by Harold G. Petersen

A collection of six ship's bells of long • The Institute will, this month, have association with the Institute will be made its long-awaited move to State mounted and arranged in a cluster in Street - to a new building especially designed to fulfill the unique require­ the second-floor foyer leading to the ments of today's and tomorrow's sea­ dining room and cafeteria. Passersby will probably be unable to resist the farers. compulsion to thump them with their SCI building as seen from East Coast Memorial in Battery Park. The emphases, the programs, the methods, the directions of the Institute knuckles- which will be all right with may now change to some degree - re­ the management. flecting new objectives, new conditions The cluster will be composed of bells -but the fundamental purpose for from the ill-fated N ormandie, the At­ which the Institute was founded re­ lantic which figured in a sea tragedy, mains immutable: The ministry to the the USS Saturn, the USS Samuel C. well-being of the seafarer; the ameli­ Reid, a replica of a bell from the U.S.S. oration of the problems peculiar to the Pennsylvania and one bell whose origin seafarer's mode of work and living. is not known. Still another will be hung LOOKOUT The Rev. John M. Mulligan Directo1· Mindful that the Institute's illustri­ from a wall bracket. Vol. 59, No.4 Four of them once served special May 1968 Harold G. Petersen ous past has created the foundation for Editor purposes at the South Street building. Copyright 1968 its future achievement, several physi­ Published monthly with exception of July-August and cal symbols which meld the nineteenth The one from the Atlantic hung from February-March when bi-monthly. Contributions to the SEAMEN'S CHURCH a bracket over the entrance, once rang Seamen's Church Institute of New York of $5.00 or more and twentieth centuries of the Insti­ INSTITUTE OF NEW YORK include a year's subscription to The lookout. Single sub­ tute's ministry will be on view in the the hours by ship time- throughout 15 State Street, New York, N.Y. 10004 scriptions are $2.00 annually. Single copies 50¢. Addi· every day and night - by means of Telephone: 269-2'110 tional postage for Canada, latin America, Spain, $1.00: public rooms at State Street. The Right Reverend other foreign, $3.00. Second class postage paid at New Among these will be the memorial an automatic device. Horace W. B. Donegan, D.D., D.C.L. York, N.Y. Another of the cluster, which hung Honorary President plaques (described in the April Look­ COVER: Building as seen from northwest corner of Battery in the lobby, was once rung every morn­ Franklin E. Vilas Park. Statue is of John Ericsson. Photo and others in this out) arranged within the spiral public President issue pertaining to the Institute by Harold G. Petersen. staircase which ascends opposite the ing and evening at 8:00 o'clock; this Chapel entrance. signalled the beginning and end of the

3 Sound November 25, 1846, with a loss of 43 lives. The Sailor, a bronze sculpture by Jacob Lipkin of Long Island, will sur­ vey the SCI scene from some vantage point. A gift to the Institute in 1956, the piece was formerly exhibited in the old museum. Lipkin went to sea ~ hen fifteen years of age. His son waR a seaman for two years. The artist may become profiled by Time magazine. For several months past, the man­ 1- -~ agement and staff of the Institute have carefully considered all possible utilizations of South Street equipment MaMo~o W~~W9Blr and furnishings in the new building. In instances where this wasn't prac­ by W. H. Owens tical or economical, certain articles 1. H.M.S. "Victory" in her dry dock at and eql,lipment have been donated to Admiral Lord Nelson's 200-year-old Portsmouth Harbor. churches and social agencies of the flagship - last of the "wooden walls" New York area. -lies drydocked at Portsmouth, Eng­ 2. A mess table and typical mess utensils on land, where thousands of visitors tread the lower gun deck. Fifteen men sat around (Continued on page 10) her decks each year. She is rigged ex­ these utensils. All eating was done with the fingers and after each meal the men wiped actly as on the day of the Battle of their hands on the tassels. A seaman's kit· Trafalgar (October 21, 1805), her bag in which he carried his few personal three graceful masts soaring from 152 belongings can be seen in the background. to 205 feet above the dockside. The Victory (2,162 tons) had an 3. The cockpit where Nelson died on Oc· tober 21, 1805. Every Trafalgar Day wreaths day's activities. The USS Saturn bell active career around the world from are laid here in his memory. hung in the cafeteria, but usually re­ the time she was launched in 1765, mained silent except for special occa­ forty years before her crowning tri­ 4. Replica of the ship's steering wheel. The sions. umph off Cape Trafalgar. So she was original was shot away soon after action The replica bell of the USS Pennsyl­ already a war-scarred veteran when was joined at Trafalgar. Thereafter the ship vania, which hung outside the Institute Nelson took command of her in 1803. was steered by hand tackles from the tiller on the lower gun deck. chapel since 1915, remained in constant Shortly before that, in fact, the ship use up until the South Street building had been declared unfit for further was vacated- sounding for the re­ service. But Nelson was so attracted ligious services held within. It was a by her graceful lines that he had her commemorative gift from an individual donor. 