"Some of the reports of alleged derelict ships are as thrilling as a nautical novel. In May, 1823, the _Integrity_ fell in with a derelict close to Jamaica, the decks and hull of which were showing a rich crop of barnacles. Her cabin was full of water, but a trunk was fished up which contained coins, rings, and watches. This salvage realized 3,000 pounds. In August, 1872, the schooner _Lancaster_ sighted a dismasted derelict, the _Glenalvon_, on board of which several skeletons of men were discovered, but not a morsel of food. An open Bible, it is reported, lay face downward on the cabin table alongside a loaded revolver and a bottle containing a piece of paper on which was written: "Jesus, guide this to some helper! Merciful God, don't let us perish!" All the bodies were reverently committed to the deep, and the derelict left for whatever the future had in store for her. "In 1882 the Nova Scotia barque _L.E. Cann_ was towed into a United States port by a steamship which had found her adrift. Later on in dry dock, fifteen auger holes were located in her hull, below the water line. They had all been bored from the inside, and subsequent inquiry revealed the fact that her former captain had conspired with a resident of Vera Cruz to load the vessel with a bogus cargo, insure it heavily, scuttle her when in a suitable position at sea, and divide the insurance money. Unfortunately for these partners in crime, the barque did not lend herself to their nefarious operations nearly as well as was expected. "In 1894 the Austrian barque _Vila_, carrying a cargo of bones, which were said to have been gathered from the battle fields of Egypt, was found derelict by a Norwegian steamer and towed into New York. Not a word has ever been heard as to the fate of this vessel's crew. Presumably they took to the boats for some reason, and disappeared without leaving a trace. About the same time the sailing vessel _C.E. Morrison_ was fallen in with, a drifting derelict and set on fire. The crew of a destroyer first salved a bank-book, a sextant, fifty charts, and some pictures, all of which were eventually returned to their rightful owner, Captain Hawes, who had been compelled to leave his vessel without standing on the order of his going. In 1895 the derelict and burning barkantine _Celestina_, bound from Swansea to the Strait of Magellan, was boarded by a boat's crew of the barque _Annie Maud_. A written message was found on the cabin table stating that she had been abandoned in open boats. The fire having been partially subdued, sail was made on the prize, and volunteers navigated her to Rio Janeiro.