Chapter XIX

LAST YEARS OF THE AMERICAN CLIPPER SHIP ERA--SUMMARY OF CALIFORNIA PASSAGES

During the Crimean War a large number of merchant ships, many of which were American, were chartered by the British and French Governments to carry troops, but when peace was declared in 1856 and this demand for tonnage ceased, it was found that there were more ships afloat than could find profitable employment, or indeed employment of any kind.

Only eight ships were added to the California fleet in 1856--the _Alarm_, _Euterpe_, _Flying Mist_, _Florence_, _Intrepid_, _Mary L. Sutton_, _Norseman_, and the second _Witch of the Wave_. These were all handsome medium clippers, and possessed what is so sadly lacking in sailing ships of the present day--style, distinction. The _Florence_ was built by Samuel Hall, Jr., who had succeeded his father as a ship-builder and continued in the same yard at East Boston. She was owned by Captain R. B. Forbes and others of Boston. Captain Dumaresq commanded her and also owned an interest in her until his death in 1860. As Captain Forbes used to say, “He was the prince of sea captains.”

The _Sweepstakes_ made the fastest passage to San Francisco in 1856--94 days from New York--followed by the _Antelope_, 97 days; _Phantom_, 101 days; and _David Brown_, 103 days; the _Ringleader_ made the passage from Boston in 100 days. The abstract log of the _Sweepstakes_ is as follows:

From Sandy Hook to the equator 18 days. From the equator to 50° S. 23 “ From 50° in the Atlantic to 50° in the Pacific 15 “ From 50° S. to the equator 17 “ From the equator to San Francisco 21 “ -- Total 94 “

The year 1857 was one of financial depression throughout the United States, which was severely felt by the shipping interests of the country and continued until the Civil War. The rates of freight from New York to San Francisco, which during the years immediately following the discovery of gold in California were $60 a ton, gradually declined, and in 1857 had fallen to $10 per ton. Ships that had formerly loaded cargoes for San Francisco night and day and were hurried to sea as quickly as possible, now lay at their loading berths for weeks, leisurely taking on board such cargo as their agents could engage. During this period vessels lay idle at the wharves of Atlantic ports for weeks and even months, in charge of ship-keepers, with sails unbent, waiting for employment.

The former activity in the ship-building yards had also subsided. During the four years prior to the Civil War, Donald McKay built only one ship,

the _Alhambra_ (1857), and William H. Webb built only one ship for the California trade, the _Black Hawk_, beside the _Resolute_, and the barque _Trieste_ (1857), and the barque _Harvest Queen_ (1858). The same depression was felt in all the yards along the Atlantic coast. British ship-builders had made such rapid progress in the construction and speed of their vessels that it was now difficult for American ships to obtain charters from China to England. From 1857 to 1861, they were to be found lying idle for months at a time in Manila Bay, Hong-kong harbor, Foo-chow, Shanghai, and Calcutta, seeking employment.

The depression in the oversea carrying trade was felt quite as much by the ship-owners of Great Britain as by those of the United States, and while of short duration, was as serious there as in the United States. It was at this period, however, that Great Britain began to feel the benefit of Free Trade in her ship building industry, and entered upon her conquest of the world’s oversea carrying trade. In this her ship-builders were greatly assisted by the introduction of iron as a material for construction. In 1855 the Committee of Lloyd’s Register had framed rules for the classification of iron ships, as their number had so increased, and the demand of ship-owners for their official recognition had become so general, that they could no longer be ignored. The screw propeller was also beginning to supersede side-wheels as a means of propulsion, and some of the ablest men in Great Britain were engaged upon the development and improvement of the marine engine and boiler.

The steam tonnage of the British Empire--mostly engaged in the oversea carrying trade--had increased from 204,654 tons in 1851 to 417,717 tons in 1856, whereas the steam tonnage of the United States engaged in the oversea carrying trade had increased from 62,390 tons in 1851 to 115,045 tons in 1855, but had decreased to 89,715 tons in 1856. It should be noted that while a large proportion of the steam tonnage of Great Britain consisted of iron vessels, many of them being screw steamers, the steam vessels of the United States were very nearly, if not all, still constructed of wood and propelled by side-wheels.