3 The two most famous bells of the collection are probably of the Norman­ die, which burned at a Manhattan pier in 1942, and the 400-pound Atlantic bell which once hung in the Institute's float­ ing Church of the Holy Comforter, an­ chored at the foot of Dey Street and North River from 1846 to 1868. Orig­ inally, the bell was salvaged from the steamer Atlantic which exploded and sank off Fisher's Island in Long Island

4 5 re-fitted as his flagship, sailing in her for the last two years of his life. Now, carefully restored, she stands today as Nelson knew her, except for the sails that were shot away at Tra­ falgar. The great gun decks of the Vic­ by Edyth Harper tory, carrying 104 guns in all, are still The American coastline covers al­ lined with the 24-pounders and 32- At this table in the Admfral's Quarters Nel­ son wrote his famous prayer just before the most every conditio~ of climate from pounders that blazed away at the Battle of Trafalgar. l frozen shores to trop1cal strands. Have French warships in 1805. Most original ever considered what a wealth of you h" h d deck timbers have been replaced, ex­ and saw another seven years' service. material lies buried between 1g an cepting those on the Lower Gun Deck Then she was afloat in Portsmouth low water? -the broadest in the ship and 186 feet Harbor for over a century until, by A recent discovery in New Jersey of long from bow to stern. Its twin bat­ 1922, the sea threatened her aged tim­ a piece of amber containing an insect teries of guns were manned by almost a bers and she nearly foundered. She was which might well be described as the quarter of the ship's company. (The towed to her present dry dock and, fol­ "missing link" of the insect world be­ complement at Trafalgar was 850 of­ lowing a national appeal, underwent a tween ant and wasp, has stirred peo­ ficers and men.) six-year restoration. ple's imaginations. Many walking by Up on the Quarter Deck is a brass Today the Victory serves as a the shore may be prompted to search plate simply inscribed, "Here Nelson headquarters of the Commander-in­ for other curiosities and semi-precious fell, 21st October, 1805". While pacing Chief, Portsmouth Dockyard, and the stones. Before you begin, it will be the deck with Captain Hardy, the Ad­ Admiral's Quarters aft are used for worth your while to find out a little miral was mortally wounded by a shot receptions and conferences. The table about the subject. fired from the French "Redoubtable" is preserved on which Lord Nelson • The chance of finding semi-precious only 40 feet away. "They have done composed his famous Prayer shortly stones is greater than many people for me at last, Hardy", he exclaimed, before the Battle of Trafalgar: realize. While the only diamonds you "my backbone is shot through." "May the Great God whom I worship are likely to discover when beachcomb­ Nelson was carried below to the grant to my country and for the benefit ing are those washed up from buried article. A visit to the U.S. National cockpit where he died three hours later of Europe in general a great and glori­ treasure, less valuable gems can be Museum, Washington, D. C., or the - but not before Captain Hardy had ous victory; and may no misconduct in found in quantity. American Museum of Natural History told him that victory was certain. any one tarnish it; and may humanity One of the joys of collecting these inN ew York City, will teach you much. "Thank God I have done my duty" after victory be the predominant fea­ stones is the small quantity of equip­ Chicago, too, has an excellent collection were his last whispered words. Every ture in the British Fleet. For myself ment needed. As well as good eye-sight to be studied. year, on the battle anniversary, a ser­ individually I commit my life to Him and enthusiasm, you should arm your­ Many famous men have formed col­ vice is held on the main deck and that made me, and may His blessing self with a container for specimens, a lections of gemstones in America. J. wreaths are laid in the cockpit. light upon my endeavours for serving mineral hammer, and a magnifying Pierpont Morgan donated his to the Seafaring relics of 160 years ago are my country faithfully. To Him I resign glass. A beginner will find Dr. Pough's Natural History Museum, Washing­ preserved in the Victory. Among myself and the just cause which is en­ "Field Guide to Rocks and Minerals" ton. Colonel Roebling who built Brook­ them are leather fire buckets, dated trusted to me to defend. very useful. A knowledge of geology is lyn Bridge was another keen collector. 