1961-11-18 — Page 12

THE CHINA MAIL SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1961.

Today-the first of an exciting five-part series

Search for

the 'Yankee cheese-box'

ON DECEMBER 30, 1862, a furious gale swept the bleak,

island-like sand strips off the eastern coast of North Caro- lina known as the Outer Banks.

About 10 miles off the easternmost tip of the banks, Cape Hatteras, the cold, grey Atlantic seas thundered down on the decks of two naval vessels. One was the paddle-wheeler Rhode Island. The other, being tow- ed by Rhode Island, was a weird-looking craft, the ironclad Monitor.

Few ships in the history of in the Washington office legendary or controversial than of "Life" magazine. An the Monitor. Revolutionary in ex-Second World War concept, she was designed

the United States Navy are more

Princeton

in New York and proposed that ion to el Marx sacute claim, Th edilor agreed and SOUR I was en route to Camp

the magazine mount an expedi-

his

For mos un married Marines,

lina, leaves much to be desired.

submariner, I was es- Lejeune. the nery, imaginative John Ericsson, who built the world's pecially interested in first screw-propelled vessel, the stories of undersea ad-

ventures and ship Berau of in. Monitor's Taris

Superstructure wrecks. Thus, when I ordinar only he revolving gun turret picked up the newspaper one day, I was intrigued by this heading: MAR- INF SKIN

distance.

was visible from she was a poor target and wes

on a raft."

nicknamed "Yanker cheese-box

wa

Mountainous seas soon ture a gap between the Monitor's hull and deck The pilot house filled with water. Th cuplain signalled that he was abandoning ship. Then the Monitor drugged unchor and drifted

in the darkness with 18 men abuard

There. among countless other hulks in the shifting samts

the Outer Banks, the Monitor

foundered and sleg in until July, 1955

Then there began a new Come troversial chapter in her his- tory.

camp Lejeune, stuck away in a emote comer of North Carc- But for Marx, the location hard ty Cape Hatteras with s colossal number of shipwrecks (estimates range from 600 to 2.800) was little less than paradise. The story DIVER trigued Marx most was that of

that in-

CLAIMS ΤΟ HAVE the Monitor, which in many

FOUND HULK OF MONITOR

I read the story. It said that Corp Robert F Marx stationed at Camp Lejeune. the Marine Corps busa in North Carolina. han lorated the Civil War hulk while ski diving off Cape Hat-

TRS

Claim

Further exploratory efforis had been thwarted because he lacked money for a boat, "You can't rent a boat on a corporal's Jay" Marx saying.

IN July, 1956, I was a correspondent specia- lising in military affairs gand sinry

$110

for 20%

quoted Was

ways. is Holteras' most famous wreck.

Lighthouse

He made friends with an

Banke- elderly Outer

neme Gray who thought

couli help

he

Diving

cheese-box on a raft" wa' scen in the breakers,

Mark returned to the Library of Congress in Washing.on and checked through the old news- papers and issus of "Harper's

Weekly." The Monitor,

found, was commonly referred

-

for

pleasure

by

CLAY BLAIR, Jun.,

He led Marx to an uld record to as the "Yankee chece-Box who, with the leading American

listed hook which family history such inarriages and deaths.

pertment as births.

2

contained The book also notation made early in January. 1865, about two years after the Monitor

sank, which described

a funnily "old country Christmas reletrafion" down on the beach.

All this had the auking of a near Cape Hatteras lighthouse. I phoned an editor during which the "Yankee

Cool and soothing

to the throat and chest

CONSULATE

CONSULATE

Menthol Fresh

FILTER TIPPED CIGARETTES-

55¢

for 10's

on a raft."

Returning to Hatteras, Marx checked another fact: Had the

skin-diver, ROBERT MARX, sought

same lighthouse been standing ancient wrecks under the sea and?

in the same position all Chose years"

He discovered that it had not. The present lighthouse is a new one. But Marx found the foun- dotions of the old one about 100 jeet south of the new one, which was close enough.

There W25 now only DAJ thing jeri 10 dc: search the breakers. In January. 1955.

had adventures that make their?

Įstory as exciting as any to be

found in fiction.

Marx thought the chip might

Marx took a week's leave and bethat is to stity about # lugged his diving equipment 15 mlle northeast of the Ughi- Hatteras. His week-long search house-there was produced not а sign of X.

the "Yankee cheese-box on raft."

Receding

h

One day Marx discovered an

a large rad

As they sat drinking. Marx worked his conversation around to the subject of the Monitor. But the old men refused be drawn out. With something of

an uneasy feeling, Marx paid his respects and, after finishing

old man of Hatteras. He was the drink, left the house. surprised to see that it put the Not long afterward, Marx location of the lighthous que discovered the identity of the a bit intend from its pretent position on the coast line.

man.

"He's Ben Dixon MacNeill,” "Have I got the wrong light- said a friend, "Kind of a bouse?" he wondered. Then the journalist amateur histor- answer came. The coast line of fan. His hobby is the Monitor, Hatteras, lezed by turbulent which was supposed to have waves and currents all these sunk off Hatteras." years, has been receding-tdging

closer to the lighthouse. In the Later in the day Marx ap- last 100 years, It has crept in preached MacNeill."" now all nearly a mile.

about your interest in the Monitor, Mr MacNeill," Marx the Monitor said. "Why don't we have 2

"That meant could not be in the present talk?"

breakers," Marx said, "but our

in the water about a mile."

