Seward Daily Gateway

HUNDREDS OF CHINESE
REMOVED FROM VESSEL
BY LIGHTHOUSE BOAT

The lighthouse tender Cedar, Capt. J. W. Leadbetter, covered itself with considerable credit in its rescue of 300 odd souls from the sailing vessel Star of Falkland, recently wrecked in Unimak Pass.

At the time the first radio was received from the Star of Falkland at 11:45 in the morning in which message it was stated the ship had struck the rocks—156 Meridian—the Cedar was discharging freight at Scotch Cap.

At 11:56 Captain Leadbetter was under way to the scene of the wreck.

When the Cedar arrived at 2:48, the Falkland was in bad shape, the lee side was completely under water. Steaming up close, Captain Leadbetter began transferring the passengers of a dozen different nationalities, and at 6 had taken off 300 of them with the Cedar's launch.

In the meantime the cutters Haida and Unalga came up and completed taking off the remaining hundred.

All the passengers and crew were transferred to the cannery vessel Arctic which in turn took them to the plant in Bristol Bay, their destination.

The Captain of the Falkland, and eight members of his crew, stayed on her until all were off. The captain's name could not be recalled but it was said this was his first wreck he has had in his 35 years as master.

Fog, and darkness, were held responsible for with just a few feet more of clearance way he would have cleared the rocks, on the tack.

If there were any suicides they were not officially reported, and a doubt exists, Captain Leadbetter said, that any occurred for he heard nothing authentic about them. The report was a number of Chinese had killed themselves. There was practically no disorder the captain and crew displaying splendid efficiency.

One Chinaman died a natural death and one Kanaka jumped overboard but was brought back on board. The Star of Falkland is thought to be a total wreck.

The Cedar departed early this morning for Ketchikan.