1803; and the main capstan worked by Amen. Amen. Amen." helpful, as certain gems are usually There are hundreds of societies you can join. These hold regular shows in va­ 140 men, ten on each bar, while a fid­ This capstan was worked by 140 men, ten found in certain rocks. The average dler sat atop of it and played to en­ on each capstan bar. A fiddler sat on top of searcher on the shore however is quite rious localities with exhibits mainly courage them in their toil. The galley it. The embossed drawers contained salt, content if he can re~ognize ;hat the from those areas. contains a replica of the huge iron canvas and twine for simple first-aid. gems look like in the raw. The estuaries of rivers are always stove which cooked all the food and No one can expect to recognize, say, good areas to search in, for gems from provided hot water for the ship's com­ an opal, unless he knows what the raw further up-the river bed may be washed pany. Because of fire risk, the galley specimen looks like. Do a little research down to rest on the shore. It helps, fire was put out after each meal was before you start beach-combing, There however, to know what coast is most prepared. are plenty of books on the subject, as likely to yield which gems. The follow­ Despite heavy damage, the great well as museums showing the original ing is a rough guide to various regions: ship was patched up after Trafalgar stones alongside the cut and polished Suppose you find yourself on the

6 7 shores of Alaska. With time on your when cut they are rose-red in shades hands and a keen eye you can pick up from pale to deep pink. amber in the Smith Bay area, on the San Francisco Bay also yields highly shores of Fox Islands or Chicago Creek. colored specimens of chert, a form of Long ago, amber forests covered this jasper which is noted for its beautiful area. Today, the resin from these trees colors. If you're oyster fishing, you has hardened into what we know as might be lucky enough to find a black amber. pearl in the Gulf of California. St. Volcanic rock in the Alaskan penin­ Thomas Island, a U,S. possession in the sula holds nodules of chalcedony, called Virgin Islands, also yields pearls of I locally "moonstones". Red jasper from good quality. Adak Island, agate pebbles on Tanaga's One of the most world-famous spots beaches, carnelians near Sand Point, for coral lies in Florida in Tampa Bay. Popof Island, and obsidian in Unalaska In fact, they say literally tons of coral Island are all there - if you search have been found there and still the sup­ hard enough. ply is not exhausted. You may not rec­ Obsidian, by the way, was named ognize it as such, unless you know what after Obsius, a Roman naturalist who you are seeking, for weeds, barnacles, found the stone in Ethiopia. American etc. may disguise it, but when cleaned, Indians used it for arrow heads or cere­ your search in the mud flats off Ballast monial sword blades. Serpentine, gar­ Point will be rewarding. You could be nets, and corundum can all be found in fortunate enough to find opals on Alaska. beaches near Dover, New Jersey. Nan­ Further down the coast in Washing­ tucket Island was the goal of amber • ton, you will find quantities of chalced­ searchers in the last century. Speci­ MOORING BOLLARDS ony in the gravel beaches of San Juan mens can still be found on the beaches Islands. The Olympic Peninsula is rich there. The nautical term "moor" is derived more modern civil engineering, granite in chalcedony. Agate Beach in Jeffer­ Besides collecting gems you will also from the Middle Dutch maren, to tie, and other hard stone were adopted as son County is misleading, for here you collect a variety of interesting items and from the time man first went to sea bollards. Long squared blocks of gran­ can discover jasper, not agate, while of knowledge. "Amethyst" comes from in boats there have been many methods ite were rounded and waisted at their carnelians can be picked up on Wash­ a Greek word for "not drunk". The an­ of "tie up" on the shore. heads, with round caps, and sunk in a ington beaches, too. cients believed that drinking cups of The ancient Greeks moored their hole on the quay and grouted in with The shores most likely to reward amethyst prevented the user from in­ ships to various objects ashore, and in Roman cement concrete. those searching for agate and jasper