Veteran Film Star of the Sea

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 27, 23 April 1927, Page 17 (Supplement)

Veteran Film Star of the Sea

(Written for THE SUN by

WILL LAWSON)

rpWO years ago, I saw a large windjammer enter San Francisco after wandering almost all over the Pacific. She came crawling into port, through the Golden Gate, when the sunset was making the famous sea entrance live up to its name—the Narwhal, that had been given up as lost; the freak ship on which 21 gentlemen rovers of the high seas had sailed from San Francisco 18 months before. The Narwhal is one of the old-fash-ioned barques that helped to make San Francisco famous 50 years ago; a real old ship, with rounded lines, solid timbers and lofty spars. Had ships tender feelings, and there are sailors who say they have, never would a veteran of the sea have left such indignity as this old-timer, when she put to sea with a crew of longshoremen, and only two real sailors to trim them into shape. One of these old salts was “ Fitz ” Fitzpatrick, the mate. When the Narwhal towed out of San Francisco Bay and was left to her own devices, there was scarce a man on board who knew what first must be done. Though all were willing, few knew how, and here was where “ Fitz ” blew in and shook the raw stuff into shape. Captain Arey had command, and Murry N. Fay, the movie-manager was the boss, but “ Fitz ” made the Narwhal go. They took 42,000 ft. of film, and the Narwhal sailed 42,000 miles, Putting* out, the Narwhal took 19 days to reach Honolulu, encountering two big storms en route. From Honolulu to American Samoa, the sailing time was 13 days. From there she went to Sydney. After she left Sydney, with “ Fitz ” in hospital there, the old barque fussed about the seas for 55 days looking for Noumea that she had left lying around two months before. In the seas near the Island of Pines, Captain Arey is reported to have done some fancy sailing through the Woodin Canal, where no ship had ever sailed before. But when the movie-film flicks, ships must obey. Storms and hurricanes seemed to make a set on the Narwhal, or perhaps the old ship had become reconciled to the idea of staying at sea for the remainder of her days. It was when they were barging eastward from Noumea to the Maruesas, with “ Fitz ” Fitzpatrick back on board again, having rejoined her by steamer, that the crew was threatened with starvation. If all the storms that hit the Narwhal are shown in the movies she took, there will be a wild rush for seats when the shows open. They tuckered up at Nukuhiva in the Marquesas, and laid in stores for a 35-day voyage, and when she took * 2 days—time for the mailboat to run two round trips from San Francisco to Sydney and back—well, they just naturally had to kill Mickie the pig, who had been the ship’s mascot —or Jonah—throughout a great part of her Pacific -wanderings. So after all their privations and experiences they “ came home on the pig’s back.”