They did for many hours,

had

THE AUTHOR

Marx recalls: "All at once,

1

ROBERT MARX

the plane buzzed my raft mad on shore, such as the light From the rare and valuable

ly. The wings, were waggling house and a radio tower. Us- records of the 10th Indian Re- Like Marx, MacNeill was so hard I thought they would ing the plane's magnetic co- riment which was stationed at convinced that the hulk

come off. They buzzed me again pass for bearings, Marx obtain Cape Hatteras in 1882. Marx washed ashore at a position a

ed an approximate" ix, found a clue: shortly after the mile northeast of the Light- ent again. Monitor sank, the bodies of five house. Then he revealed that "Andy" Anderson was beside The small encampment had of the crew were washed ashore in aerial searches he had seen himself with excitement.

on Hatteras.

reached a fever-pitch of ex-

paid MacNett a visit, agraden suggesting a reconciliation but MacNeill refused to offer any kind of assistance. The achish was broad and deep and would remain so, a

any

a hulk belleved to be the

Now that he had roughly Monitor nine times in seven "Marx! Marx! Quick, get up citement. Anderson, recalling marked the location or the They had been buried, the years," and that he had ob- there! You can see wrecks all that they had brought along a wreck, Mark was dous to over the place, You can see bottle of fine old wine to get into his dying gear and rerords stated, alongside a cedar tained rough bearings.

the Monitor. Close in by the celebrate, if and when they go down to take a first-hand found the Monitor, raded to look. But difficulties mounted, the cabin. He emerged from He was near penniless eating

tree on a small knoll, about a Eventually there emerged a shore.

half-mile behind the lighthouse.

Soon Marx was back on Hatteras, searching through the bramble on the knell directly inland of the lighthouse. There was no sign of the cedar tree, but he found a rotted stump.

plan to mount a joint effort find the Monitor.

to

Operations

“I could see at least a dozen the room still manning, bottle fish he could spear in the wrecks scattered about like toy in hand, whereupon he tripped sound. Typically for Hatteras, ships in a bath tub.

on the sidewalk and fell head the weather tursed bad again "I could see the gun turret long. The bottle was smashed and the seas became rough. In and pilot house of the Monitor Broken

and Anderson landed on the spite of this, Marx urged daher

fragments,

severely men to take boats free On June 5, Maax arrived at sticking up on the bow.

him out in their The outting his wrists and Hands.

big

of Cape Hatteras,

shrimp along with a stern was half buried

charge. They

He scouted the area near the companion and member of his sand stump and almost fell headlong skin diving club, Marine P.F.C. into a deep hole. Could this be Donald Anderson, age 19. the grave? If so, who had un- earthed it and why?

MADE

IN

ENGLAND

behind him and

commanding voice:

my property?"

BEST TOBACCOS » PERFECTED FILTER

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They moved into quarters' in

"Bombing"

Apprehension

ગ

laughed.

Finally, the

eriff,

named Basset, perha

transpor

ing a sense of history,

to lend a hand H

a beachside motel, furnished by Marx heard a crackle of twigs MacNeill and on the following forth over the Monitor while Marx dropped a coin into the small boat powered by an

The plane flew back and Meanwhile, back at the cabin, Marx and his gear to sea in a then a deep day began operations,

Marx made ready to cast arudio in his room. He was board motor. But in that rou Anderson climbed into a plane homemade buoy from the astonished to hear a weled "Why are you trespassing on and flew back and forth over plane, He ensed the heavy cous cacophony something like water the traft proved unsu

the approximate spot, while crete block out of the cockpit "Beep, Tweet, Beep, and then able for diving in Marx cruised beneath-him-an intill dangled 20 or 30 Aget the words, "This is Monitor all they could do to

200 wamping Mary thre Starlied, Marx wheeled the water in a small boat, below the fuselage. Then, as it was the first time Mark had twelve bucys to marks the -around-and-saw-an old wrinkle

Holland few directly over the heard this new programonéta ximate position-of- faced man holding a rifle.

As the days passed, weather wreck Marx Lossed out the feature of NBC, wid when he then for the next four days "I'm trying to find

"Monitor" he some conditions worsened, tempers lard can attached to the con- heard the word

he sat on the beach, hebobless, evidence which will help me became short, and Mark and crete. The can caught in the was suddenly seized with deep watebing the boys colle locate the Monitor," Marx said. MacNeill began snapping at ap stream, emashed against apprehension. He asked Him He felt foolish.

one another, a condition that the rear of the fuselage, goug self, "Am I going nutory and down' sa In Arendelke "Come up to the house and seems ultimately to prevail Ining out a large bola in the I'll give you'a drink,” the old most salyage operations,

He ran from the

the cabin, heavy of heart, RAMRA man said.

of a thing on radio called kamp bag Monitor?!! •He was not re-

Astonished

fabric. Then it arched down

Water

14

** of Jurse tule letve exalted, and he returned to Camo Telsune,

Soon the partnership broke ward and splashed into the shouting "Anybody ever heard Neste

On Sunday morning, June 12, Marx's bombing was poor, assured until he found come

with the water clearing, Marx The buoy tended a few dun- one who had. Even so, for the Laid down a concerted air-sea dred yards closer to the bescht rest of the day, he marveled

Anderwon the Monitor made

Inside the old man's house attacks

Marx saw, to fils detonishment, He cent the probable area, than the betual position of at the coincidence. A trap of Cape Hatteras with loft an the plane to an ou mental note of this and then By afternoon the word "Monitor pinshed server. Mark himself, put to ordered Holland to fly tho oplebradkarire the Bross it in a cold, red grosse aen in a rubber life raft, carry, battered plane over the ship or bad reme towartpornirent, landamerks of Ben Dion NEBON pencil. At the point where, ing buoym

NEXT WEEK

The Monitor,

reached