as sent to consuls Iby
the state department discloses tyAt
when the Deering passed Cape LoVk-
out lightship, North Carolina, on
January 20, while bound from Rio de
Janeiro for Norfolk, a man other
than the master reported that the
vessel had lost both anchors and
| asked it to be reported to its owners.
/ Two days later the vessel was
found on the beach in what the state
department describes as "in such con-
dition that there is every suspicion Of
foul play having occurred"
The departments summary a{So
says that a short time after the
Deering passed the lightship, a steam
er, the name of which has not been
ascertained, passed the light vessel
and was asked to stop and take a
message for forwarding, but no re-
sponse was received to the numerous
attempts on the part of the master Of
the lightship to attract the vessels
attention"
The departments summary then
says that on April II, the following
message was picked up in bottle
near Cape Hatteras.
"Deering captured by oil burning
boat something like chaser, taking
off everything, Handwriting crew.
Crew hiding all over ship. No chance
to make escape. Finder please no.
tify headquarters of Deering."
| "The schooner carried a motor life
boat and dory," the state depart
ment's summary continues, "but
neither of them has been picked up
and no wreckage from them has
been found. Most of the provisions
clothing and supplies of the vessel
had been removed"
Government agents investigating
the Hewitt and Deering cases said
they are baffled and that thus far
they have not found single clue
that might lead to a solution of the
mysteries. Equally as battling, they
say, are the cases of the British
steamer Albyn and the Russian bark
Yute, which disappeared last fall off
the North Carolina coast.
| The Albyn sailed from Norfolk
last October and never was heard
from again, while the Yute when off
Cape Hatteras sent a radio message
asking for aid, but when steamers
reached the position given in the
message an hour later no trace or the
vessel was found and, it is said, she
has never been heard from since.
Reports to the government are that
the weather was perfectly calm.
After the Hewitt disappeared and
the Deering came ashore without a
crew, a British insurance company
suggested that the two vessels prob
ably had collided and that the Deer
ing's crew went down with the
Hewitt. An investigation by coast
guard officers, however, convinced
them that the Deering was not dam
aged sufficiently to warrant a con.
clusion that she had been in a coli
lision with any other craft.
| Investigators here said that they
do not take seriously suggestions sof
bolshevik raiders or deep sea pirates,
but they add that one guess is jas
good as another. They are inclined