The first symptoms of the decadence of the American merchant marine were the falling-off in the sales of American tonnage to foreign countries--the reduction being from 65,000 tons in 1855 to 42,000 tons in 1856, declining to 26,000 tons in 1858 and to 17,000 tons in 1860, a falling-off of 75% in five years--then in the total tonnage of vessels built in the United States, which fell from 583,450 tons in 1855 to 469,393 tons in 1856, and to 378,804 tons in 1857.

These facts refute the historic falsehood that the _Alabama_ and her consorts were the first and immediate cause of decadence in the American merchant marine. As a matter of fact, neither the depression preceding the Civil War, nor the depredations of Confederate privateers, nor the Civil War itself, have had any material bearing upon the decline of American shipping during the last fifty years. The gigantic task of driving the American flag from the ocean has been accomplished by far more insidious and potent means than these. It has been the inevitable consequence of irrational and unjust laws, and until these are repealed, as those of Great Britain were in 1849, we may hope in vain that the ensign of the United States will be restored to its place upon the sea.

Amid the discouraging conditions of these years preceding the Civil War, American sea-captains never lost faith in their ships nor in themselves. They seemed to think, the lower the rate of freight, the more reason that it should be earned quickly, and when once clear of the disheartening influences of a seaport and well off soundings, they sent their ships along with the same energy and skill for which they had become famous in more prosperous days.

It was in the year 1857 that the _Great Republic_ made her remarkable passage of 92 days from New York to San Francisco, and established a new record of 16 days from Sandy Hook to the equator. She was still commanded by Captain Limeburner, who had as his first officer, Montgomery Parker, an accomplished seaman and navigator, afterward commander of the ships _Judge Shaw_ and _Lord Lyndhurst_. The crew of 50 men before the mast were the usual assortment, 15 or 20 good seamen, the rest adventurers and mongrels of various brands, of whom little could be expected. Captain Limeburner and his officers always went armed, and it was perhaps fortunate, with such a crew, that the topgallantsails were never clewed up during the passage, and that Cape Horn was rounded with skysails set.

The abstract log of the _Great Republic_ is as follows:

From Sandy Hook to the equator 16 days. From the equator to 50° S. 25 “ From 50° S. in the Atlantic to 50° S. in the Pacific 9 “ From 50° S. to the equator 23 “ From the equator to San Francisco 19 “ -- Total 92 “

Lieutenant Maury, in a letter on the subject to the Secretary of the Navy, remarks: “This vessel did not have the luck to get a wind that could keep her up to her mettle for twenty-four hours consecutively. Here and there she got into favorable streaks of wind, but she appears to have run out of them faster than they could follow. She made the run to San Francisco in 92 days.

“The shortest passage that in the present state of ship-building will probably ever be made from New York to San Francisco, is 85 days; and the very clever first officer of this ship, writing from California, expresses the opinion that ‘should she continue to run between New York and San Francisco, from the experience of this voyage, she will one day make the trip within your possible 85 days.’

“The friends of this noble specimen of naval architecture, however, can scarcely hope for a fair trial and proper display of her prowess until she shall be sent on a voyage to Australia. The brave west winds of the Southern hemisphere, which she will then encounter, will enable her to show herself; elsewhere, she can scarcely find a sea wide enough, with belts of wind broad enough for the full display of her qualities and capabilities.”

There can be little doubt that with her original spars and sail plan, the _Great Republic_ would have made this passage in 85 days or less, and it is to be regretted that, even with her reduced rig, she never made a voyage between England and Australia, the service for which she was built and especially adapted. Her best twenty-four hours’ run, made upon a subsequent voyage while under the command of Captain Josiah Paul, was 413 miles.

In 1857 the _Flying Dragon_ made the passage to San Francisco in 97 days; the _Westward Ho_ and the _Andrew Jackson_ in 100 days, both from New York; and the _Flying Fish_ in 106 days from Boston. In 1858 the _Twilight_ made the passage from New York in 100 days; the _Andrew Jackson_ in 103 days; and in 1859 the _Sierra Nevada_ in 97 days and the _Andrew Jackson_ in 102 days. In 1860 the _Andrew Jackson_ made the trip in 89 days.

As before noted, the _Andrew Jackson_ was built in 1855. Her builders were Irons & Grinnell, of Mystic, Connecticut; she was owned by J. H. Brower & Co., of New York, and was commanded by Captain John E. Williams, of Mystic. She was 1679 tons register and measured: length 222 feet, breadth 40 feet, depth 22 feet, and while not an extreme clipper, she was a very handsome, well-designed ship. She was heavily sparred and carried double topsails, skysails, and royal studdingsails. Her figurehead was a full-length statue of the famous warrior and statesman in whose honor she was named.

