Democratic Sentinel, Volume 16, Number 10, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 25 March 1892 — DANGERS ON THE OCEAN. [ARTICLE]

DANGERS ON THE OCEAN.

Numbers of Abandoned Yessols Drift* Ing Along the Highways. The abandoning of the Abbysinia adds one more to the long list of vessels knocking about the oceau at tho merey of winds, waves and ourronts. When she was left there seemed but little doubt that she would sink benonth tho waves and cease to become a danger to navigation, but she had not gone down at the time the rescuing steamer parted from her, and so she must be looked out for by all vessels passing near the locality. One recommendation of the International Maritime Conferenee was that the various nations having commerce on the high seas should patrol the ocean within cortain fixed limits and endeavor to free the routes from obstructions of every kind. This would include towing steamers into port that had lost their propellers, sailing ships that were dismasted, vessels that were so muoh disabled by collision as to need assistance, and, in fuot, to relieve the needy of every description and to rid the highways of all dangers. Unfortunately the measure failed to become a law, but the necessities of the caso have by no moans oeased to exist. The regular monthly Pilot Chart as issued by the Hydrographic Oftioe contains, in addition to a vast amount of valuable data, tracks which show graphically the course taken by the derelicts, so that masters of vessels leaving port may redouble their vigilance upon approaching the dangerous seotionin which the wanderer was last seen or to whioh it may have drifted since the report was made. Many of these vessels have been drifting here and there for months and scarcely a day passes that some one of them is not reported by incoming vessels. Some of these are bottom side up, and when first sighted look like the body of a huge whale; or if the sea is breatfing over them the white foam of the broken water catches the eye, and “Breakers ahead!” is what the lookout roports. Others have shifted their cargoes and are listed away over on one side or the other —so far that it seems a perfect wonder that they have not “turned turtle” long ago. Now and then one is sighted with her bow high up out of the water, while her stern is out of sight, while the next one seen is tilted in the opposite direction, as though she were all ready to take a header. The majority of accidents occur to vessels when in the vicinity of Cape Hatteras; and when abandoned, these vessels are genurully carried along by the Gulf Stream, thus drifting into the ocean highway and towards the coast of Great Britain, until they either strike thoso faroff shores or become so water-soakod that they sink. Occasionally they drift to tho eastward and get out of the Gulf Stream, owing to strong westerly winds. —LNew York World.