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Show lira win AMERICAN VESSEL Fishing Schooner Charles Levi Woodbury Fired on by the Cruiser Kestrel. POACHING ALLEGED AS ! CAUSE 'OF THE SEIZURE- Captains of Respective Boats Tell Conflicting Stories; American Protests. VANCOUVER. B. C, April 21. The Dominion government cruiser Kestrel arrived in port todaj, having in charge the American halibut fishing schooner Charles Levi Woodbury, which she captured after firing four rounds from her Nordcnfeldt machine guns and threatening to sink the alleged poaching poach-ing vessel unless bho surrendered. Three of tho ,vollcys wore intended as a warning, but as no attention was paid to them, a fourth was directed ;it llio 1 schooner which struck" and slightly damaged her. Tho captain of the Amerie.nn vessel did not surrender, however, until his schooner was boarded by a force from the cruiser. The action took place Sunday afternoon after-noon in northern waters, allegod to be contiguous to Canada. Four bullets toro through the air in the direction of the Woodbury. J2ac.li timo tho machine yun was fired as tho vessels headed at full speed from the west const of Vancouver Van-couver island and pointed toward the middle of the Pacific. Last Round Has Effect. Threo of tho rounds wero merely intended in-tended to call attention to the "command "com-mand to heave to which has been issued is-sued to the American schooner. But tho last scries of shots meant business. busi-ness. Tho gun was pointed at the lish boat, which was then at a distance of about 200 yards, And still making for tho open sea as rapidly as possible. Tho bullots were aimed high and ripped tho mainsail of the schooner, and one or two knocked splinters off tho main , mast. Capt. Sinclair feared that ho would be sunk right thoro if ho did not j stop. Ar tho same moment the second gun of tho Kestrel was swung across her deck to get into range of the fishing fish-ing boat. The Woodbury's engines wore then stopped and her sails, gashed by British bullets, hauled down. But even then the American captain would not willingly surrender. He declined to fasten a hawser aboard his vessel, but a few minutes later an officer and threo men from tho Jvestrel boarded the Woodbury and took charge. Claims a Clear Case. Capt. Newcomb of tho Kestrel declares de-clares that if he ever had a clear ease against an American vessel, that is tho one. Early Sunday afternoon, ho declares, de-clares, tho ICestrel was steaming north front Quntsino Sound on tho west coast, when ho spied an American vessel fishing between east and west llnycock Islands. Thcso islands lie about leu miles off Capo Scott, the iiorthermost point of Vancouver Island. The islands aro five miles apart, so that from Capt. Newcomb 's figuring it is impossiblo that tho American bont could bo more than two and a half miles from either shore. As a matter of fact, Newcomb says that when he first observed her tho vessel was within a mile of East island. By the time she had picked up her do'rics sho was within a short distance of West Island. Capt. Sinclair of tho Woodbury apparently ap-parently did not notice thu arrival of the Jvostrol on the scene until tho government gov-ernment vessel was within about three miles. Then the American ran along, pick-t'ontinucd pick-t'ontinucd on Page Two. BRITISH CAPTURE AMERICAN VESSEL Continued From Pago One. ing up his five 'dories, the fishermen cutting" , their gear,' Without wasting titac to pull a fathom of it in. Within twenty minutes after the Kestrel was sighted the last dory hnd been picked up and the schooner, with her motor pow.er working to its full capacity and, tier sails spread to a fine western breeze, turned towjrd the highlands of the Pacific, The cruiser gradually over-hauled over-hauled the American schooner, and b the time they were four and a quarter milcB off shore the Kestrel was along Hide and the captains of the two ves-sols ves-sols were conversing. Declined to Stop. ,Oapt. Newcomb hud signalled several times for the Americans to stop, but they 'kept ou. The first gun was fired when the race had but well bogun, and the next two were directed to send the bullets acroBS tho bows of tho Yankee vessel.- But the captain .of tho latter made no attempt to stop. Whon Capfc. j jNewcomb got abreast tho American he opened communication through a speaking speak-ing trumpet. 'Stop, or T will put a hole througli you." called Cupt. Newcomb. "I. don't think .so," said Sinclair, iu a reply that came plainly over the raging waters. Then the big gun wont oft and a little lit-tle section of the Woodbury's sail was in shreds. When the second gun of tho Kestrel had been unswiveled and (rained on tho schooner Capt. Sinclair realized that further flight was useless, use-less, and surrendered. Ho refused, how-over, how-over, to help navigate, his vessel to port, and would not even niako fast a hawser. His engineer declined to turu over the gasoline equipment. Tho warship war-ship then took tho Woodbury in tow and headed for Vancouver, arriving this morning, when the prizo was tied up at the wharf. The Woodbury is a schooner about 100 feet long and is of 120 tons burden. She has been fishing out of Seattle. for a number of years. Captain Makos Protest. Capt. Sinclair, master of the Charles Levi Woodbury, visited the United States consulate today and lodged a complaint with Col. West, the American Ameri-can consul. West will take sworn depositions of Capt. Suulnir and members of the crew and investigate tho case. If he thinks the Seizure was not justified he will lodge" a protest. Until matters are straightened tho crow of the schoonor will remain aboard her. She is owned by the Standard Fish company of Seattle. In an interview today. Capt. Sinclair said; "We left Seattle on Monday,. April 12, and after a stay of two days at Bellingham, proceeded north with a crew of twenty-five- hands, all told. About 2:30 p. m. ou Sunday, April IS, tho Canadian cruiser steamed alongside along-side and ordered mo to heave to. I was told my vessel was under seizure. I ordered the engines stopped and the Kestrel sent her first officer aboard. I asked what the matter was, and he told me it was seized, and he wanted mo to go into Bull harbor. 1 refused to do ,so, as I was in tho Pacific ocean on the high seas, and so the Kestrel passed a hawser to my schooner and towed me to Bull harbor, where we stayed that night. "As near as I can tell T was steering a southwest course, aud was four or five miles in that direction from Haycock Island when seized.' ' "Were 3'ou fishing at the time?" asked tho correspondent. "No; all my dories were aboard and T was making a passage. I told the first officer of the Kestrel when ho boarded mo that I was on the high seas, and ho agreed that I was then in tho Pacific, and not in territorial waters. " "Is it a fact hnfc the Kestrel fired on you?" "I don't know anything about that. Some of my men told me we were fired on, but I am not prepared to say anything any-thing about that." J "Is it your opinion that the seizure was unjustifiable?" "Wo claim that when the Kestrol grabbed us we were on tho high seas." |