toxication. Carnelians were so called the glory of the classical period, moor­ Cast iron was used for the same are the coasts of Oregon, however. In­ because the Romans thought their color ings became ornate in keeping with purpose in the last century, both hol­ land Oregon is a happy hunting ground resembled flesh. their fine ships and graceful architec­ low and solid cast according to ship for gem seekers. Its shores hold large If you progress from collecting to ture. We learn that long bollards were sizes. Some of these were in the form deposits of jasper, agate, and chalced­ the lapidary's art of cutting gems, you set up on the wharfs of that maritime of capstans for winding the ship's ony. A five-inch piece of chalcedony will marvel at the skill of primitive power. cable in. discovered at Yachats produced alto­ races who carved jade and serpentine, Philon, the famous engineer, 330 In the heyday of yachting, when the gether $300 when cut and sold as slices. shaped fluorite, and made ornaments B.C., designed mooring bollards cut in elite and the wealthy indulged in this Near China Creek, Cummings Creek of porphyry, without the aid of modern marble, "waisted" in shape, with bal­ sport of the sea, and sailed their exotic and Ten Miles Creek, you should find tools. loon caps over which the tie-up ropes yachts, they had mooring bollards to what you seek. Rolled agate lies where The coastline of America is long. Its were secured. match. Ornate cast iron was in vogue, the Chetco and Rogue rivers join the sands and beaches hold vast quantities The Romans used mooring piles of with gleaming brass mountings, and sea. of gemstones just lying about, waiting pine and a depiction at Pompeii of an in one case, carved oak was used with Have you ever visited Plaskett Point, to be discovered. You cannot expect to ancient port shows trophies mounted brass inlay and a mushroom cap of Monterey County, California? Perhaps find a stone every time you search, but on pillars, and mooring bollards on the brass. In some harbors floating moor­ you did not know that rhodonite peb­ with practice you should in time ac­ moles. ing buoys were used, anchored to screw bles can be found on the beach there. quire an interesting collection and may In Great Britain and Ireland in the piles or "dead men" in the marine floor. The Greek for rose was rhodos. The even find unique specimens, if you are ~iddle Ages, pile mooring posts were Moorings are as ancient as the art of stones are named from this word as lucky. m common use in the harbors, but in navigation itself.

8

In 1789, the Portsmouth Lighthouse dwelling house on the lighthouse reser­ was visited by George Washington who vation was swept away by the savage remained in Portsmouth four days. fury of the tropical gale. The keeper ... Earlier, in 1782, General Lafayette had was also thrown into the sea, but an­ Ji been a lighthouse visitor. Daniel Web­ other wave swept him back ashore. ster practiced law here in 1807 and was Connecticut has one light, the origi­ a frequent visitor at the lighthouse nal New London Harbor Lighthouse during his nine years of residence in built in 1760. Portsmouth. We owe a great debt to the devoted t Beavertail Lighthouse in Rhode Is- men and women who have served the land was the third lighthouse to be lights. Today, many lights are un­ built in what is now the United States, manned, being controlled by electron­ the original tower having been con­ ics. But the old days were more ro­ structed in 17 49 and now gone for mantic- when dedicated men watched nearly a century. But there stands in the sentinels of the sea and used their its place a more sturdy structure, built heart and guts to save men from the of granite, which was built in 1856. water's treachery. As one put it: Almost from its first erection, Beaver­ "I wonder if the care of the light­ tail has been a sort of proving ground house will follow my soul after it has for various types of signaling equip­ left this worn out body! If I ever have ment. One of the most curious of these a gravestone, I would like it in the form was an early air-operated fog signal, of a lighthouse or beacon." 