Upon Captain Williams’s arrival at San Francisco, in 89 days from New York, he was presented with a Commodore’s pennant, and on his return to New York the owners presented him with a valuable chronometer watch bearing the following inscription: “Presented by J. H. Brower & Co. to Captain J. E. Williams of the clipper ship _Andrew Jackson_ for the shortest passage to San Francisco. Time 89 days 4 hours, 1860.”

With this superb record by the _Andrew Jackson_--four consecutive passages averaging 98½ days each--the American clipper ship era may well bring its brilliant career to a close.

It would be invidious, even if it were possible, to name the fastest of the splendid fleet of California clippers which sailed during the years 1850-1860, as their voyages were made in different years and at different seasons of the year; still, a comparison of their records is of interest.

Eighteen ships made single passages of less than 100 days from New York or Boston to San Francisco during this period. The _Flying Cloud_ and _Andrew Jackson_ share the honor of 89 days each, and are closely followed by the _Sword Fish_, 90 days; _Flying Fish_ and _Great Republic_, 92 days; _John Gilpin_, 93 days; _Sweepstakes_, 94 days; _Surprise_ and _Romance of the Seas_, 96 days; _Sea Witch_, _Contest_, _Antelope_, _Sierra Nevada_, _Flying Dragon_, and _Witchcraft_, 97 days; _Flying Fish_ and _David Brown_, 98 days, and _Herald of the Morning_ and _Hurricane_, 99 days each.

Four of these ships, the _Flying Cloud_, _Flying Fish_, _Great Republic_, and _Romance of the Seas_, were built by Donald McKay, and two of the four, the _Flying Cloud_ and _Flying Fish_, each came within the limit twice. Two others, the _John Gilpin_ and _Surprise_, were built by Samuel Hall, and two, the _Contest_ and _Sweepstakes_, by Jacob A. Westervelt, with one ship each by other builders. Beside Captain Creesy of the _Flying Cloud_ and Captain Nickels of the _Flying Fish_, Captain Dumaresq also made the passage twice in less than 100 days, in command of the _Surprise_ and _Romance of the Seas_.

For an average of the two fastest passages by one ship, the record of the _Flying Cloud_--two in 89 days each--stands at the head. The others are: the _Andrew Jackson_, 98 and 100--94½ days; _Flying Fish_, 92 and 98--95 days; _Sword-Fish_, 90 and 105--97½ days; _David Brown_, 98 and 103--101½ days; _Westward Ho_, 100 and 103--101½ days; _Sea Witch_, 97 and 108--102½ days; _Contest_, 108 and 97--102½ days; _Herald of the Morning_, 99 and 106--102½; _Phantom_, 101 and 104--102½ days; _John Gilpin_, 93 and 115--104 days; _Romance of the Seas_, 96 and 113--104½ days; _Ringleader_, 100 and 109--104½ days; _Sweepstakes_, 94 and 116--105 days; _Flying Dutchman_, 104 and 106--105 days; _Flying Dragon_, 97 and 114--105½ days; _Surprise_, 96 and 116--106 days; _Young America_, 105 and 109--107 days; _Neptune’s Car_, 100 and 112--106; _Eagle_, 103 and 111--107 days; _Comet_, 103 and 112--107½ days; _Golden Gate_, 102 and 113--107½ days; _Golden City_, 105 and 113--109 days; _Flyaway_, 106 and 112--109 days; _Sea Serpent_, 107 and 112--109½ days; _Shooting Star_, 105 and 115--110 days.

The fastest three passages in 1850-1860 were made by the _Flying Cloud_, 89, 89, 105--94⅓ days; _Andrew Jackson_, 89, 100, 102--97 days; _Flying Fish_, 92, 98, 105--98⅓ days; _Westward Ho_, 103, 106, 100--103 days; _Sword-Fish_, 90, 105, 116--103⅔ days; _Sea Witch_, 97, 108, 110--105 days; _Young America_, 105, 107, 110--107⅓ days; _Surprise_, 96, 116, 117--109⅔ days; _Sea Serpent_, 107, 112, 115--111⅓ days.

The best four passages were made by the _Flying Cloud_, 89, 89, 105, 108--97¾ days; _Andrew Jackson_, 89, 100, 102, 103--98½ days; _Flying Fish_, 92, 98, 105, 106--100¼ days.