11111178 711117 NEllER FJIIL for which a horse was kept on hand to It might be well for travelers to (Contrnued from Aprrl l ookout) ~ operate the air compressor. "collect" a few of these lighthouses on One of the most lonely posts on the The first Isle of Shoals Lighthouse The second Rhode Island light is at their travels, before they become ex­ Maine coast is the Saddleback Ledge was erected on White Island, 5% miles . Prudence Island and built in 1862. tinct, for certainly no more will be Lighthouse built in 1839. Some 54 feet off the coast. of New Hampshire, in During the terrible September hurri­ built, at least not in the form that we above the water, waves easily break 1821. During the Civil War, because of cane of 1938, five persons including the know them. They contain much of the over the lantern in a gale. It was here the danger from blockade runners and wife of the lighthouse keeper, were car­ spirit and essence that helped build that a horde of birds bombarded the Southern gunboats, the lighthouse was ried out to sea and drowned when the America. light; back in 1935, ducks and drakes, entirely rebuilt of granite, with walls during a southeaster, cannonaded into 2 feet thick. it. Birds came sailing through the win­ The light has many unusual events dows like shot, piling up in the tower connected with its history. lantern, breaking the light. At the base One night in 1873, a German named of the tower was a huge heap of sea Louis Wagner, knowing that the men birds. were away from Smutty Nose Island, Captain John Smith discovered the rowed all the way across from the rugged, storm-swept Isles of Shoals off mainland to rob fisherman Houtnet's the coasts of New Hampshire in 1614. residence. Caught and recognized by The SCI Marine School has It was here on Star Island that Captain the women, Wagner killed two of the received the gift of a compensat­ Kidd was said to have buried some of three females on the island. Then he ing binnacle from the employees his treasure. During the colonial pe­ returned to his dory and rowed back of Mobil Oil Corporation who honored, through the gift, their riod, the Indians swept down upon Star to the mainland. Later he was captured, retiring Captain Otto Meyer. Island in their canoes and killed or car­ tried and hanged. Chaplain Joseph D. Huntley ried off every inhabitant except Mrs. New Hampshire's second lighthouse accepted the gift for SCI. Moody, who hid herself and her two is at Portsmouth Harbor on a point of E. S. Checket (left) and Ed children under the rocks. Unable to Pendergast (right) are Mobil land running out into the harbor. In executives. The binnacle will be keep them quiet, the mother killed them 1771, this early colonial tower was one used to teach the use of the with a knife she was carrying rather of the twelve lighthouses turned over magnetic compass and its compensating mechanism. than let them fall into the hands of the to the Federal Government under the Indians. act of August 7, 1789. 12 h rged the mate's boat, which slewed vivors and fled back to their ships - ~u~ of the way at the last minute and which put on sail and departed hur­ fired in a harpoon as the whale passed. riedly. Even then, "Mocha Dick" pur­ After hauling the boat through the sued the Grief! for several hours, leap­ ves for some distance, the line ing out of the water alongside her, car­ ~:ckened, but the crew had no time to rying away her jib boom and bowsprit decide if "Mocha Dick" was dead or with his tail. foxing them. But, eventually, time ran out for Suddenly the whale breached, "Mocha Dick". Blind in one eye and charged the boat and smashed it to weakened by harpoon wounds and old fragments. Two other boats moved age, he was subsequently killed by the close to pick up four survivors. Then, Swedish crew of a whaler. When they "Mocha Dick", after waiting, sounded cut him up for rendering they found and surfaced, capsizing one of the two nineteen harpoon heads in his body - boats, throwing the men into the water. some of them, no doubt, from the thirty To add insult to injury he then lay on whaling men he drowned or killed, and the surface as if to be ready to meet the the fourteen boats and vessels he is W.i&BBIN6 WH.i&LE§ whalers' next actions. But they had de­ known to have sunk or smashed in his cided to leave "Mocha Dick" alone, sail­ lifetime. ing away after losing two crewmen by Dane John drowned and two boats smashed. In April, 1932, the cable-repair ship bull sperm whale after the ship had In the same area, a few months later, All America was sent to investigate the struck and killed a whale calf. The "Mocha Dick" charged a trading reason for a strange disturbance inter­ destroyer, which was travelling at a schooner and sank it by smashing in rupting the submarine-cable service off fast speed, suffered such a blow near • her timbers. Three whaling ships, the the coast of Colombia. The cause was the stern that it was knocked slightly Yankee from New Bedford, the Dudley found to be a dead 45-foot cachalot off course and shuddered with the im­ from England and the Grief! from whale which, when hoisted to the sur­ pact. Examination a·fterwards showed Glasgow, Scotland, were close by, saw face from a depth of 3,240 feet, was that this had also disturbed six of the the incident and managed to rescue all found to have fouled the cable. destroyer's plates. the schooner's crew. They also decided It was calculated that with over half Similarly, in the Indian Ocean, the to combine their efforts to catch the a mile of sea water on its back, the 26,000 ton P. and 0. Liner Iberia col­ whale which was earning an infamous whale had been subjected to a pressure lided with a whale. The ship was un­ reputation. of approximately 1,400 lbs. to the damaged eecause she hit the whale Two boats from each whaler set off square inch, or about the same as if it head-on, impaling it on her bow. in pursuit. "Mocha Dick", game for a was supporting the Queen Mary or the One of the most famous whales, prob­ fight, tried his usual tactics of sub­ Queen Elizabeth. ably, is Herman Melville's fictional merging, then surfacing to charge Whales are the strongest creatures "Moby Dick", a giant white whale. Pos­ and sink or capsize a boat. But one of in the sea. But anyone who has seen a sibly Melville got the idea for his book the Yankee's boats managed to harpoon group of them placidly moving along, partly from experience and partly from him. After a while "Mocha Dick" sur­ feeding, breathing and playing, finds "Mocha Dick", a white whale that was faced and lay there as if weak and help­ it hard to believe that, despite their first seen off Mocha island, Chile, and less. massive bulk, they can move at great thus its name. Hardly believing the battle had been speed. The whaler John Day, from Bristol, won so easily, the six boats moved in Instances have occurred where killer England, was hove-to off the Falkland for a closer look. Seeing his chance whales have deliberately rammed ice Islands one day in May, 1841, the crew "M oc h a Dick" burst into action ' floes to cause other sea creatures on being engaged on cutting up a captured With a blow of his tail he str~ck and them to fall or dive into the water - whale, when "Mocha Dick" broke sur­ sank a boat from the Grief!. Then he to provide the toothed killers with a face near the ship. savagely smashed one of the Dudley's meal. The crew dropped their tasks, ?oats and mangled the bodies of two of During World War II, a destroyer launched their boats and set off to 1ts crew· Now pamc-s· t ncken . the crews was known to have been charged by a tackle it, whereupon "Mocha Dick" of th e other boats picked up' the sur-

1A gazed about the weird vault For more than eighteen months - emnI Y h d. t . walls in which the vessel a mex nea- months of severe hardship and desper­ l wedged herself, her other masts and ation- they despairingly, hopelessly ~:ars lying across her shattered decks, watched each passing sail, each passing smoke-cloud, as it sailed on its course ngg· 1 ·ng and white shouds torn to and her bulwarks smashed and over the horizon, ever unobservant of s h re ds , battered into splinters. their signal-fires. When dawn came, in the dim light of Finally, on November 21st, 1867, the early morning the boats were low­ while cruising in these waters, the look­ ered but in the panic-stricken efforts out of the British whaling ship Am­ to c:owd into them, many of the fright­ herst suddenly sighted a miniature ened passengers and some of the crew ship, crudely hand-carved from a piece had fallen overboard. Many were left of driftwood, floating on the crests of behind and went to their doom under the sea. When they picked it up its mes­ the maddened, swirling waters. sage told of the plight of the unfortu­ Only thirteen of the 100 or' more nate survivors on the barren island. The aboard managed to survive, and these, Amherst searched for three weeks to with scant food and little clothing, locate the site where the castaways by Lt. Ha?TY E. Rieseberg made for the bleak, barren and lonely were camped, and finally, upon sight­ ing their smoke from a signal fire, Remote and far to the south in the shore nearby. There they stood in stark Nearly two years passed, when in which they had constantly kept burn­ Pacific Ocean lies, wedged in a vast amazement and watched their gallant March, 1868, the ship Amherst arrived ing, the survivors were taken off their rocky cavern-tomb, the long-rotting at Melbourne. Down her gang-plank master, still standing on the vessel's deserted island. timbers of the once-famous American deck in his last moments, wave his there stepped a sick, emaciated and The treasure cargo of the General clipper ship General Grant- its shat­ dying man who was immediately hur­ handkerchief as a farewell token. Grant being so huge, it has ever been tered remains now barnacled and shell­ ried to the hospital for treatment. The Then, with a hissing roar, the once­ an enticing lure to salvors, and, in the encrusted within the towering cave man, George Hargraves, told a tale both proud General Grant slowly and quietly summer of 1885 - nineteen years cleft in the giant rock cliffs of the strange and tragic of his remarkable sank beneath the waters until only the after the vessel's loss- an Australian