By dividing this great race-course into sections, a further comparison of the relative speed of the clipper ships may be obtained. Thus the following separate runs were made during the years in question:

From Sandy Hook to the equator: _Great Republic_, 16 days; _Flying Cloud_, _Northern Light_, _Sea Serpent_, _Storm_ (barque), _White Swallow_, 17 days; _Adelaide_, _Jacob Bell_, _Surprise_, _Sweepstakes_, 18 days; _Atlanta_, _Flying Fish_, _Golden Gate_, _Hornet_, _Samuel Russell_, _Tingqua_, 19 days; _Archer_, _Antelope_, _Climax_, _Courier_, _Comet_, _David Brown_, _Hazard_, _Sirocco_, _Tornado_, _White Squall_, 20 days. In February, 1858, the _Stag Hound_, commanded by Captain Hussey, made the run from Boston Light to the equator in the phenomenal time of 13 days, eclipsing all records.

From Cape St. Roque to 50° S.: _Samuel Russell_, 16 days; _Hornet_, _Ocean Pearl_, 17 days; _Bald Eagle_, _Comet_, _Electric_, _Hurricane_, _Ocean Express_, _Raven_, 18 days; _Electric Spark_, _Galatea_, _Governor Morton_, _John Gilpin_, _Sovereign of the Seas_, _Sword-Fish_, _Witch of the Wave_, 19 days; _Aurora_, _Flying Fish_, _Golden Gate_, _John Wade_, _Mandarin_, _North America_, _Panama_, _Ringleader_, _Seaman_, _Sea Witch_, _Skylark_, _Trade Wind_, 20 days.

From 50° S. in the Atlantic to 50° S. in the Pacific: _Young America_, 6 days; _Flying Fish_, _Flying Cloud_, _Robin Hood_, 7 days; _Flying Dutchman_ (twice), _Herald of the Morning_, _Stag Hound_, _Sword-Fish_, 8 days; _Mary L. Sutton_, _Sovereign of the Seas_, _Great Republic_, 9 days; _Atlanta_, _Golden City_, _Hornet_, _Snap Dragon_ (barque), _Sweepstakes_, _Typhoon_, _Whistler_, 10 days.

From 50° S. in the Pacific to the equator: _Live Yankee_, _Mary L. Sutton_, 16 days; _Flying Cloud_, _Sweepstakes_, 17 days; _Celestial_, _Eagle_, _Hurricane_, _John Bertram_, _Surprise_, _Young America_, 18 days; _Belle of the West_, _Courser_, _Don Quixote_, _Flying Dutchman_ (twice), _Flying Fish_, _Mermaid_, _Neptune’s Car_, _Ocean Telegraph_, _Sirocco_, _Starlight_, _Sword-Fish_, _Wild Pigeon_, _Winged Arrow_, 19 days; _Alarm_, _Archer_, _Electric_, _Flying Dragon_, _Golden Eagle_, _John Gilpin_, _Malay_, _Stag Hound_, _Starr King_, _Syren_, _Shooting Star_, _Telegraph_, _Unknown_, 20 days.

From the equator to San Francisco: _White Squall_, 14 days; _Flying Cloud_, _John Gilpin_, _Phantom_, 15 days; _Antelope_, _Comet_, _Contest_, _Flying Dutchman_, _Game-Cock_, _Trade Wind_, 16 days; _Aurora_, _Flying Fish_ (twice), _Sovereign of the Seas_, _Surprise_, _Young America_, 17 days; _Cleopatra_, _Challenge_, _Golden City_, _John Bertram_, _Samuel Appleton_, _Seaman_, _Sea Witch_, _Staffordshire_, _Typhoon_, _Westward Ho_, _Winged Arrow_, 18 days; _Bald Eagle_, _Boston Light_, _Defender_, _Eagle_, _Electric_, _Golden Eagle_, _Great Republic_, _Hornet_, _N. B. Palmer_, _Wild Pigeon_, 19 days; _Celestial_, _Cyclone_, _Eureka_, _Governor Morton_, _Herald of the Morning_, _Intrepid_, _Living Age_, _Ocean Telegraph_, _Raven_, _Samuel Russell_, _Sparkling Wave_, _Sword-Fish_, 20 days.