southernmost side of the cold, rainy, experiences on board the lost ship after shattered tops of her mast-stumps salvage syndicate made strenuous ef­ and uninhabited Disappointment Is­ leaving Melbourne two years before. stood above the surface, and they, too, slowly passed from sight shortly. forts to retrieve the clipper's vast cargo land- one of the smaller of the Auck­ It was, as his story related, on the of gold ingots and bullion. land Group. night of May 13th, 1866, with high Ashore, the little band of thirteen But Davy Jones, evidently, did not Here, in this weird watery vault, the seas and a dirty weather brewing. The survivors managed to kindle a fire from approve, and their salvage vessel, un­ 1,200-ton sailing vessel has rested since General Grant's master, Captain driftwood and bark, which they con­ able to cope with the treacherous ele­ the thirteenth day in May, in 1866, still Loughlin, had endeavored to steer his stantly kept burning with the hope of attracting the attention of some pas­ ments, was forced to return to Mel­ retaining, unsalvaged and undisturbed, ship on a straight course between Dis­ sing vessel at sea to come to their aid. bourne without the treasure. Later, the major part of her vast cargo of appointment Island and the main island several other, and more recent, at­ treasure in gold ingots and bullion, of the Auckland group, when the wind But, unfortunately, few ships passed in those waters in those days. tempts were made to recover the Gen­ estimated by marine underwriters to suddenly dropped, heavy seas washed eral Grant's huge cargo of riches, but, be worth approximately $15,000,000. her decks clear of everything, and One of the castaway seamen carved by hand a miniature boat on which he in each instance, the undertow and The General Grant left Hobson's jammed the huge craft head-on toward crudely marked the message of their great surf of the waters within the Bay, on May 4th, en route to Melbourne, the cliffs. plight, and set it adrift. Winter came, cavern had baffled every effort. Australia, to London, England, under Then suddenly the General Grant cold and dreary, and the survivors However, recently, a group of Aus­ the command of Captain William struck the rocks! The mainmast spent the long months on the desolate tralian salvors managed to recover Loughlin, with a passenger list of 104, cracked with a roar like thunder, broke sho. res,. ]'1vmg · on a few seals, goats, and some $3,500,000 of the huge fortune, together with a valuable cargo of Aus­ clean off as the vessel careened and Wild Pigs which roamed the barren but terrific winds and gales drove them tralian wool, produce, and other freight drifted through a great cavern running rocky tableland. In· this manner they away, and they were forced to abandon merchandise. The ship was soon re­ deep into the bowels of the gigantic were able to exist and endure two mis- further efforts to retrieve the remain­ ported by Lloyd's of London, the Lon­ rocks. erable w·m t ers, which· passed before ing $11,500,00!) in gold and silver. don maritime underwriters, as "miss­ There, in the vast rock-walled tomb, they finally discovered a way to send So the bulk of the General Grant's ing," as no passing ship had sighted it was black as midnight, and lanterns one. of the'1r numb er out m . search of rich cargo of unperishable riches still the clipper since her departure from were lit and hung to the taffrail, while a1d. rests within the cave. Melbourne. the passengers and crew, in awe, sol-

Hl 17 (Continued from page

A small knot of noon-day onlookers watched workmen detach the bells and the famous ship's figurehead, Sir Gala­ had, from the facade of the South Street building; the bell from the Atlantic was removed with difficulty. Its bracket had to be cut from its an­ chorage with a torch. Sir Galahad, constructed of wood, came away easily. It a.nd the bells were carefully lowered to a waiting truck by means of a hydraulic crane. There the famous figurehead was anxiously examined by the SCI direc­ tor, the Rev. John M. Mulligan. Sir Galahad was found to be in relatively good condition. Its paint was flaking, but properly restored, it will probably be mounted in the lobby at State Street ... sheltered from the elements at long last ... there to stoutly defend and pro­ tect all seafarers staying in the build­ ing ... Galahad's good broad-sword ready for withdrawal from its sheath ... in perpetuity. The origin of the figurehead is not entirely clear. It is believed to be from a 1500 ton clipper, circa 1860, and not from the privateer Galahad (300 tons) built in 17 49 in Marblehead, Mass. It was a gift in 1927 from I. J. Mer­ ritt in memory of his father, Captain I. J. Merritt.

18 l5 State Ill l'ltW YOt!K • 1'1. Y. Nevv y Street ork' N . Y. 10004

Address c orrectio n Re quested