These records indicate the remarkable sailing qualities of the clipper ships, for, if the quickest single runs are added together--the _Stag Hound’s_ 13 days from Boston Light to the equator with an allowance of 2 days for the run from the equator to Cape St. Roque; the _Samuel Russell’s_ 16 days from Cape St. Roque to 50° S.; the _Young America’s_ 6 days from 50° S. in the Atlantic to 50° S. in the Pacific; the _Live Yankee’s_ and _Mary L. Sutton’s_ 16 days from 50° S. to the equator; and the _White Squall’s_ 14 days from the equator to San Francisco--we find that these six ships sailed long distances at the rate of a passage of 67 days from Boston Light to San Francisco, or 22 days less than the record of the _Flying Cloud_ and _Andrew Jackson_--89 days. Yet no one of the six ships which made these splendid runs made the passage from an Atlantic port to San Francisco in less than 100 days.

The records of the other ships are even more remarkable, for allowing 20 days as the outside limit of the four longer runs, with 10 days from 50° S. in the Atlantic to 50° S. in the Pacific and 2 days from the equator to Cape St. Roque, we find that no less than 157 runs were made over distances of thousands of miles, most of them considerably within an average rate of 92 days from Sandy Hook to San Francisco, or well within 3 days of the fastest record time. These records prove, if proof were needed, that the reputation of American clipper ships for speed does not rest upon the fast passages of a few ships, but is based upon the established records of many swift vessels.

Judged by any standard of beauty, the American clipper ships were handsome, noble-looking vessels. During the past fifty years I have seen many fleets of men-of-war and merchant ships, besides naval reviews, and at various times the squadrons of yachts that gather each summer in Cowes Roads and Newport Harbor, but I have never seen a collection of vessels which could compare in stately beauty with the fleet of American clipper ships which lay in the harbor of Hong-kong during the autumn of 1858.

The American clippers were all built of wood and their hulls were painted black from the metal up, though the _Invincible_ carried a crimson stripe, and the _Challenge_, _N. B. Palmer_, _Sweepstakes_, and perhaps two or three others, a stripe of gold. Their yards and bowsprits were usually painted black, the lower masts white to the tops, with the tops and doublings above scraped bright and varnished, but the _Challenge_, _Young America_, and _Mandarin_ carried black lower masts, and a few other ships kept their lower masts bright.

Many of their figureheads were of considerable artistic excellence, being designed by skilful artists, some of whom have already been mentioned. The _Romance of the Seas_ carried the full-length figure of an ancient navigator, whose original might have stood on the high poop of Magellan’s flag-ship, with head bent forward and right hand raised to shade his eager eyes, as he gazed upon an unknown land in an uncharted sea. The _Sea Serpent_ carried a long slender serpent, whose life-like, slimy-looking body, picked out in shades of green and gold, suggested his recent escape from the waters of one of the summer resorts along the Atlantic coast. The _Nightingale_ carried a beautiful bust of Jenny Lind, for whom she was named. The _Panama_ carried at her bow a nude, full-length figure of a beautiful woman with arms extended, pure white and of great artistic merit, perhaps the most beautiful figurehead ever carried by a ship. The _Flying Fish_ carried a fish on the wing, of life-like color and giving a vivid sense of speed; the _Witchcraft_, a grim Salem witch riding upon her aerial broomstick; the _Game-Cock_, a fighting bird with outstretched neck and head, apparently eager for combat; the _Northern Light_, the full-length figure of an angelic creature in flowing white drapery, one graceful arm extended above her head, and bearing in her slender hand a torch with golden flame.

One of the most striking figureheads was the tall square-built sailor, with dark curly hair and bronzed clean-shaven face, who stood at the bow of the _Champion of the Seas_. A black belt with a massive brass buckle supported his white trousers, which were as tight about the hips as the skin of an eel, and had wide, bell-shaped bottoms that almost hid his black polished pumps. He wore a loose-fitting blue-and-white-checked shirt, with wide, rolling collar, and black neck handkerchief of ample size, tied in the most rakish of square knots with long flowing ends. But perhaps the most impressive of this mariner’s togs were his dark-blue jacket, and the shiny tarpaulin hat which he waved aloft in the grip of his brawny, tattooed right hand. The only exception that one could possibly take to this stalwart sailorman was that his living prototype was likely to be met with so very seldom in real life. There were many other figureheads that might be mentioned, but these are best remembered.

In those days New York was one of the most beautiful and picturesque seaports of the world; the water-front was lined with majestic clippers, stately Indiamen, and noble packet ships, their American ensigns and well-known house flags of many brilliant colors floating in the breeze.[13] The view and skyline of the port from the harbor were very beautiful; Battery Park with its fine lawns and trees in the foreground, the graceful spire of Trinity Church forming a prominent landmark, while clustered on every side were the modest yet dignified and substantial residences, gardens, and warehouses of the merchants, with a quiet, refined atmosphere of prosperity and contentment, long since departed.

The New York pilot-boats were remarkably fast and able schooners of from 80 to 90 tons, which cruised to the eastward as far as the Grand Banks, with a hand in the crow’s nest on the lookout for the packets and steamships bound for New York. Among these stanch little vessels were the _Washington_, _Ezra Nye_, _George W. Blunt_, _William H. Aspinwall_, _Mary Taylor_, _Moses E. Grinnell_, _Charles H. Marshall_, _Mary Fish_, _George Steers_, and _Jacob Bell_. The New York pilots themselves were a very superior class of men, who always wore beaver hats when boarding a vessel, and owned their boats, and it was regarded as a compliment and an honor for a citizen of New York to have one of their vessels named for him.

Of the men who commanded the American clipper ships, it may be said that they carried the ensign of the United States to every quarter of the globe, with honor to their country and themselves. They were not, however, all cast in the same mould. Each had his strongly marked individual traits of character, and his human weaknesses. Nothing could be more remote from the truth than to imagine these men as blustering bullies at sea or rollicking shell-backs on shore; neither were they Chesterfields or carpet knights, afloat or ashore, nor at all the type of skipper that one is apt to meet in works of fiction. Many of them might easily have been mistaken for prosperous merchants or professional men, until a more intimate acquaintance disclosed the aura of salted winds and surging seas, and a world-wide knowledge of men and cities. These were the qualities which made so many of these master mariners delightful companions and welcome guests at the firesides of refined and luxurious homes, whose doors could not be opened by golden keys. It may well be doubted whether braver, truer-hearted gentlemen or finer seamen than many of the American clipper ship captains of half a century ago have ever sailed the seas.

Many of the clipper ship captains were accompanied on their voyages by their wives, whose influence at sea was humanizing, while their companionship was a comfort and solace to their husbands. In foreign ports, especially in China and India, they were made much of. The merchants vied with each other to render their visits enjoyable, and nothing in the way of lavish entertainment or costly gift was regarded as too good for them. Mrs. Babcock, of the _Sword-Fish_ and _Young America_; Mrs. Low, of the _N. B. Palmer_; Mrs. Very, of the _Hurricane_; Mrs. Creecy, of the _Flying Cloud_, and Mrs. Andrews, of the _Red Gauntlet_, were veritable sea belles, while Mrs. Patten of the _Neptune’s Car_ proved herself a true heroine.

The _Neptune’s Car_ sailed from New York for San Francisco in June, 1856, and before she reached Cape Horn, Captain Patten was compelled to put his chief officer under arrest on account of incompetence and neglect of duty. That winter off Cape Horn was unusually cold and stormy, and the exposure and fatigue which Captain Patten was obliged to endure brought on an attack of brain fever which soon resulted in his becoming entirely blind. The second mate was a good seaman but knew nothing about navigation. Mrs. Patten at that time was not more than twenty-four years old, but she had acquired a thorough knowledge of navigation upon a previous voyage with her husband round the globe, and she at once assumed command of the ship. For 52 days she navigated this heavily masted clipper of over 1600 tons, taking her safely into the harbor of San Francisco, besides acting as nurse and physician to her husband and keeping him alive by constant care and watchfulness. The chief mate asked to return to duty, but Mrs. Patten declined his aid, as she had no faith in his ability or loyalty, and preferred to trust the faithful though illiterate second mate.

Captain Patten never recovered his health and died at Boston on July 26, 1857, in his thirty-sixth year. His funeral took place at Christ Church in that city, with the colors of the shipping in the harbor at half mast, and the bells of the church tolling in his honor. Captain Joshua A. Patten was born in Rockland, Maine, and had followed the sea from boyhood. He was a prominent Mason, and for several years had been a member of Christ Church. Mrs. Mary Patten was a beautiful woman of the finest New England type, with a refined, gentle voice and manner. While not active in the then newly-organized women’s rights movement, she was unwillingly made to appear as the star example of woman’s ability to compete successfully in the pursuits and avocations of man.